Future elite: Investing in British futures

"A child should be disciplined. What the majority of us want for our children is a healthy dose of freedom to allow for creative and critical thinking, but not too much as to turn these youngsters into little pumas at large," says the mother who only wants to be known as Mrs Wang.

According to Vanbergen, this typical view among Chinese parents has given British schools some real edge over their American counterparts, with the latter being associated with a more liberal, free-rein teaching style.

Vanbergen's previous interviews with the UK media painted a picture of the ultimate coach for "Britishness".

But in our interview, he has studiously avoided the word, possibly out of concern for cultural sensitivity.

Among the values Vanbergen believes to be the inherent characteristics of the upper crust of British society is "honesty" - although many of his countrymen are bound to disagree.

Another key value is "fair play", which Vanbergen described as "the essence of Britishness".

But the question is, who can guarantee that these children, born with silver spoons, will inherit these so-called noble characteristics?

Vanbergen, who claims to have "the richest father" among his schoolmates in Eton, offers his take on the matter.

"No one can choose their parents, so fair play would have to mean those lucky ones helping the less lucky ones by giving them a better start."

Citing an example, he says British schools impart the value of social responsibility by engaging children in charity work.

And Vanbergen believes that by immersing themselves in British culture from an early age, these children will acquire a genuine Western perspective that would be extremely helpful when they come back to China to join their homegrown entrepreneur parents.

He says the old-school tie will eventually come to good use in building an international business network.

Overall, Vanbergen views the trend as a win-win deal.

"These future leaders of China will certainly look favorably at us," he says.

But Xia Xueluan, professor of sociology at Peking University, thinks otherwise.

"Given the volatility of international economics and politics, this sounds to me more like lobby talk than practical, shrewd calculations," Xia says.

Elitist education, due to its nature, is prone to criticism. But it would be unfair to simply dismiss what BE Education and similar China-based education businesses do as merely helping pampered kids purchase a piece of intelligence at a stratospherically high price. Most of the parents have done in-depth research before making their informed decisions.

Mrs Wang, the mother of the 13-year-old girl, says both she and her daughter had made multiple trips to Britain before.

"Academically, my girl was among the top achievers at school in Beijing.

"But she really liked what she saw in London and wants to give it a try. What I want for her is to see the world and live a happy life."

Britain has been inundating the Chinese market with their paid education service for nearly two decades.

Now, with a new wave of demand cresting, the country has to make sure its most prized and historic institutions receive only the most qualified, and not fall into the trap of commercialization.

As for the wealthy Chinese parents, they may have to moderate their ambitions a little.

Our increasingly small world may not be able to offer that many leading roles for their Eton-trained, Imperial College-educated sons and daughters.