A school run by the Russian foreign ministry in west London is teaching its pupils how to use battlefield drones, it has been reported.
The Russian Embassy School in Notting Hill is attended by the children of some known and suspected spies, as well as Soviet diplomats working in the UK.
Lesson plans show that Year 10 pupils, aged 14 and 15, were given an hour-long lesson in January on the ‘basics of technical preparation and communications’ for combat drones.
Last term, children were also taught first aid in the battlefield and a class on how to protect yourself from chemical and biological weapons, The Times has reported.
The teaching is being delivered under a course called Fundamentals of Security and Protection of the Motherland, known as OBZR, which was implemented across Russian schools at the start of last academic year.
Its introduction came amid an increase in militarised and propagandistic teaching since Vladimir Putin‘s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
In 2024, it was reported that the Russian Embassy School was instructing its pupils on how to assemble guns and throw grenades in PE.
Pupils attending the Russian Embassy school in London are seen singing the Russian national anthem in September 2024
A pupil is seen hoisting the Russian tricolour flag as they take part in the back to school assembly in 2024
Meanwhile, in history lessons the children were being taught that Ukraine is a ‘puppet of the West’ that has set out to ‘destabilise’ Russia.
Around 100 pupils are thought to attend the school, 60 of which are aged between seven and 18 who take classes for five days a week over three terms each year.
The remaining 40 or so attend classes in the evening.
Of these around three-quarters have parents who work at the embassy or the trade mission, while the rest are thought to be the children of Russians living in Britain or children of those working at the Belarus embassy.
Pupils, some of which hold British citizenship or dual nationality, are required to have knowledge of the Russian language.
Parents who are not diplomatic officials are made to pay fees of less than £1,000 year, according to The Times.
The school is just half a mile away from the Russian embassy and is situated in a Victorian townhouse.
Upon entering the school, pupils are greeted with a portrait of Vladimir Putin which hangs in the hallway entrance.
The Russian Embassy School in Notting Hill is attended by the children of some known and suspected Russian spies as well as Soviet diplomats working in the UK
A woman is seen leading a group of young school children across the playground in September 2024
Teachers must follow the Russian state curriculum, with propagandised history lessons that present the war in Ukraine as part of Russia’s historical mission.
One former pupil, who left the school in 2022 but did not want to be named, previously said that pupils also practice throwing grenades using tennis balls.
Pictures from the school’s sports day in 2024 show children taking part in competitive bandaging and crossbow shooting.
Pupils also dressed up in Red Army, the military force of the Russian Soviet Republic, while celebrating Victory Day, which commemorates the country’s victory over the Nazis in 1945, according to The Times.
The school does not come under the jurisdiction of the Department for Education or the school inspectorate.
This is because it is subject to diplomatic exemptions as a branch of the Russian embassy.
There are around 80 other Russian embassy schools located around the world, although one school in Warsaw was shut down by the Polish government in 2023 in a move branded as an ‘invasion’ by the Kremlin.
The Daily Mail has contacted the Russian Embassy for comment. They are yet to comment on the report in The Times.
