Yes it's true, Brighton College, an independent school in East Sussex, became the first to make the language compulsory, alongside French, Spanish and Latin.
But why is it so tough to learn?
Firstly, the script poses problems. There is no alphabet, just thousands of characters. There are so many that no one can give a definitive total, but it is believed to be around 60,000.
Secondly, the tonal system is hard for Westerners. While the meaning of English words does not change with tone, the same is not true for Mandarin.
The good news is that grammar is easier in Mandarin. For example there are no verb tenses, no relative clauses and no singular or plural.