GEMS Al Barsha National School
GEMS Al Barsha National School
GEMS Al Barsha National School (GNS) is a British curriculum school in Al Barsha South 2, Dubai, teaching an enhanced English National Curriculum from Foundation Stage 1 to Year 13. KHDA records an opening year of 2017; KHDA's first inspection report (2021-22) says the school opened in 2020, formed following a merger of the separate boys' and girls' schools. British Schools Overseas inspectors counted 883 pupils in October 2025, from over 57 nationalities, of whom 64% are Emirati. Girls and boys are taught in mixed classes from FS1 to Year 4 and separately from Year 5 upwards, in line with the school's Emirati and Islamic identity. The Foundation Stage runs a dual language programme that blends the EYFS framework with UAE Ministry of Education standards, with native English-speaking teachers alongside Arabic-speaking teachers and assistants, and a Desert School outdoor programme inspired by UK forest schools. Key Stage 4 offers ten GCSE options alongside IGCSEs and three BTEC Level 2 courses, and the sixth form runs A Levels and BTEC National Diplomas. In 2025 every BTEC Level 3 student earned a Distinction grade (D*-D) and 72% achieved the top Distinction*. KHDA rated the school Acceptable overall in 2023-2024, with Good for wellbeing and for the National Agenda Parameter, and Outstanding in three of four phases for students' understanding of Islamic values and awareness of Emirati and world cultures, which the school describes as its first ever Outstanding judgement. Its October 2025 British Schools Overseas inspection judged it a good school providing a good quality of education, with outstanding capacity for further improvement, and graded its curriculum, pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, their welfare, health and safety, and its leadership and management outstanding.
Fees read from the school's published 2026-27 fee schedule; KHDA rating from its 2023-24 inspection report. Last checked 26 September 2026. How Talem verifies →
Fees for 2026/2027, per year group. Excludes registration, uniform, and transport.
The school publishes two columns for 2026-27, the KHDA-approved annual fee and its own 2026-27 annual fee, and the second is lower in the early years: Foundation Stage 1 is AED 40,000 against an approved 45,428, Foundation Stage 2 is AED 45,000 against 56,244, and Year 1 is AED 50,000 against 56,244. No eligibility condition is attached to those figures. From Year 2 upward the school's fee matches the approved one to within a dirham (AED 56,244.40, 61,651.55 and 67,059). KHDA's 2026-27 fact sheets record that the school requested no tuition increase. An application fee of AED 525 including VAT applies, and a registration deposit of 10 per cent of tuition is deducted from the first term's fees. The Najahi Scholarship is open to Years 7 to 13 for 2026-27 and can cover up to 75 per cent of tuition on a points basis; books, uniform and transport are excluded from it. The school's sibling discount is published only for 2025-26 and has not been restated for 2026-27, so families should confirm it. Paying the year's fees in advance with the FAB GEMS World Credit Card saves up to 3 per cent. The fee covers a bilingual Foundation Stage in Arabic and English, a teacher-led extra-curricular programme across sport, arts, robotics and innovation, and the Desert School; uniform, transport and exam entry fees are charged separately.
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KHDA 2023–2024 inspection
Dual language programme blending the English National Curriculum EYFS framework with UAE Ministry of Education standards, taught by native English-speaking teachers alongside Arabic-speaking teachers and assistants. Arabic is timetabled five times a week in FS1 and FS2, with English and Arabic phonics lessons, and Desert School is a timetabled weekly lesson. Play-based learning across the seven areas of the EYFS framework.
English National Curriculum enriched with UAE Ministry of Education requirements. Mixed classes to Year 4, with girls and boys taught separately from Year 5. Arabic is timetabled five lessons a week in every year, and Spanish is taught in Years 5 and 6. Year 1 continues the bilingual model with Arabic-fluent teaching assistants, and new vocabulary is given with Arabic translations across the school. Read Write Inc, White Rose Maths and Accelerated Reader are used throughout.
A bespoke Key Stage 3 curriculum taught by subject specialists, in single-gender classes. The published timetable carries English, Maths, Science, Arabic, Islamic Education, Social Studies, Humanities, a combined Arts/Design Technology/Food rotation, PE, Spanish and Information Technology. Students begin preparing for GCSE pathway selection, with tailored academic counselling from Year 9, and from 2026-27 a BTEC Level 2 strand is introduced for the Year 9 cohort.
GCSE programme in single-gender classes. Every student takes English, Maths, Science, Arabic, Islamic Education and PE; Social Studies runs in Year 10. Pupils choose from ten GCSE options and three BTEC Level 2 courses, alongside IGCSEs. Alternative pathways include second-language English and foundation GCSEs in science and mathematics for learners with additional needs. In 2025 the proportion of students achieving grades 4-9 across all subjects rose by 17.5 percentage points, and 42% of entries were graded 9-5.
A Level and International BTEC pathways, described by the school as a small sixth form offering a handful of A Level and BTEC Level 3 qualifications; 88 students were in the sixth form in October 2025. Most take three A Levels or two BTECs, and combinations are allowed. A Level courses run over five 55-minute lessons a week, BTECs over ten, with the same again expected in independent study. Arabic continues in Years 12 and 13 for students holding an Arabic passport or seeking the Secondary School Equivalency Certificate. In 2025 every BTEC Level 3 student earned a Distinction grade (D*-D) and 72% achieved Distinction*; 36% of BTEC Business Extended Diploma students achieved a triple Distinction* and 50% of BTEC Applied Science Extended Diploma students a double Distinction*. In English, BSO inspectors found sixth-form students attaining results well above international averages, almost one grade higher than predicted. BSO inspectors judged the quality of Post-16 provision outstanding, and the proportion of students entering the sixth form with at least five good GCSE passes including English and mathematics rose from 40% in 2023 to 71% in 2025.
Science laboratories, with risk assessments in place for practical work.
Computer lab. As a Microsoft Showcase School, the school makes digital learning a strength, with iPads and learning platforms extending pupils' learning.
Libraries with a bilingual collection: many titles carry English and Arabic on the same page, and fluent readers can borrow the same book in both languages.
Auditorium used for larger school events.
Design technology workshop, with risk assessments in place for practical work.
Food technology lab. Food and Nutrition is offered at GCSE.
Digital innovation suites.
Art and textile design spaces.
Principal/CEO
A school leader with over two decades of senior leadership experience, whose first headship began in 2004. Recognised as a National Leader of Education and a Lead Ofsted Inspector in the UK, she has guided schools from Special Measures to Outstanding. She became Director of Education at an all-through school in Dubai in 2019, and was previously Executive Headteacher of The New Wave Federation in London, overseeing three high-performing primary schools.
Vice Principal
Head of Primary
Head of Secondary
Assistant Principal - Head of Inclusion
Assistant Principal - FS and KS1
Assistant Principal - KS2 and Mathematics
Assistant Principal Secondary - Pastoral
Assistant Principal Secondary - Assessment, Teaching and Learning
Assistant Principal Primary - Pastoral and English
Assistant Principal Secondary - Curriculum
Governor of Inclusion
Based on 1 review
Amazing school for my child. 5 star rating
Al Barsha South 2, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
