Dubai: GEMS Founders School to increase capacity by 1,000 places

Dubai - Campus will be enlarged to encompass site previously occupied by GEMS Al Barsha National School for Boys.

By Nandini Sircar

Published: Tue 30 Mar 2021, 6:12 PM

Last updated: Tue 30 Mar 2021, 6:13 PM

A Dubai school is set to expand in time for the start of the 2021-22 academic year in September.

Gems Founders School - Dubai (GFS) in Al Barsha, which follows the National Curriculum of England, will be increasing its capacity by an initial 1,000 places and rising to a total of 1,800 in future to accommodate students on the waiting list.

The campus of GES – Dubai which opened in 2016 will be enlarged to encompass the purpose-built site previously occupied by GEMS Al Barsha National School for Boys, located immediately adjacent to GEMS Founders School. Added facilities include two sports halls, two multi-use games areas, a football pitch, a dance studio, two libraries, one dining hall and 200 sqm of playground area.

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Matthew Burfield, Principal and CEO of GEMS Founders School – Dubai and Vice President – Education at GEMS Education, said: “The success of the GEMS Founders model is reflected in the opening of a second GEMS Founders School in Al Mizhar in 2018 and now the further expansion of the first school. We are incredibly excited about the additional opportunities this campus expansion will offer our children.”

“The GEMS Founders brand has shifted the education landscape in Dubai, ensuring families have access to the fantastic quality they have come to expect of a GEMS Education school and at an affordable fee point.” said Burfield.

GFS opened FS1 to Year 8 in September 2016, with record numbers of children joining in the first year. In September 2018, the school received approval to open Year 10 and Year 12, allowing it to launch its IGCSE and A Level programmes.

Today, GFS offers the internationally recognised qualifications through Cambridge and Oxford AQA International Examination boards.

It was rated ‘Good’ in its first DSIB inspection, as well as the highest grade in Remote Learning Evaluations.

It is also a fully accredited British School Overseas with the Department for Education in the UK, with five of the eight areas rated Outstanding, and the rest Good.

The expansion is apparently subject to final approvals from the relevant government authorities.

nandini@khaleejtimes.com