Our School

The British International School Abu Dhabi opened in September 2009 offering a premium contemporary education option for families in Abu Dhabi. Since then our school has grown from strength to strength and has developed an outstanding reputation in the region.

The British International School offers the English National Curriculum and IGCSE courses and intends to offer the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, respected worldwide as an academically rigorous qualification and excellent preparation for success at university. The resources and facilities help to provide a stimulating and exciting environment that encourages pupils to fully engage in their learning. We do of course adapt our curriculum in places to make sure it is right for a multi-national community of people living in Abu Dhabi.

Ensuring every child reaches their full potential is at the heart of what we do. Our use of assessment tools, detailed tracking systems and analysis of pupil progress ensures that we know where every child is in their learning and the next steps they need to take to achieve further success. Students moving to other schools in the UK or other countries experience a smooth transition and often excel compared to their peers in terms of academic achievement and personal confidence.

All staff at BISAD are committed and dedicated to providing a community spirit where the quality of relationships is of the highest order. The teaching staff are amongst the most qualified from around the world and this accompanied by their wealth of experience enables them to provide outstanding learning opportunities for children. We want our pupils to thrive academically, socially and emotionally and leave our school as lifelong learners who are ready to embrace the challenges ahead of them and to prepare them for life in a global society, after all we are conscious that the knowledge our children will need in the future may not yet exist!

We actively encourage open partnership between home and school; parents are welcome to participate in many areas of school life and often comment on the welcoming atmosphere of our school. Getting to know the staff that work with your children and knowing that the door is always open is important to us and valued by our parents.

Admission to the school is open to all. We believe in inclusion and giving every child who can access the curriculum an opportunity to thrive. Our admissions team are warm and friendly and won’t just help you with school questions but provide that extra support network in terms of advice on where to live, how to secure home help, linking you to other families and most importantly prepare you every step of the way to ensure your child is registered with the Ministry of Education and ready to start learning immediately. We warmly invite you to visit our campus and to see our school in action.

We feel privileged to have been given the opportunity to influence and shape the future generations and look forward to sharing with you our school community.

For more information about schools and education in Abu Dhabi please visit the site of the British International School Abu Dhabi.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Lesley-Ann Wallace joined the BISAD team in December 2010. She was previously Assistant Principal at our Nord Anglia school in Puxi Shanghai, and part of the school leadership since the school opened in August 2005. Lesley-Ann has extensive experience in international education. Prior to joining the team in Shanghai she was in Gulf English School Kuwait and Garden International School Malaysia. Her UK experience was based in the north of England, where she took on her first SLT role as Raising Attainment Coordinator followed by a Deputy Headship. Lesley-Ann is currently part of the National College of School Leadership and recently completed her NPQH (National Professional Qualification for Headship). She is the proud mum of Thomas and Ciara, and married to Noel, a member of the PE department.