New UK curriculum school to open in Dubai

Dubai: A new junior preparatory school which is based on a well known UK school will open its doors in Dubai in September 2013.

The school aims to provide a smooth transition for children who wish to continue their studies in the UK.

The Foremarke School which is a Dubai branch of the Foremarke Hall (Repton Preparatory school) in Derbyshire, UK, will follow the Early Years foundation Stage and National Curriculum for England and Wales while adapting to Dubai as necessary.

Foremarke School Dubai is to accommodate 1,280 children aged three to 11 in an area covering 25,978 square metres. However, when it opens in September it will only accommodate 280 students out of which four will be nursery classes and three classes for both grade one and two. Intake for grade three and four will then follow in September 2014 and grade six will be accepted in 2015.

The new school will be located in Al Barsha South within the DuBiotech Science Park development in order to cater to both DuBiotech residential communities as well as neighbouring communities such as The Palm Jumeirah, Emirate hills and Arabian Ranches.

According to Dr Abdullah Al Karam, chairman of the board of directors and director general of the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) the national curriculum of England and Wales are the most popular and always outperform in inspections. “We have been inspecting schools for the last five years and UK and IB curriculum schools always outperform which is why they are always welcome to open here in Dubai. The area is also important, this school can cater to surrounding communities, its not fair if a child is living in Motor City for example to travel long distances every day to get to school.”

— Noor Nazzal is a trainee at Gulf News