DESS is very proud to be the oldest British school in the United Arab Emirates, established in 1963 by the British Embassy on a site gifted by Sheikh Rashid, former Ruler of Dubai.

DESS has won multiple awards including Schools Compared Top School Awards, Best Primary School in the UAE and Best School in the UAE alongside our secondary school and Sixth Form, Dubai English Speaking College. As an outstanding British School in Dubai, please take the time to read our ‘outstanding’ KHDA inspection report and ‘outstanding’ BSO inspection report on our website.

Our school is one of only a few not-for profit schools in Dubai and, as such, is administered by a Board of Trustees who guarantee there is generous reinvestment in the school, on both a long term and short-term basis. This has ensured that the facilities in the school are excellent and we continue to make improvements. With an extremely low turn over of staff, our staff are well looked after and continuously strive to improve what is recognised already as an outstanding practice. We also pride ourselves at always being at the forefront of educational development in Dubai and on our innovative new learning spaces.

As a fully inclusive school, we believe in success for all, not just academically but in the many other areas of a child’s development. We provide a wide range of extra curricular provision, which includes a variety of cross-curricular opportunities, sports and performing arts. Our excellent standards in teaching and learning, are evidence of the commitment of all our highly dedicated staff in achieving the best standards across all areas of school life.

DESS is currently operating face to face learning, as well as offering a remote learning option. Due to the COVID-19 circumstances, all in person tours have been cancelled until further notice. Whilst we are unable to replicate the vibrancy of DESS in any other form, we invite you to book a Q&A session with a member of our Senior Leadership Team and view our videos on our website in order to give you a virtual taste of life at DESS. We highly recommend you watch the experiences of our students, parents and alumni, as their stories capture the essence of our DESS community.

Please visit our website dessc.sch.ae to book a Q&A session with a member of our Senior Leadership Team or if you have any Admissions queries, please email admissions@dessc.sch.ae or alternatively you can call 04 360 4866 ext. 345.