Arab Unity School
Acceptable Deira, Dubai · International / other
- KHDA rating
- Acceptable
Meets minimum standards; may be on an improvement plan. Read the full report before enrolling. Ratings are from the last full inspection cycle (2023–24).
- Annual fees
- AED 6,462 to 10,808 a year
Varies by year group; confirm current fees with the school. 2026–27 fees are frozen by KHDA directive.
- Curriculum
- International / other
- Established
- Founded 1985
- School transport
- Bus service available
- Location
- Deira, Dubai
District-level pin for Deira — use the Google Maps link for the exact gate.
Link verified against a live domain, July 2026.
Check travel time from your location
Opens live directions in Google Maps — real traffic from your own address beats any published estimate. School-run traffic peaks roughly 7–8am; test your route at drop-off time.
In context
Its mid-range fee is about 58 per cent below the median for International / other schools in this guide (AED 20,451). It is one of 27 schools in this guide currently rated Acceptable.
These comparisons are computed from the verified data in this register, not editorial opinion.
What the inspectors said
Paraphrased from the last full DSIB inspection (2023–24 cycle) and its published record — read the complete report on the official KHDA directory.
Strengths the inspectors named:
- Founded in 1974 and now educating over 3,500 students from more than 40 nationalities — one of Dubai’s longest-established international schools, offering a full British curriculum from FS2 to Year 13 at some of the lowest fees in the register.
- The Acceptable headline masks real strengths: secondary and post-16 outcomes are Good to Very Good in mathematics and science, health and safety practices are Very Good across all phases, and the personal development of Post-16 students is rated Outstanding.
- Cambridge International accreditation with IGCSE, GCSE and A Levels, and a pragmatic academic model — IGCSE courses begin in Year 9, giving three years of preparation, uncommon here and sensible for a student body largely working in English as an additional language.
- Parents described by inspectors as very supportive, valuing the accessibility of staff and governors, detailed reports and prompt handling of concerns.
What they asked the school to improve:
- Acceptable overall for the thirteenth time — the minimum the regulator expects, and the honest headline.
- Attainment and progress vary by phase, with Foundation Stage and Primary needing development to reach consistently good levels.
- Rigorous checking of individual student progress is inconsistent, and improvement plans are sometimes too general, lacking specific timescales or measurable goals.
Inclusion (students of determination): Good — KHDA’s published inclusion rating table records Good, above the school’s Acceptable overall. Approximately 192 students of determination are supported by an inclusion team that creates individual learning plans and integrates students into mainstream classes with targeted support. The admissions policy is published in unusual detail and every SEN family should read it: it follows Federal Law 29 of 2006 and the Dubai Inclusive Policy Framework, admission for a student with an identified need depends on seat availability and the school’s capacity to address that specific need, and crucially admission is not conditional on a medical diagnosis. The final decision is taken collaboratively between Heads of Sections and the Inclusion Team. One clause deserves attention rather than alarm: the policy states that if a student’s need later poses a threat to the safety of self or peers, parents will be asked to withdraw the child and guided to alternatives — ask what threshold applies and who decides. See the special educational needs guide for the questions to ask on a visit.
Inspector summaries are being added school by school as each report is read — 169 of 169 so far, dated per cycle, never invented. A school without a summary yet is unread, not unjudged.
Visit kit
Questions worth asking on a tour — tuned to this school’s rating and curriculum:
- What did the last KHDA report ask you to improve, and what has changed since?
- Who leads inclusion here — and may we meet them before enrolling?
- How much staff turnover did you have last year, and why?
- What are actual class sizes this term — not the maximum?
- How and how often will I hear about my child’s progress?
Saved only on this device — never uploaded, never shared.
Special educational needs? Read the inclusion guide before you visit.
Other schools in Deira
- Pearl Wisdom School — Good, AED 8,000 to 14,000 a year
- Oxford School Dubai — Good, AED 13,000 to 24,000 a year
- Dubai Modern Education School — Acceptable, AED 8,000 to 15,000 a year
Work at this school? Correct or update this record — verified corrections are made promptly and logged publicly.