Dubai Heights Academy
Very Good Al Barsha South, Dubai · British (NCfE)
- KHDA rating
- Very Good
High quality across the board with minor areas to improve — often better value than Outstanding. Ratings are from the last full inspection cycle (2023–24).
- Annual fees
- AED 48,688 to 96,880 a year
Varies by year group; confirm current fees with the school. 2026–27 fees are frozen by KHDA directive.
- Curriculum
- British (NCfE)
- Established
- Founded 2016
- School transport
- Bus service available
- Location
- Al Barsha South, Dubai
District-level pin for Al Barsha South — 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 33 per cent above the median for British (NCfE) schools in this guide (AED 54,632). It is one of 46 schools in this guide currently rated Very Good.
Worth comparing: Bloom World Academy (AED 38,000 to 70,000 a year) — a lower-fee option in the same area; Repton Al Barsha (AED 53,540 to 89,774 a year) — a lower-fee school with the same Very Good rating and curriculum.
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:
- A watershed 2023–24: Very Good with outstanding features on its third inspection, with 47 performance measures improved — 23 of 33 achievement indicators among them.
- Wellbeing judged Outstanding — ‘the school’s outstanding vision for wellbeing has become a cornerstone of its culture’, with care and support Outstanding across all three phases.
- Students’ personal development Outstanding, and robust, highly accurate self-evaluation by capable leaders with excellent governance.
- An inclusive reputation spanning the full ability spectrum, and science now Very Good across the school.
What they asked the school to improve:
- Teaching sits at Very Good in FS and Primary but Good in the newer Secondary — the developing edge as the phase grows into its new building.
- English and mathematics attainment remain Good in places against the Very Good profile.
Inclusion (students of determination): A school launched as part of Dubai’s ‘My Community… A City for Everyone’ initiative and built from opening in 2017 to be a model for inclusion, with a reputation that has drawn students across the full ability range. The inclusion team — Head of Inclusion, Pastoral and Wellbeing, a Deputy Head of Inclusion, two inclusion teachers and the school counsellor — supports students inside and outside class and trains classroom assistants to deliver interventions in the room. Provision is unusually physical: an Enrichment Zone with a Wonder World Snoezelen room using fibre-optic light therapy, a Fun Junction sensory room with a magnetic climbing wall, a sensory sound garden and therapy support classrooms, with a speech and language therapist and an occupational therapist on site twice weekly for group therapy in classrooms, and physiotherapy available. Additional curriculum pathways include BTEC Level 1 and ASDAN. Wellbeing and personal development are both Outstanding across all phases. Two costs to settle in writing: where a child needs a one-to-one learning support assistant the school helps parents interview and hire a suitable candidate but the parent pays, and the gap between discounted and KHDA-approved fees is worth raising with admissions before signing. 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:
- 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?
- How long is the real waiting list for my child’s year group, and how does sibling priority work?
Saved only on this device — never uploaded, never shared.
Special educational needs? Read the inclusion guide before you visit.
Other schools in Al Barsha South
- GEMS World Academy — Very Good, AED 71,113 to 123,442 a year
- Bloom World Academy — Good, AED 38,000 to 70,000 a year
- Dunecrest American School — Good, AED 30,000 to 58,000 a year
Work at this school? Correct or update this record — verified corrections are made promptly and logged publicly.