Shaikha Hessa Girls' School

Shaikha Hessa Girls' School is located in West Riffa, Bahrain, at 1525, Road 4226, West Riffa 942. The campus features a central dome connecting three wings: Administration, Elementary, and Middle/High School. A dedicated Kindergarten building is adjacent to the central building and serves the early years.

The school is structured into Primary/Elementary, Middle School, and High School sections, with a separate Kindergarten building for the early years.

Private, all-girls school. It operates as a day school; there are no boarding facilities.

The school has an international student body with representation from over twenty-four nationalities. The most commonly reported nationality is Bahraini, and public data suggest a local-to-international ratio around 98:2, though exact figures published by the school are not available.

An Academic Needs Assessment Form is part of the admissions process to identify any learning needs. The Bahraini Ministry of Education notes that mainstream schools provide support for students with special needs in a supportive environment.

Bahrain. The school is recognized by the Bahraini Ministry of Education.

No formal religious affiliation; the school emphasizes Arabic and Islamic values within its culture.

School starts at 7:55 a.m. Pre-School ends at 12:30 p.m.; Grades 1–12 finish at 2:35 p.m. Supervised care before and after school is available for about 30 minutes.

There is no school-provided bus service. Transportation arrangements would need to be organized by families.

Shaikha Hessa Girls' School serves students from pre-school through Grade 12 and offers a bilingual Arabic-English education, with French taught as a foreign language from Grade 4 to Grade 8. The curriculum combines Cambridge Primary and Cambridge Secondary 1 in the early years, Edexcel IGCSE in the upper years, and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme in the final two years. IGCSE subject offerings include English Language A, Mathematics A, a Science Double Award, and ICT, with Arabic First Language, and optional subjects such as History or Geography (Option A), Business Studies, Fine Art/Graphic Communication, and French (Option B). Non-IGCSE compulsory subjects include Physical Education, Arabic Social Studies, Civics (National Studies), and Islamic Studies. The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme is a two-year course (typical for Grades 11–12) with six subjects (three at Higher Level and three at Standard Level) plus the core requirements of Extended Essay, Theory of Knowledge, and CAS. Shaikha Hessa Girls' School is ministry-recognized in Bahrain and holds accreditation from MSA-CESS and CIS, and is an IB World School since 2007.

Shaikha Hessa Girls' School addresses SEL through a strategic focus on Students' Emotional and Social Wellbeing, aiming to improve academic achievement by fostering deeper understanding of self and others, strengthening relationships with family, peers and teachers, and promoting self-awareness and a sense of purpose.

The school describes an inclusive environment and supports individual academic and personal needs through structured and inclusive practices and differentiated instruction; however, specific SEN provisions or specialist SEN status are not disclosed on the site.

The school provides bilingual education in Arabic and English from pre-school to Grade 12, with French taught as a foreign language from Grade 4 to Grade 8.

Mental wellbeing is addressed through the Student Emotional and Social Wellbeing focus in SHGS's Strategic Plan, which includes aims to improve wellbeing by fostering self-understanding, strengthening relationships with family and peers, and promoting self-awareness, purpose, and emotional balance.

Safeguarding is supported by a safeguarding framework accessible from the Safeguarding section, including a Safeguarding Statement, Cybersafety, Health & Safety, Student Wellbeing, Behavior Guidelines, and Child Rights Protection.

Shaikha Hessa Girls' School operates Pre-School through High School. It provides an international curriculum with the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP). The school was established in 2001 as the first private, all‑girls school in Bahrain, and it has celebrated the graduation of its fifth cohort since 2008. Admissions Procedures are published for Nursery to Grade 1, Grade 2 to 8, and High School, with each level providing a downloadable procedure. Entry Expectations are published per grade, and School Fees are published per level. Admission Forms are available for download. The school maintains state‑of‑the‑art facilities, including a central dome connecting Administration, Elementary, and Middle/High wings, with laboratories for Computer, Science, Home Economics, an Arabic library, and the office of the social counselor. The Middle/High and High School buildings include additional spaces such as a robotics lab, a two‑story library, a Multi‑Purpose Hall, a swimming pool, and a cafeteria.