GEMS Founders School Al Mizhar

SEL: GEMS Founders School, Al Mizhar emphasizes emotional health and wellbeing through a supportive, caring ethos in which every individual is valued. The approach recognises that life challenges can affect students, and that positive mental health is everyone's business. Counsellors are available to all students, staff, and parents to help someone with mental health difficulties or to cope in a crisis. The school provides a Wellbeing Policy to guide practice. This indicates a formal pastoral framework supporting SEL, with access to counselling and a wellbeing policy.

SEN: The school is described as inclusive, welcoming students with special education needs and disabilities (SEND), gifted and talented learners, and English Language Learners (ELL). It emphasises adjustments and teaching strategies tailored to meet the diverse range of learners within a common learning environment. Applicants are asked to share full details of any SEND, IEPs, and related reports to enable appropriate assessment and resourcing. The Flourish programme offers a modified Math and English curriculum in smaller class sizes for students who need bespoke delivery to access the curriculum alongside peers. Occupational Therapy is provided to support delays, disabilities, or health challenges through multidisciplinary interventions, including individual and group sessions and parent/teacher training. The school presents itself as inclusive rather than a specialist SEN institution.

EAL: GFM states it welcomes English Language Learners as part of its inclusive education approach. It notes that adjustments and teaching strategies are used to meet the needs of diverse learners, including EAL students. A dedicated, stand-alone EAL program or staff role is not publicly disclosed on the pages reviewed. The admissions process asks for relevant reports to inform assessment and planning for support. These points indicate EAL support within an inclusive framework, but specific EAL program details are not publicly detailed.

Mental Wellbeing: The school is committed to supporting the emotional health and wellbeing of pupils and staff through a supportive, caring ethos where each individual is valued. It recognises that life challenges can make students vulnerable and that positive mental health is everyone's business. Counselling services are available to all students, staff and parents to help with mental health concerns or crises. A Wellbeing Policy provides formal guidance for wellbeing practices at the school.

Safeguarding: Safeguarding and Child Protection are top priorities at GFM, aligned with UAE law and UK statutory frameworks, supported by internal policies and regular audits. All staff and volunteers have safeguarding clearances, and all members of the Senior Leadership Team have undergone GEMS Safer Recruitment Training. The safeguarding framework includes a detailed Child Protection Policy, safer recruitment practices, routine staff training, and online safety education integrated into curriculum content and workshops. The school has Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) for Primary and Secondary, with Deputy DSLs, who serve as the first points of contact for safeguarding concerns. Safeguarding is a shared responsibility with open communication with parents and, when needed, collaboration with external agencies; safeguarding policies are available for review, and contact details are provided on the Contact Us page.