GEMS Founders School - Masdar City

GEMS Founders School – Masdar City is located in Masdar City, Abu Dhabi. It sits within the Masdar City sustainable urban community. The school offers admissions from FS1 to Year 9 for the 2025-26 academic year.

Foundation Stage (FS1–FS2); Primary School (Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2); Secondary School (Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4). The school currently serves students from FS1 to Year 9.

Co-educational (mixed gender).

There are 84 nationalities represented in the school community. Emirati students account for around 30% of the student body. About 90% of students speak English as an additional language.

GEMS Founders School provides inclusion for English as an Additional Language (EAL), lower ability learners, and students with special educational needs, as well as provision for more able and gifted and talented students. The Head of Inclusion coordinates assessments and supports individual education plans as needed.

The school follows the British National Curriculum (England) and operates in the UAE as a British schools overseas institution.

No formal religious affiliation is stated.

The school day starts at 7:30am. FS1–FS2 finish at 12:30pm; Years 1–8 finish at 2:40pm. A National Anthem is observed at 7:45am, and the school runs Monday to Friday with weekends on Saturday and Sunday.

School Transport is operated by School Transport Services (STS) LLC. The service provides safe pick-up and drop-off with professional staff and a modern fleet of buses; specific routes and availability are arranged through the school's transport contacts.

GEMS Founders School – Masdar City follows the British National Curriculum (National Curriculum for England) from Foundation Stage through Secondary (FS1 to Year 9), with English as the language of instruction. Foundation Stage (FS1–FS2) emphasizes play-based learning to develop early numeracy, literacy, motor skills and self-esteem. Primary covers Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, building foundational knowledge across subjects in an engaging, inquiry-led environment. Secondary (Year 7–Year 9) delivers core subjects—English, Mathematics, Science—plus Arabic (for Arabic speakers and non-Arabic speakers), UAE Social Studies, Moral Education, and Islamic Studies for Muslim students, together with specialist subjects such as Computing, History and Geography, French, PSHE, Physical Education, Art and Music, under a Design Thinking approach. The curriculum is designed to align with GCSE standards to prepare learners for Key Stage 4, with progression guidance and options discussed as they approach secondary transition.

GEMS Founders School Masdar City is committed to supporting the emotional health and wellbeing of its pupils and staff, with a supportive and caring ethos. The school aims to create a positive atmosphere and a sense of belonging so students feel valued and supported by staff and peers. It recognises the importance of safety in the digital world for emotional wellbeing and teaches students to recognise and manage emotions and resolve conflicts. The Be healthy, Stay safe, Enjoy and achieve, Make a positive contribution, and Achieve economic and mental health well-being framework guides its wellbeing aims. Counsellors are available to all students, staff and parents to help with mental health concerns or crises. The wellbeing provision is described in the GFA Wellbeing policy 2024-25.

GEMS Founders School Masdar City provides a broad and balanced curriculum with planning that starts from the National Curriculum to meet the needs of individuals and groups of learners. The school identifies and supports learners with additional learning needs (ALN), including English as an Additional Language Learners (EAL), Lower Ability, learners with ‘special needs', More Able, and Gifted and Talented. Admission is not conditional on gender, race, disability or SEN, provided the school can meet the needs of the child. Any student with ALN identified after admission is coordinated by the Head of Inclusion, with assessments and screenings guiding amendments to programmes. The school requires sharing of full details of any SEN, IEPs and related reports to ensure appropriate assessment and resourcing, and it maintains an effective transition process for those without a formal diagnosis. The Inclusion Policy English 2025-26 and related policies outline a rights-based, graduated approach to ALN, with appointed Head of Inclusion and dedicated coordinators for multilingual learners and for gifted/talented provision.

EAL learners are explicitly identified as a group within the Inclusion policy. The school identifies and supports EAL learners through screening and referrals coordinated by the Head of Inclusion. EAL is listed alongside other ALN groups such as Gifted and Talented and More Able in the inclusive education approach. There is allowance for language exemptions to provide additional learning time for subjects of interest or ability when beneficial. The policy also designates separate staff to coordinate multilingual learners and to coordinate provision for gifted and/or talented learners. These arrangements are documented in the Inclusion Policy English 2025-26 and related governance.

GEMS Founders School Masdar City is committed to emotional health and wellbeing for pupils and staff, with an emphasis on a healthy, safe and happy environment. The approach promotes a sense of belonging where every student feels valued and supported by staff and peers. It includes teaching students to recognise and manage emotions and to resolve conflicts to support emotional wellbeing. Promoting a healthy lifestyle—physical activity, sleep, healthy eating, and time management—is integral to mental wellbeing. Counsellors are available to all students, staff and parents to assist with mental health concerns or crises. A Wellbeing Policy for 2024-25 is published and implemented.

Safeguarding at GEMS Founders School Masdar City prioritises safety and wellbeing, with identification and access control requiring all visitors to sign in and wear an identification badge. Visitors must conduct themselves in accordance with child protection, confidentiality and rights policies. Child protection policies align with Abu Dhabi regulations to ensure safeguarding of all students. A designated safeguarding lead (DSL) and deputy leads are available to respond to concerns, and concerns can be reported via an online form. The school provides safeguarding resources including the ADEK and GEMS safeguarding policy documents. Safeguarding is described as everyone's responsibility.

Step 1 – Online Application: Complete the Online Student Enquiry & Registration. After submitting the form, you receive an acknowledgement with an online reference number and guidance on the following steps. This starts your child's admissions journey.

Step 2 – Assessment: Your child will be invited by the School Registrar for an assessment or an interview via email notification or phone. Results are notified by email or by phone. Observations are used for Foundation Stage 1 and 2 (FS1 and FS2); written assessments for Year 1 and Year 2; and CAT4 with written assessments for Year 3 to Year 8.

Step 3 – Enrolment: The Registrar sends offer letters to successful applicants, subject to seat availability. Families review the offer details and proceed to the next step in the process. The offer indicates a potential place at GEMS Founders School – Masdar City, pending completion of the subsequent steps.

Step 4 – Registration Deposit: The deposit is payable after the student has been offered a place and parents have accepted the offer. The registration deposit is 5% of the total tuition fees and is non-refundable. The deposit is deductible from the total tuition fees for the academic year. Once the above process is completed the student is enrolled. Parents will be notified via email the schedule of tuition fee payment, by the Finance department.

Step 5 – Required Documents: The minimum documents include passport copies for the child and both parents, residency visa pages, and a copy of the child's birth certificate (in English or Arabic). Recent passport photographs and the child's immunization/vaccination card, plus Emirates ID copies for the child and both parents, are required. Original Emirates IDs are required if the child is accepted. Copies of the child's last two school reports are required for Year 1-2; last two years' reports and CAT4 for Year 3+; nursery reports for FS1/FS2 if available; and a transfer certificate or leaving certificate.

Step 6 – Transfer Certificate Guidelines: The transfer certificate must be on official school letterhead and include the full name, date of birth, enrollment date and the year group when the child first started at the current school, present class, year promoted to, school curriculum, and the principal's signature and stamp. If transferring from a GCC country or another UAE emirate, the transfer certificate must be attested by the Ministry of Education. Countries outside the UAE (including but not limited to the USA, Australia, Canada, Western Europe, Japan, and New Zealand) require attestation from Educational Authorities, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the UAE Embassy. Within Abu Dhabi, transfer is online through eSIS once a seat is confirmed.

Step 7 – For Existing Students: Re-Registration Deposit: Re-registration deposits apply when existing students re-enrol for the following academic year. The re-registration deposit is 5% of the total tuition fees and is non-refundable, and it is deductible from the total tuition fees. The Finance department provides the schedule of tuition payments by email.

Step 8 – For Existing Students: Transfer Certificates and Overseas Applications: Students in Year 1 and above must submit a Transfer Certificate/School Leaving Certificate; this is a mandatory requirement by ADEK for eligibility to enter a classroom. The Transfer Certificate should state the student's name, age, the year the student was promoted to by the end of the previous academic year, the current year, and the curriculum, and it must be stamped by the school and signed by the Principal/Vice Principal. The Transfer Certificate may be in Arabic or English and must be attested as required by the origin country; for Abu Dhabi, attestation rules apply and eSIS will transfer the file online once a seat is confirmed.