Dubai International Academy Town Square logo

Dubai International Academy Town SquarePrincipal & Leadership Team

Curriculum
International Baccalaureate
Location
Dubai, Old Town
Fees
AED 75K - 120K
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Leadership & Governance

New School
KHDA Inspection Status
27 of Dubai's 233 private schools are unrated new schools; first inspection expected after opening in August 2026
15 Years
Principal's Tenure with Operator
Candice Combrinck has served within Innoventures Education since before DIA Al Barsha's founding
20 Years
DIA Brand IB Legacy
Innoventures Education has operated IB schools in Dubai since 2005, across 3 DIA campuses
1:13.6
Dubai Avg Student-Teacher Ratio
City average across 204 schools; DIA Town Square's own ratio is not yet available pre-opening
10,000+
Students Across Operator Group
Innoventures Education serves students from 100+ nationalities across its schools and nurseries
Innoventures EducationFounding Leadership Team20-Year IB Legacy3rd DIA CampusNot Yet InspectedParent Partnership Focus

Dubai International Academy Town Square opens in August 2026 under the stewardship of Founding Principal Candice Combrinck, a seasoned educator with 15 years within Innoventures Education. Her trajectory through the DIA network — Head of Primary at DIA Emirates Hills, then Founding Head of Primary and Vice Principal at DIA Al Barsha — gives her a rare combination of institutional knowledge and new-school experience. For families weighing the risks of enrolling in a brand-new school, that continuity of leadership within a proven group is a meaningful reassurance.

She is joined by Kosta Lekanides as Founding Head of Secondary and James Heard as Founding Head of Primary, forming a leadership trio purpose-built for the school's phased growth from PreK–Grade 8 at opening toward a full IB Continuum. The school is operated by Innoventures Education, whose CEO Poonam Bhojani leads a group serving 10,000+ students across 100+ nationalities — a governance structure with demonstrable scale and IB expertise. DIA Town Square is the third school in the DIA brand, drawing on 20 years of IB delivery in Dubai.

Because the school does not open until August 2026, no KHDA inspection rating has been issued. Parents should note this is a material unknown: among the 40 IB curriculum schools in Dubai, 10 hold Outstanding and 15 hold Very Good KHDA ratings — a strong sector benchmark that DIA Town Square will eventually be measured against. The two existing DIA schools' inspection track records would be the most relevant proxy, though those ratings are not available in current sources [MISSING: KHDA ratings for DIA Emirates Hills and DIA Al Barsha].

Staff qualifications, student-teacher ratio, and retention data are likewise unavailable pre-opening [MISSING: staff qualification percentages, student-teacher ratio, retention figures]. For context, the average student-to-teacher ratio across Dubai private schools is 1:13.6, based on data from 204 schools. Whether DIA Town Square will meet or beat that benchmark will depend on its founding enrolment numbers, which have not been published. The school's philosophy — emphasising evidence-informed teaching, timely feedback, and inclusive practice — signals an intent to recruit experienced IB-trained educators, but this cannot yet be verified independently.

On community and culture, the school's stated philosophy of Dream. Inspire. Achieve. Together places parent partnership explicitly at its centre, and an Admissions Hub is open for family visits ahead of opening. Principal Combrinck's welcome message frames the school as a collaborative endeavour between families, staff, and students — a tone consistent with the broader DIA brand. Parents considering DIA Town Square are, in effect, making a founding-family decision: the leadership pedigree is strong, the operator is established, but the school's own performance record is yet to be written.