Grammar SchoolPrincipal & Leadership Team

Grammar School is led by Principal Benjamin David Barry, who was appointed on 20 August 2022 and is now in his third year of leadership at the school. The senior leadership team includes Vice Principal and Head of Primary Razia Rasheed, Head of Secondary Enjy Essameldin, and Head of Inclusion Princiya Abdulkarim — a structure that reflects the school's stated priorities around pastoral care and inclusive education. The school is operated by Athena Education, a UAE-based group whose core values underpin the school's ethos and strategic direction.

The 2023–2024 DSIB inspection rated leadership effectiveness as Acceptable, with governance also rated Acceptable — a finding that comes with a clear directive: inspectors specifically recommended that the school improve the effectiveness of its Board of Governors and the support they provide to school leaders. That said, inspectors noted a meaningful positive: the principal and senior leadership team are trusted by students, staff and parents, a distinction explicitly highlighted as one of the school's key strengths. The leadership group is described as establishing a caring, inclusive learning community, with leaders fully aware of the need to accelerate academic improvement across all phases.

On teaching quality, the inspection rated teaching for effective learning as Acceptable across all four phases — Foundation Stage, Primary, Secondary, and Post-16. Inspectors found that most teachers demonstrate secure subject knowledge and that lesson planning adequately meets students' needs. However, weaknesses were identified: occasional poor classroom management, insufficient use of differentiated questioning, and feedback to students that does not consistently identify strengths and areas for improvement. Improving teaching quality across all phases remains a formal key recommendation from the 2023–2024 inspection. The school employs 83 teachers supported by 6 teaching assistants and 1 guidance counsellor, serving 1,321 students.

Grammar School's student-to-teacher ratio stands at 1:16, which is notably higher than the Dubai-wide average of 1:13.6 across 204 schools with available data. Among British curriculum schools in Dubai — the largest curriculum group in the city with 105 schools — this ratio places Grammar School at the more stretched end of the spectrum, a factor parents should weigh when considering classroom attention and individualised support. Staff qualification data and retention figures are [MISSING: not disclosed in inspection report or school sources].

On community and culture, parents and the community engagement was rated Acceptable in the 2023–2024 inspection. The school conducts parent surveys, offers school tours for prospective families, and inspectors noted that students and parents feel part of a school community they describe as an extension of their own family — a genuine signal of relational warmth. The school's student leadership programme, encompassing a student government, wellbeing committee, sustainability leaders, and anti-bullying team, reflects a leadership vision that extends meaningful responsibility to students. Attendance has significantly improved and now exceeds the KHDA recommendation — a concrete indicator that the school's culture and community feel is translating into student commitment.