Victoria International School PROPRITORSHIP (Tilal Primary) branch Sharjah - TilalPrincipal & Leadership Team

Victoria International School Proprietorship (Tilal Primary) Branch Sharjah - Tilal is led by Principal Graeme Naftel, a Sydney-born educator who brings almost 30 years of experience across schools in Australia, Malaysia, Japan, Dubai, and Sharjah. He joined VISS Tilal as Founding Head of School in August 2023, making him the school's first and only principal since its establishment. His stated vision centres on critical thinking, integrity, and a culture of care — language that is consistent across the school's published materials and reflects a deliberate founding philosophy rather than inherited institutional inertia.

The leadership team is structured around two assistant principals with clearly differentiated portfolios. Assistant Principal Leanda Kelly holds responsibility for Whole School Learning. Originally from England, she has been based in the UAE since 2015 and holds a National Professional Qualification in Senior Leadership (NPQSL) and a qualification as a British School Overseas inspector, while currently pursuing a Masters in Education and Leadership. Assistant Principal Marrem Murad leads Whole School Wellbeing, bringing more than a decade of experience within the Victoria International School of Sharjah community and a background in early years education and inclusion in Australia, including contribution to the national Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF). The dual assistant principal structure — separating learning and wellbeing — signals an intentional organisational design rather than a default hierarchy.

As a school established on 24 August 2023, VISS Tilal is classified by the Sharjah Private Education Authority (SPEA) as Not Reviewed — meaning no formal inspection rating has yet been issued. This is consistent with SPEA's standard practice for new institutions and is not a negative indicator. Among Australian curriculum schools in Sharjah, VISS Tilal is the only such school in the city index, making direct curriculum-peer comparison impossible at this stage. Parents should note that an inspection rating, when eventually issued, will provide the first independent benchmark of leadership and teaching quality.

On teaching quality, staff qualification data is not publicly available [MISSING: staff qualification percentages and total teacher headcount], and the student-teacher ratio has not been disclosed [MISSING: school-level student-teacher ratio]. The city-wide average across Sharjah's private schools stands at 13.6 students per teacher, based on data from 204 schools. Without a published figure from VISS Tilal, parents are advised to ask directly during admissions visits. Similarly, staff retention and turnover data [MISSING: staff retention or turnover figures] are not available given the school's short operating history.

Parent engagement is structured through Student Success meetings, which bring together parents, school staff, and external services to support individual student development — a model that suggests proactive rather than reactive family communication. The school holds IB World School status and was recognised with the Cognia 2024 School of Distinction Award, the latter being an externally verified quality marker that carries weight despite the absence of a SPEA rating. The school is operated by Victoria International School of Sharjah (Proprietorship) and regulated by SPEA under School ID 438.