Top Schools Awards 2021. Results Live. Victory Heights Primary School Awarded The SchoolsCompared.com Top Schools Award for Best Primary School in the UAE 2021-22.
The SchoolsCompared.com Top Schools Awards 2021-22 Award for Best Primary School in the United Arab Emirates goes to:
Victory Heights Primary School
WSA Rating: Outstanding+
SchoolsCompared Rating: Outstanding+
KHDA Rating (2018): Very Good with Outstanding Features
Parents rating: 4.4 out of 5 (top 4 in Edstatica)
Curriculum: British
Students: 817
Teachers: 56
Teacher Student Ratio: 1:15
Teacher Turnover: 0%
Founded: 2012
The competition in this category of the SchoolsCompared.com Top Schools Awards is arguably the most intense of any category. Countless hours, and exchanges of very strongly held views, have characterised the deliberations here. It will suffice to say that debate has been passionate and heated amongst journalists and the judges. Any of the finalists in this category have extremely powerful justifications for winning this Award. One of the judges asked us to specifically recognise GEMS Jumeirah Primary School and Kings’ Dubai for their “exceptional achievements” when making this Award – and we could find any number of reasons to celebrate all of our finalists – including the winner of this award in 2019-20: Dubai English Speaking School.
Primary education in the UAE is absolutely outstanding – we are, as parents, blessed in the opportunities available to our children.
So, this said, Victory Heights Primary School has achieved something extremely special in being the recipient of this Award. It also carries no small amount of responsibility in representing the pinnacle of a beyond-outstanding sector in education.
Where to begin? Victory Heights Primary School continues to place happiness and joy at the heart of every experience provided through the school’s extensive and vibrant curriculum. The pupil voice is a core component of school life. The passions and interests of the children are tied explicitly into learning experiences, such as widespread implementation of child-initiated learning – this significantly boosted progress in the Foundation Stage – whilst the school’s Executive Student Council works tirelessly to improve all aspects of school life and promote the Rights Respecting Curriculum.
‘Sports Leaders’ and ‘Eco Heroes’ work tirelessly to improve health, well-being and instil an understanding of eco values and literacy. The school’s ethos of “nurture” places the well-being and happiness of the children at the centre of learning. Through the actions of a designated well-being leader, and continued promotion of happiness and health through the school’s well-being committee, the school’s ambition with parents, whilst extraordinarily (and creditably) ambitious, does not seem outlandish: to be the “…most Outstandingly Happiest British Primary outside of the U.K.”
Our many visits to the school strongly support its view that child happiness is centre stage. Whilst subjective, we also believe that child happiness is centrifugally important in delivering an outstanding education for children at any age, but particularly so for Primary age children. Alternative models based on traditional “carrot and sticks” and regimented learning philosophies may produce the “results” but the impact on children is regressive. It is the school’s absolute and steadfast focus on the happiness of its children as the building block foundation of cascaded learning that ultimately sets Victory Heights Primary school apart and won through for our judges. You just do not hear this sort of evangelising of child welfare outside the world’s most progressive schools – but here this is combined with a highly rigorous, richly professional and focused academic and whole child education. It’s rare and very, very special.
Innovative professional development programmes, which focuses on individual pathways for learning, enables all the school’s educators to develop pedagogical skills and strengthen subject knowledge. This has raised the achievement and outcomes for all students. CPD is a real strength of the school – and reflected in absolutely outstanding teacher feedback and negligible staff turnover. The genuinely inspiring, child-centred curriculum is relevant, broad and balanced, this not only driving academic success, but nurturing the holistic development of children. Expert, experienced learning enhancement teams work in partnership with teachers to ensure that inclusion is universally implemented too. Both curriculum modifications and pedagogical amendments catalyse all groups of students (including SEND, EAL, and MAGT children) towards making excellent progress.
Innovation and enterprise are purposefully interwoven throughout the curriculum. For example, STEAM provision provides children with the opportunities to apply their knowledge of mathematics, science and technology to real-life situations. E.L.L.I learning dimensions provide a tapestry on which the school curriculum is pinned. Children value, and are given opportunities to strengthen learning and whole child skills including resilience, adaptability and thinking critically when problem solving.
Over 60 nationalities are represented in the student population. Children’s cultural understanding is outstanding. Knowledge of local Emirati and world cultures is harnessed throughout the curriculum, and in whole-school celebrations e.g. ‘International Day’ – but the genuine commitment to recognising this British school’s relationship with the cultural context in which it operates is interwoven seamlessly across school life, and celebrated as a strength of child education in the UAE for children. There is no separatism here – far from it. And the school brings parents with them on this – this is not true of so many schools.
The relationship between the school and parents is outstanding. Feedback we have received is universally (and often movingly) positive. Feedback and communication between parents and the school is courted, credited and acted on – positive or negative. Transparency and working together is explicit, not feigned. The parent communication portal delivers updated information for parents daily, social media accounts are regularly updated with celebratory stories of the children’s achievements, the VHPS weekly newsletter is packed full of information to help parents plan for the week ahead and Parent Reps are an integral part of the school, consistently representing their classes and the school proactively and positively. For us, in this area of parental (and broader community and inter-school linkages), the school is the most joined up of any in the Primary sector.
As a stand-alone British Primary School, the school has demonstrated consistent success in making outstanding connections and partnerships with other schools, both Primary and Secondary. The subject leaders of Mathematics, English, Science, STEAM, Arabic, Islamic, social studies and moral education have been key in developing networking teams to improve the standards of teaching and learning for all pupils. The school’s reputation in Dubai has meant that children moving from Year 6 to secondary school always secure places in high performing and relevant schools for them – strong, positive testimonials from secondary principals have praised VHPS children for arriving in Year 7 academically competent, emotionally grounded and with strong lifelong learning skills.
Rarely too, VHPS continues to celebrate the achievements of its former pupils beyond primary. Its social media platform has highlighted sporting and academic achievements to its school community and enlisted the help of previous House Captains with the Year 6 transition process to secondary school.
Bottom line? This is a school that is both academically and holistically high-achieving and forward thinking. Staff are very highly skilled, children make rapid and sustained progress, and children leave school comprehensively prepared.
In the early days of the school, it is probably fair to say that some other more traditional schools turned their nose up at the non-academic language of the school’s emphasis on terms like “sparkle” and “love” as being integral to school life. But they have been proved wrong.
The palpable dedication here to evoking an atmosphere of awe and wonder into school and into learning has paid dividends – and we have seen a softer approach seeping back now into other schools. The “magic” of a school does not always readily reduce to statistics and numbers – and recognising this openly builds better schools. “The X factor ingredient at Victory Heights is that which induces children to literally bound or skip through the gates each morning.” It is worth quoting from Sash Crabb, Principal, in full on this:
“So what is the secret recipe?
A truly exceptional teaching body, led with gusto by an experienced leadership team that recognise that exceptional schools are built upon relationships; relationships between teachers and their children, between teachers and the leadership team, between the leadership team and the governing body, and finally between the school staff and the parent body.
Lessons that instil both awe and wonder into children’s hearts, whilst remaining true to the core values of the school, which insist on children leaving Victory Heights Primary School with a deep knowledge of the past and the present, and an appreciation for rich cultural capital – or as Miss Sasha would put it, rather more succinctly – the ‘bread and butter’ and ‘fish and chips’.
A significant investment in continued professional development across the school – both financially and in terms of the time dedicated to it. Teachers recognise that we all have room for improvement – regardless of our level of experience – we are all on a journey towards being the best we can be, and every day we strive to be a better version of ourselves. We model what we expect in our children.
Yet, there is something else. There is the ‘stardust’ that permeates across the school and leads to the schools unofficial motto of ‘Sand to Stardust’ – signifying the journey from an empty sand plot in Sports City in 2012, to a thriving community school that resonates with the spirit and energy of all those who reside within.
Walk through our school, and you will feel that you belong. Maybe it will even transport you back to your own childhood. This is not a school where the children are merely day guests, stopping by at 7.45 to start their studies. This is a school that is owned by the children. Their presence and investment is seen on every wall, in every nook and in every cranny.
Some even say that if you visit after school hours, and if you listen very carefully, you’ll still be able to hear the distant sounds of children thriving in this very special school.
You can’t spend more than a few minutes at Victory Heights Primary School, without it leaving a very lasting impression.”
In just over 8 years, in our view, the school has irrefutably arisen from just this sand to extraordinary success on both its own terms and more traditional educational metrics. All forms of internal and external outcomes highlight the academic progress and attainment of children in their core subjects – these demonstrably exceeding UK, local, and international standards. Personal development and learning skills are ‘Outstanding’. Countless personal testimonies, and school visits by both WhichSchoolAdvisor and SchoolsCompared, support the view that this is an outstanding centre of excellence for children to flourish in.
Rigorous, uncompromising recruitment has resulted in the formation of a highly-qualified, driven and passionate staff team. The foremost concern is equally balanced between delivering children’s academic outcomes and children’s happiness and wellbeing. Highly-effective, assessment-informed, tailored teaching across the entire spectrum of the school ensure children at VHPS make rapid and sustained progress on every measure.
Induction baselines and CAT4 data show that children at VHPS arrive at the school with only marginally higher attainment and cognitive abilities than UK averages. Despite this, 2020-21 benchmarking tests demonstrate that 91% of children in English, 87% in mathematics and 98% in science exceed curriculum expectations by the time they reach upper KS2, even after the impact of Covid-19 and Distance Learning over the last academic year. These figures are consistent across all groups of students – and have steadily risen over the past 3 years from an average of 76%.
Fundamental to this is the augmentation of children’s learning skills. School-wide commitment to the collegial ‘language for learning’ enables children to function as highly reflective meta-learners, who autonomously and enthusiastically take responsibility for their own learning. The school operates a wide range of collaborative opportunities.
For example, oracy is implemented across the curriculum and opportunities to debate and form Harkness groups are provided, interestingly both techniques adopted by Dubai College for its selective intake of academically high-performing children. Children at the school are confident, articulate communicators. This is also a school community where children are individually recognised and celebrated. Children’s behaviour and learning attitudes, as reflected in PASS assessments, are exemplary.
VHPS has a strong inclusive ethos which runs throughout the school. Every staff member is an inclusion advocate and supports EVERY child’s learning needs. Teachers effectively scaffold and extend learning to ensure that there are ‘no lids on kids’. The inclusion team, alongside the SLT and class teachers, ensures that all children’s progress and attainment is (closely) monitored and appropriate intervention, whether academic, social, emotional, and/or well-being, is integrated into children’s learning.
Investment in CPD is outstanding. Tellingly, the “VHPS University” was a finalist for the BIS Strategic Initiative Award in January 2018. This is further supplemented annually. An investment in excess of AED 90,000 on developing teaching and learning in core development areas was made in 2021. As a result of such measures, the quality of teaching and learning at the school we rate outstanding, a view reflected in the views of both external consultants and the DSIB. All leaders base policy decisions on the latest educational research, to ensure that teachers are able to maximise their educational impact on each child. For example, the implementation of ‘Whole Class Feedback’ reduces the amount of time that teachers spend unnecessarily marking, so that they have more time to plan top quality lessons.
This is not a shiny bells and whistles schools though – so do not expect planetariums or the like. School facilities are, however, utilised to their full potential – for example, two separate areas of roof space have been recently developed to make space for a ‘wellbeing garden’ and basketball court. There are no features lacking at the school necessary to deliver an outstanding Primary education for children. It is not a DESS in facilities – it is worth stating this absolutely and unequivocally. But, it also absolutely does not matter.
Self-evaluation and improvement planning is ceaseless. Along with teachers’ reflections and the monitoring and evaluation of their own subject areas, each child’s voice is taken into consideration and fed into the school development process. The student voice at VHPS is listened to and not a tokenistic gesture.
Children are exposed to a wide variety of school and inter-school competitions. Creditably, these opportunities are not always sporting or academic focussed, but have embraced the arts, for example the Great British Bake Off, and a portrait sketching competition. There is a pressure on British schools in particular to lead on Sport – but this is rarely, when focused on to the nth degree, beneficial to the vast majority of children.
The school’s continued commitment to raise awareness of local and global environmental issues is meaningful. The school council recently collected 120 tons of plastic bottles from its community and sent them to a recycling plant in the UAE. The children regularly host a House Competition where classes can earn house points when collecting in all overdue library books at the end of term.
A dedicated safeguarding team of 16 members of staff represents a broad range of departments across the school. The team meet regularly to evaluate policy and procedures – and actively ensure that all members of staff are clear about safeguarding issues. For example, the team have used a CPD session to revisit each of the different types of lanyards adults wear in school. A member of the team led a school assembly promoting this to children and parents.
Children are given opportunities to discuss their personal wellbeing on an individual and class level. Child wellbeing surveys are carried out twice a year to ensure every child’s voice is heard. Any areas of concern identified through these surveys are then followed up by class teachers and members of the inclusion team. The school’s strong commitment to raising children to be ‘emotionally literate’ translates with children being able to, and comfortable in, expressing themselves, and understanding, and being sensitive to, the emotions of others. Whether this is through Moral Education lessons, specific intervention groups or through developing a whole school language of wellbeing, we have seen the results first-hand in our visits to the school and discussions with children. This is one of the very few schools where young children engage with adults, confident in themselves and open, at such a young age, to exchanging views and engaging.
For those children quarantining, or learning remotely due to health reasons, the school too has operated an outstanding Distance Learning Programme which enabled children to continue their learning on platforms including Google Classroom and Seesaw. All of the children on this programme are supported by a designated online tutor who communicates regularly with the children’s class teachers across their academic attainment, progress and wellbeing. Each student has regular ‘connect’ time with their friendship groups everyday via Zoom. A recent inspection by KHDA judged the Distance Learning programme at the school “Developed”, the highest of its awarding categorifications.
Representations to us have been many and touching.
“Our mission is to Nurture Challenge and Excel, in all that we do, for every single child. As our school song says: “Be the best that you can be.“
VHPS is committed to the 7 lifelong learning values and giving children the opportunity to develop their Oracy skills so that they can communicate their feelings and opinions comfortably. We encourage our community to listen to understand rather than to respond. We consistently question our “Why” and the purpose of daily routines and its content.
We have achieved a credible reputation in the community as a school that “Cares about the little things’, and our families have evidently become lifelong friends and shared memorable moments together. The academic excellence achieved across our school is evident in our inspection reports and the sporting reputation, philanthropic values and creative skills of our children is appreciated and applauded by all the secondary schools that our Year 6 children apply for.
Our “no lids on kids” mantra alongside “method in our madness” resonates through every corner of the school, giving our teachers the professional development needed to support and extend all individuals with relevant strategies that will have impact. This is evident from the biannual Pupil Progress meetings that take place and ensures that each child’s well-being, progress. and attainment, are discussed and that areas of the school development plan are tweaked accordingly.
Staff enjoy working at Victory Heights Primary due to our transparency and commitment to purpose. We are a ‘perfectly imperfect’ team that is invested in happiness and serious about learning. This is evident in parental feedback and recommendations to new families joining. No stone is left unturned in order to reflect and review our policies and procedures. From the health and safety at drop off and pick up to events and current issues concerning the world around us all.
We believe that Victory Heights Primary School is a small school with high standards and even higher aspirations.”
Sasha Crabb. Principal. Victory Heights Primary School.
“I joined VHPS in February 2020 and I knew the moment I stepped in the building that a great adventure was awaiting me.
It has been an incredible journey so far. I have had the chance to learn amazing new things every day to help every student learn and make progress.
I am so lucky to go home at the end of each day both happy and satisfied.”
Ms Mirna. Language Acquisition Leader & Arabic Teacher.
“In order to get the best from every child it’s important to listen to, understand and appreciate the unique qualities which each child brings into our classroom. At VHPS we take time to find out our children’s passions both in and out of school and celebrate, encourage and nurture those passions. This builds and forms strong positive relationships which in turns allows children to flourish academically, socially and emotionally so they can be the best they possibly can be.”
Mr John. Inclusion Support Teacher
“At Victory Heights, we believe in providing an inclusive education that develops confident, lifelong learners. Inclusivity is at the core of our school and as a result of our ideology of ‘achieving more together’, we equip all of our learners with the necessary skills to achieve and excel.”
Mr Alex – Year 6 Leader/ Mathematics Coordinator
“VHPS is a nurturing, family orientated small community school that provides children with opportunities to excel.”
Ms Emma – FS2 Teacher
“Expect the brilliantly unexpected. Victory Heights Primary School may appear small in size, but this school beats with a big heart. There is complete coherence between governors, leaders and parents about the vision and ethos of this school, which bursts with excitement, joy and love.
The characteristics of an outstanding British primary school have been expertly captured and entwined with local values. This is a school where the holistic development of every child is central to the values.
Laughing and enjoyment have been perfectly blended with high teaching standards and students are nurtured and develop into wonderful young people.
‘All you need is love’ can be heard being sung to the rooftops in every assembly and this school mantra perfectly encompasses what this school community delivers.”
Mr Rob. PE Teacher/CPD Leader
“It’s my safe place! Ever since I started at VHPS I’ve been proud of this community.
We treat each other really well and we are very happy.
There aren’t any bullies and I look forward to school every single day, so much so that I don’t want to go home.
My teachers have inspired me to be a teacher and I am so proud of what I’ve achieved here. No-one treats anyone like they are worthless or a piece of dust. Everyone treats each other like gold.“
Ethan Year 5
“My teachers are kind and caring and make sure that I always engage in lessons and understand. Without my teachers I would not be as confident as I am today.”
Hannah Year 6
“The teachers at VHPS help you when you are stuck in your learning. They let you take your time and let you adjust and give you lots of help.”
Lili Year 3
‘’I think VHPS is a five star school, because it makes us work hard and tries to make us organised and filled with knowledge. It makes me feel happy and positive because I’m not afraid of anything here and teachers help to make the learning fun and challenging.”
Adam Year 3
“I love coming to school because I like to do work and my teacher helps me and makes me laugh!
Everyone is kind here and everyone helps each other.‘’
Habiba FS2
“We love Victory Heights Primary School because of the amazing people that make the school such a great place for our children to grow, feeling loved and safe.
Our daughter Maddie has been in VHPS since school opened, back in 2013, and we are so happy with her learning path. She has done amazingly well in these years and now she’s ready to go to her choice of Secondary school feeling prepared for her next step.
In fact, we are so satisfied with how our daughter has been cared for that when we thought of a school for our youngest child, Martim, VHPS was our preferred option in spite of positions being offered in other top schools.
Once again, VHPS has been fantastic, and his progress has been amazing. He loves going to school and we cannot recommend VHPS enough: Amazing place with amazing people”.
Year 6 & FS2 Parent
“We love Victory Heights! From day one we have felt part of the Victory Heights Family. Both our daughters have flourished in an environment that encourages them to grow and learn whilst having fun. Ms Sasha and her staff bring an incredible energy to the school that both inspires and motivates the children (as well as parents) to reach for their dreams and achieve their goals. We could not be happier and more grateful for what this school offers our girls”.
Year 3 & Year 5 Parent
“We joined Victory Heights Primary School in August 2020 and we have #NOREGRETS. We were welcomed like old friends and our children immediately felt a sense of belonging. The teachers are highly skilled and our kids get individual attention. The level of education that is provided by VHPS is unparalleled. We feel very close to the schooling community, and the interaction between parents and the teachers is enough to provide a sense of family education rather than business education. We’ve seen our kids excel exponentially. We are very proud to be a part of VHPS and are looking forward to the years to come!”.
FS1 Parent
Victory Heights Primary School teaches us that you can do things differently. Having a leap of faith and believing in children as the centre of the universe has delivered dividends here. Having the courage to listen as part of the process of learning simply… works. And when children are listened to, they are happy. Show children kindness – and they sparkle themselves with kindness. They become confident in exploring the world – and learn to love school, education, life and others. And in this sort of environment bullying is not an issue – because there is no need for children to battle to be listened to, respected and celebrated.
Telling that in the recent Festival of Schools Christmas event at Victory Heights Primary School, the demand for tickets almost broke the system. This is a community school where community means something.
And if you want to, yes, you can listen to the mountains of theoretical language detailing the philosophical and pedagogical sophistication underpinning what is taking place here. But ultimately you just do not need to do this to see what this school is achieving for its children. It sparkles.
Is it magic? Or is it, truthfully, the result of absolutely, even obsessively, outstanding school leadership and teachers. We think it is both.
Our final words go, fittingly, to a Victory Heights child:
“I love my teachers because they care for me.
My school has love in its heart, like when we sing ‘’All you need is love’ in assembly.”
Lucas Year 2
© SchoolsCompared.com. 2021. All rights reserved.
Visit the Victory Heights Primary School web site here.
Read the independent review of Victory Heights Primary School by SchoolsCompared.com here.
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