Facts at a Glance
- Gordonstoun to partner with Jubail Island Investment Company (JIIC) and Spaces Investment & Real Estate Development (Spaces) to launch biggest brand British school in the UAE to date.
- Gordonstoun to be the flagship school for the AED 12 billion, 2800 hectare Jubail Island – “an idyllic collection of villages located between Yas Island and Saadiyat Island designed for wellness and nature enthusiasts, positioned amid the rich biodiversity of the mangroves” serving a community of more than 10,000 residents.
- Gordonstoun Abu Dhabi set to be the first branch school outside the United Kingdom after plans for China, India, Canada and Hong Kong delayed or cancelled. The race to be first is on…
- Gordonstoun gave birth to the Duke of Edinburgh Award [DofE] which has spread across the world to over 140 countries and encapsulates the Gordonstoun ethics of a good and fulfilled life.
The famous building, and current Boarding House, that gave name to Round Square at Gordonstoun pictured left.
- Gordonstoun is a lead school of Round Square, an internationally diverse network of 245 schools in 50 countries across six continents that “connect and collaborate to offer world-class programmes and experiences, developing global competence, character and confidence in our students.” Round Square was named after one of the school’s famous boarding houses built in the 1600s by the eccentric Third Baronet, Sir Robert Gordon, who was also known as The Wizard because of his fascination with alchemy. It was his idea to build Round Square, a distinctive building constructed in a perfect circle. “The legend states that he built Round Square to protect himself as there were ‘no corners for the Devil to hide behind’”
The United Kingdom’s GCHQ building, a major example of the contemporary shift to circular buildings.
- No architectural plans for the school have been released but we would expect a landmark building based around the natural landscape of Jubail Island and one potentially nodding to the famous curved Round Square Building at Gordonstoun Abu Dhabi’s home school in Elgin, Scotland.
- Agreement to open the school was signed on 21st September 2023 at Gordonstoun in the United Kingdom.
Pictured left to right: Fahad AlBlooshi, Chairman of Spaces; Lisa Kerr, Principal of Gordonstoun, Mounir Haidar, Managing Director of JIIC; and, David White, Gordonstoun Chair of Governors and Chair of Gordonstoun International surrounded by Great Highland Bagpipe pipers – an instrument mentioned in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales in the Fourteenth century and made famous during the expansion of the British Empire by the Highland Regiments, including the Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland. The agreement to launch Gordonstoun Abu Dhabi was reached at Gordonstoun United Kingdom on 23rd September 2023.
- Gordonstoun educated King Charles III of the United Kingdom and Monarch and Head of State of the Commonwealth.
Pictured left to right: the young King Charles III of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Monarch and Head of State of the Commonwealth, with his Father, the late Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh – both educated at Gordonstoun.
- Gordonstoun played a part in the education of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President and Head of State of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Abu Dhabi. His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan completed his education in Abu Dhabi with a Summer spent at Gordonstoun where he built strong links with the British Royal Family before graduating from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in April 1979.
Pictured: His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President and Head of State of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Abu Dhabi.
It has been officially confirmed that one of the United Kingdom’s most elite schools will open in Abu Dhabi in 2026. SchoolsCompared was told that the steadfast commitment to UAE parents is that the school will very closely align with the Gordonstoun curriculum, know-how and high standards; be fiercely protective of its reputation and “bring an enhanced sense of excellence and distinction to the region’s already-impressive educational offerings” when it opens in September 2026:
“Jubail Island’s Gordonstoun School will be aligned with the student experience offered by the institution in Scotland, and will aim to combine Gordonstoun’s emphasis on leadership, challenge, and service with opportunities for students to engage with UAE culture and tradition.”
The school joins other big brand British schools in the United Arab Emirates including Brighton College Dubai, Brighton College Abu Dhabi, Brighton College Al Ain, Cranleigh Abu Dhabi, Repton School Dubai, Repton School Abu Dhabi, Royal Grammar School Guildford, Durham School Dubai, Kent College and North London Collegiate School.
Read our story asking “Is a British education (still?) the best in the world for power and influence? Does it matter?”
Read our story “Eton, Repton, Cranleigh, Harrow, Brighton – do big name British school brands matter in the UAE?”
What can UAE parents expect from Gordonstoun Abu Dhabi
Pictured left to right: The signatories to the launch of Gordonstoun Abu Dhabi – Fahad AlBlooshi, Chairman of Spaces, David White, Gordonstoun Chair of Governors and Chair of Gordonstoun International Ltd, and Mounir Haidar, Managing Director of JIIC
David White, Chair of Governors and Chair of Gordonstoun International, told SchoolsCompared:
“At Gordonstoun, we are world-leading in the education delivered to our students and it has always been our vision to make our unique approach more universal.
“This agreement is a big step towards making a Gordonstoun education more widely available to students in the Region, and we are delighted to open up this unique form of learning to other parts of the world.”
Continuing, Mounir Haidar, Managing Director of Jubail Island Investment Company, explained:
“The opening of Gordonstoun School in Jubail Island will see the iconic destination elevated even further, propelled by Gordonstoun’s prestigious global reputation and unique educational ethos.
“Once functional, the school will serve as a world-class institution for students throughout the region and will underscore Abu Dhabi’s leading status as an exclusive hub for living and learning.
“We’re thrilled to be partnering with Gordonstoun and Spaces to bring this vision to life and look forward to welcoming students to Jubail Island’s Gordonstoun School in just a few years’ time.”
Fahad AlBlooshi, Chairman of Spaces, summarised:
“Partnering with JIIC and Gordonstoun on the launch of the first Gordonstoun School in the region is an incredible opportunity that will see the foundations laid for a new kind of education.
Gordonstoun’s specialised approach to value-based education, which teaches students hands-on skills and supports with positive character building, is in alignment with UAE values and culture, which aim to encourage independence, perseverance, and discipline.
We’re excited to debut the school in Jubail Island and look forward to the ways in which Gordonstoun Abu Dhabi will continue to shape the future generations of the UAE.”
Gordonstoun Abu Dhabi will offer a pure, Tier 1 premium, British education through IGCSE to gold standard British A Level, although this is subject to mooted transformation of British education to culminate in the new Advanced British Standard Baccalaureate. You can read more about the planned new British Baccalaureate here, and here.
Location
Famous Alumni and Associations
- His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President and Head of State of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Abu Dhabi
- King Charles III, King of the United Kingdom and Monarch and Head of State of the Commonwealth
- Founder Kurt Hahn – Educationalist
- Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia
- Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
- Prince Andrew, Duke of York
- Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh
- Peter Phillips
- Zara Phillips
- Nicholas Alexander, 7th Earl of Caledon
- James Carnegie, 3rd Duke of Fife
- Alexander Douglas-Hamilton, 16th Duke of Hamilton
- Jasper Duncombe, 7th Baron Feversham
- Christopher Finch-Hatton, 16th Earl of Winchilsea
- Granville Gordon, 13th Marquess of Huntly
- John Grant, 13th Earl of Dysart
- Paul-Philippe Hohenzollern
- Norton Knatchbull, 3rd Earl Mountbatten of Burma
- Angus Montagu, 12th Duke of Manchester
- Lord Ivar Mountbatten
- Michael Pearson, 4th Viscount Cowdray
- Claus-Casimir of Orange-Nassau count of Orange-Nassau, member of the Dutch royal family
- Jonathan Harmsworth, 4th Viscount Rothermere, chairman and controlling shareholder of the Daily Mail and General Trust
- Peter Zinovieff – British composer, musician and inventor
- Adrian Utley – Musician Portishead
- William Boyd – writer
- Oona Chaplin – actress
- Jason Connery – actor
- Balthazar Getty – heir to the Getty oil fortune
- Dick Heckstall-Smith – musician
- Duncan Jones (Zowie Bowie) – film director and son of musician David Bowie
- Luca Prodan – musician
- Lara Breay – film producer
- Heather Stanning – rower and Olympic gold medallist
- Roy Williamson – musician
- Lara Croft – fictional character educated at the school
Jubail Island
Further information
This is a fast moving story. We will be updating news as we receive it. In the interim you can
- Read more about Gordonstoun in the United Kingdom
- Learn about Jubail Island, the home of Gordonstoun Abu Dhabi, here.
If you have a ground-breaking story in UAE education, please mail the SchoolsCompared.com News Desk 24/7 at [email protected]
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