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Guide to Dubai Nursery Schools and Early Learning Centres. KHDA Official.
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Guide to Dubai Nursery Schools and Early Learning Centres. KHDA Official.

by Tabitha BardaJanuary 25, 2022

Designed to promote growth as well as excellence in Dubai nursery schools and Early Learning Centre sector, the guide includes detailed information on the educational and operational requirements of opening or expanding an early childhood education establishment in Dubai.

The Dubai nursery guide has been released by the KHDA (Knowledge and Human Development Authority), which regulates Dubai private schools, as well as nurseries and early learning centres (ELCs) in Dubai.

Mohammed Darwish, CEO of Permits and Compliance at KHDA said:

“The benefits of high-quality education and care are well-documented, both to children’s development and to society as a whole.

We have high expectations of Dubai’s early years education sector, and this guide gives operators the information they need to offer high-quality provision.

We plan on working closely with our partners in this sector to ensure that children are able to learn and thrive in an environment that puts their wellbeing at heart.”

The process to open or expand a Dubai nursery has been streamlined in the guide, with reduced documentation requirements and faster processing times.

The guide also formalises an official framework for the quality of provision that must be offered in nurseries and ELCs – akin to the frameworks already established for schools –  making it clear what UAE parents can expect when it comes to the early-years education of their children.

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New guidelines for early childhood centres include:

  • New centres need to have dedicated education and care plans and have a clear governance structure in place
  • All staff employed must have suitable attributes, qualifications, knowledge and experience for their role
  • Staff caring for children aged 45 days to 35 months should have expertise in baby and toddler care and development

Dubai nursery KHDA guide

What UAE parents can expect from Dubai nurseries and Early Learning Centres

The KHDA’s new guide officially formalises the minimum standards of childcare provision that must be offered for children and parents in Dubai. Here are the main highlights of what parents can expect:

What age can your child start nursery in Dubai?

A child must be aged between 45 days and six years to be admitted to an early childhood centre in Dubai.

Grade/Stage Minimum Age Maximum Age
Early Learning Stage 45 days 1
1 2
2 3
Pre-KG/FS 1 3 4
KG 1/ FS 2 4 5
KG 2/ Year 1 5 6
*  Age of the students as of August 31

 

  • The child must be at least 45 days old to be admitted to an ECC.
  • The age of the child must meet the minimum age for the grade/year group outlined in the table below. This is in accordance with the legislation governing the enrolment of students/children at ECCs in Dubai.
  • In accordance with resolution No. (24) of 2021, there will be no exceptions to the specified age requirements

Staff to child ratios in Dubai nursery schools and Early Learning Centres

The table below indicates minimum expectations in relation to staff to child ratios. Where a curriculum states that additional requirements are necessary, as long as the minimum standards are met, any specific requirements of the curriculum can be added. Where there are mixed age groups the staff-child ratio is based on the youngest age group.

Age Group                                    Staff to Child ratios

45 days to 17 months                    1:3

18 to 35 months                             1:5

36 to 47 months                             1:8

48 to 71 months                             1:12

Indoor space requirements for Dubai nurseries

The indoor area is calculated after excluding the corridors, bathrooms, offices, stores, staff rooms, kitchen, cabinets, and other fixtures, other than desks/learning resources. The indoor space requirements per child are detailed in the table below

Age range                                     Indoor space requirements per child

45 days to 17 months                    4.5 m2

18 to 35 months                             3.5 m2

36 to 47 months                             3 m2

48 to 71 months                             3 m2 S

Outdoor area requirements for Dubai nurseries

The outdoor space should be risk assessed, and should have safe access and exit points, with childproof latches on all gates, which must remain closed when children are present. Arrangements should be in place to ensure that unauthorised access by unknown adults or children is not permitted. If the outdoor space is close to hazards such as roads it should have suitable fencing of at least 1.8 metres in height.

The outside space must also:

  • be shaded to protect children from the natural elements whilst allowing access as often as possible;
  • have well maintained flooring, free from trips and hazards;
  • be free from hazards (e.g., large containers that collect water, manholes and pest control devices should be covered; storage sheds must be locked when not in use); and
  • conform to relevant health and safety protocols. The outdoor space requirements per child are detailed in the table below.

Age Group                                                   Outdoor space requirements per child

45 days to 35 months                                   4.5 m2 based on 1/5 of number of children*

36 – 71 months                                            5 m2 based on 1/5 of number of children*

  • For example If you have 40 children aged 0-35 months, 1/5 of that is 8 children, so you would need to ensure 8 x 4.5m2 = 36 m2 for this group of children

Dubai nursery KHDA guide

What qualifications do Dubai nursery staff and teachers need to have?

The KHDA guide outlines in detail what sort of qualifications and attributes are required from nursery and ELC staff. Here are some of the most relevant ones for parents to know about:

EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTRE MANAGER

Early childhood education providers in Dubai should ensure that all staff employed meet all expectations for the attributes, qualifications, knowledge and experience outlined in the KHDA Guide. Early Childhood Centre managers often set the tone of the whole establishment, and according to the KHDA they must also have:

Qualification Requirements

EXPECTED TO HAVE:

  • a bachelor’s degree, and preferably working towards a post-graduate qualification in early childhood education

OR • professional certification* in leading an early learning centre (for example: level five vocational qualification)

Required Experience

EXPECTED TO HAVE:

3+ years’ experience in an early childhood setting

EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTRE TEACHERS

Early Childhood Teachers (Educators) for children aged from 45 days to 35 months

Where appropriate to the setting, teachers of the youngest children should have expertise in baby and toddler care and development. They should maintain a stimulating and welcoming childcare environment, and ensure that children’s development, learning, wellbeing, health, and safety are maintained at all times. Teachers of children aged from 45 days to 35 months have a key role in establishing the foundations for the development of language and communication, gross motor skills, and personal, social, and emotional skills and dispositions. Teachers should set achievable, stage-appropriate milestones for children while meeting and managing their individual needs as they move developmentally from the infant through to the toddler stage. Building upon these developmental milestones is an important part of the educator’s role and critical to children’s overall wellbeing.

Early Childhood Teachers (Educators) for children aged from 36 to 71 months

Teachers play a key role in developing the many languages of expression in early childhood education, including the specific aspects of communication, language and literacy, inquiry, and mathematics skills of children. Early childhood teachers in Dubai nursery schools and Early Learning Centres are required to plan a secure, welcoming, accessible and high-quality learning and care experience that meets relevant legislation and the children’s individual needs. They should ensure effective liaison with parents and, where appropriate, deputise for the manager where required.

EARLY CHILDHOOD TEACHERS 

Qualification Requirements

EXPECTED TO HAVE:

  • or be working towards a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education (preferable) or another area*

OR • professional certification in early childhood education (for example level three vocational qualification)

Required Experience

EXPECTED TO HAVE:

Recommended relevant experience in an early childhood setting

EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTRE TEACHER ASSISTANTS

Early Childhood Teacher Assistants for children aged 45 days to 35 months

The early childhood teacher assistant takes day-to-day responsibility for the care of the babies and young children in the designated room, within the setting. The role will include a focus on children’s secure attachment, the preparation of individual learning and care plans for each child and maintaining positive, daily interaction and ongoing communication with parents. As the child grows, consideration should be given to the requirements of the ECP and its implementation in a developmentally-appropriate manner, under the guidance of the educator.

Early Childhood Teacher Assistants for children aged 36 to 71 months

Under the guidance of the teacher, the early childhood teacher assistant provides a high level of learning support and care for each child and ensures that they are safe. They monitor the children’s progress and provide activities that enable children to progress in their learning and development. Teacher assistants help children to develop their language, literacy and mathematics skills and support them to become more independent.

Dubai nursery schools and Early Childhood Centre helpers (care assistants)

With guidance from teachers and teacher assistants, early childhood education support staff (helpers or care assistants) provide a high level of support for children’s development, learning and care and ensure children are safe. They look after children’s personal hygiene needs as appropriate and work as an active member of the ECC team. They work with and assist the early childhood educators and the early childhood education assistants to endorse and practise the philosophy and pedagogy of the centre, including learning, teaching and assessment. Helpers should never be left in charge of a group of children, unless supervised by a teacher or teaching assistant.

Dubai nursery KHDA guide

Is the UAE nursery sector heading for a boom?

There were 15 new nurseries opened in Dubai in 2021, and more than 200 nurseries and early childhood centres currently cater to children from 45 days old up to six years of age in the emirate, according to KHDA figures.

This number looks set to grow with the release of the new KHDA Dubai nursery and early Learning Centre guide, which shows the regulator’s commitment to improving the quality of the emirate’s early-years offering for children and their parents, while also making it smoother and easier for educationalists to operate early childhood centres in Dubai.

Although Dubai nurseries and ELCs are unique in being able to cater for the emirate’s youngest children and babies – starting from just 45 days of age – they compete with schools when it comes to offering education to 3-to-6-year-olds (FS1 to Year 1).

However, the news of the UAE 4.5 working-day week has given nurseries a bit of an edge for working parents when it comes to the FS1 to Year 1 age range, since unlike schools they are not currently required to close by 12pm on Fridays. This means that parents in the private sector, many of whom still have full working days on Fridays, do not have the same childcare dilemma as they would do if their 3-to-6-year-old children were finishing before noon on a Friday.

Additionally, there used to be so much competition for school spaces in Dubai that many parents chose to start their children in a school at the earliest opportunity – from FS1 or pre-KG – in order to increase the likelihood of them securing a space. The expansion of the school sector in recent years and increased availability of places throughout the school years has meant that some parents feel less pressured in this way and can be more relaxed about choosing to keep their children in nursery for longer if preferred.

While there’s no doubt that the quality of Early Years provision in Dubai schools is first-rate, there are several factors that suggest we could be looking at a boom in quality and possibly quantity on the horizon for UAE nurseries, and hopefully a healthy bounce-back for the nursery sector, after the many challenges presented by COVID.

The SchoolsCompared.com Verdict

Dubai parents and children are sure to benefit from this latest move by the KHDA. There is ample research to show how important early-years education and childcare is for establishing the foundations for a child’s emotional, social and academic development. This new guide makes it clear that the regulator is now treating ELCs like they already treat schools, creating a clear and formalised framework for the standard of teaching and quality of facilities that must be met by nurseries and early learning centres.

The KHDA took over official regulation of all nurseries and ELCs in Dubai in February 2021, and this guide is a clear sign of its intention to professionalise the sector and set the same kind of standards for excellence that parents can expect from the emirate’s school sector. Although many of the requirements are already in place at Dubai’s top-performing nurseries, they have now been formalised officially for all Dubai nursery schools and Early Learning Centres.

Whilst many nurseries and Early Learning Centres are still reeling from the impacts of Covid-19 (and we have lost many good Centres in the process), the reality is that this news can only be welcomed. What we can expect in years to come is a raising of standards in the nursery sector exactly comparable to that we have seen in schools. The net result should be an outstanding Early Years sector that competes with those available anywhere in the world.

It is all of us, as parents, and the wider UAE, that will benefit.

To read the full KHDA guide for nurseries and ELCs in Dubai, click here

© SchoolsCompared.com. 2022. All rights reserved.

About The Author
Tabitha Barda
Tabitha Barda is the Senior Editor of SchoolsCompared.com. Oxbridge educated and an award winning journalist in the UAE for more than a decade, Tabitha is one of the region's shining lights in all that is education in the emirates. A mum herself, she is passionate about helping parents - and finding the stories in education that deserve telling. She is responsible for the busy 24x7 News Desk, our Advisory Boards and Specialist Panels - and Parents United's WHICHPlaydates - a regular meeting place for UAE parents to discuss the issues that matter to them, make friends and network with others. You can often find Tabitha too on Parents United - our Facebook community board, discussing the latest schools and education issues with our parent community in the UAE - and beyond.

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