Uptown Primary School  

Uptown Primary School in Dubai

School name	Uptown Primary School
Type of institute	private profit-making primary school
Curriculum or Student Nationality	International
Qualifications or Courses	IBPYP
Head of school	Mr Tim Waley (Principal)
Executive body or owner	Beacon Education >> Madaares >> Taaleem
Date founded	September 2005
Number of students (approx)
Number of staff (approx)
School location/area/map	Road 15, off Algeria Road, Mirdiff - location map
Postal address	PO Box 78181, Dubai, UAE
Telephone	+971-4-2886270
Fax	+971-4-2886271
Email	admissions@uptownprimary.ae
Website	www.uptownprimary.ae (new window)
School fees structure	33,000-45,000 dhs per year (2011-2012)
Teacher salary range	12,400 - 16,900 dhs per month (estimate only, not confirmed)
Student satisfaction rating	from 68 votes. TerriblePoor Average Good Excellent
Parent satisfaction rating	from 39 votes. TerriblePoor Average Good Excellent
Teacher job satisfaction rating (by teachers, not about teachers)	from 21 votes. TerriblePoor Average Good Excellent
KHDA school inspection report ratings	2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 good good good good

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Uptown Primary School tuition fee structure

• 2012-2013 fees not supplied, and might increase from 2011-2012. Application fee AED 500, registration and re-registration fee not supplied. Please send updated fee structure to education@dubaifaqs.com.
• 2011-2012 fees include AED 5,000 registration fee.
• 2010-2011 fee estimates revised November 2010 based on information supplied (previous figures were based on reported 20% fee increase permitted by the KHDA). Application fee AED 500, registration fee AED 2000 (might be only AED 500 from 2009). Uptown High School fees included for reference only. Final year of Uptown Primary School is grade 5.
• Website is at www.uptownprimary.ae. Previous website at www.uptown.ae no longer available. Domain www.uptownschool.ae is now used for Uptown School (previously for Uptown Primary School).

22 April 2012

• We have renamed this page for Uptown School (the primary school) as Uptown Primary School to avoid confusion with the new Uptown School (IB, K-12) opening in September 2012. The primary school appears to have been renamed (again) by Taaleem also.

18 December 2011

• Uptown Primary will expand to Grade 6 for academic year 2012-2013 (and follow the IB Middle Years Program - IBMYP).

30 June 2011

• New principal of Uptown School from August 2011 is Mr Tim Waley (previously head at Raffles School Dubai West Campus), replacing Mrs Elizabeth Loadwick. Announced in parents newsletter of 19 June 2011 (or earlier).
• Uptown High School is closed from end of Academic Year 2010-2011 but the primary school continues to operate. A new K-12 Uptown School is apparently under development.

17 June 2011

• According to a report in The National, a newsletter was sent out to parents at GEMS Royal Dubai School dated 09 June 2011 that said "Having heard the news that Uptown School in Mirdif will be closing, ... "
• The report also said confusingly "However, Taaleem, the operator of the Uptown school, said it had no plans to close their Mirdif school. But it had informed parents it was closing its secondary campus in Uptown Muhaisnah at the end of the year ..." And we thought both the primary and high school were in Mirdiff ...
• But the confusion is understandable. The Uptown primary school is apparently called Uptown School even though their own website calls it Uptown Primary School, so people are not always sure if Uptown School refers to the primary school or high school or both. Uptown Primary said on their website "You may have been contacted by Gems Royal Dubai asking you to ‘refer a friend' to their school, on the premise that our school is closing. This could not be further from the truth!" Even though it was the associated high school that was in fact closing.
• Another letter from RDS dated 12 June 2011 said "Last week, I circulated a letter (dated June 9) which referred to the closure of the Uptown School in Mirdiff.  I now understand that this is not the case and that the school involved is the Uptown High School."

30 November 2010

• Uptown Primary School (UPS) (or Uptown School) updated fees information supplied for 2010-2011.
• Removed from list of Special Needs Schools in Dubai as UPS not a special needs school according to email supplied. UPS website FAQS says "Most children with learning or language support needs have them met in school, and we will include you in any discussions and consider your views in making decisions about your child."
• Curriculum is International according to information supplied. A US or UK curriculum is not offered (information updated).

28 June 2010

• About 140 parents of pupils at Uptown School have sent a protest letter about the fees increase to Taaleem according to press reports in the UAE.
• Parents want to see the accounts of the school to explain why the fees need to be increased. The Taleem Director of Communications, Clive Pierrepont, apparently said they already have seen them ... "We have shared the summaries of all of our schools accounts through our advisory boards and in financial extracts to parents. We have been very transparent in our financial declarations."
• Mr Pierrepont also said "This support has included committing over 90 per cent of the total school fee income to support staff salaries during past four years, which has resulted in cumulative losses in excess of Dh33 million."
• Number of students at Uptown Primary is 605 according to May 2010 KHDA inspection report. Which would imply a fee income in 2009-2010 of about AED 20 million (17,290,900-23,582,900 using KG1 and G5 fees as minimum and maximum). Assuming there are about 60 staff (using a staff:student ratio of 10:1), that would imply the average cost of each staff member based on Mr Pierrepont's statement is about AED 25k per month, or AED 300k per year (which would include all costs such as housing, visas, etc). Which seems very generous for a teacher in Dubai, let alone drivers, cleaners, gardeners, receptionists, and other support staff.
• The planned fee increase for 2010-2011 is apparently 16%, not 20%, as previously reported.
• Some parents are asking if the fee increase is being used to support the development of a new Taaleem school in Jumeirah, or a new high school in JBR according to news reports. Except there is no Taalem school planned for JBR (Jumeirah Beach Residence) as far as we know.

19 May 2010

• Uptown School in Mirdiff was reported on 19 May 2010 in the UAE press to have been given permission by the KHDA to increase tuition fees by up to 20% for the 2010-2011 academic year. Presumably the reports were referring to the primary school but estimated increase in high school fees have been included until correct fees information supplied.

• Grade	KG1	KG2	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
  Annual fees (AED) 2010-2011	34,296	34,296	40,536	40,536	46,776	46,776	46,776	58,800	61,200	63,600	67,200	70,800	76,800	82,800

• In March 2010, the KHDA announced a freeze on school fees in Dubai, unless there were exceptional circumstances. It is not clear what they were for Uptown School.

19 August 2009

• Uptown School is still called Uptown School (we think). Email from Taaleem says the correct name is Uptown School, but the school website calls it both Uptown School and Uptown Primary School, and the website is www.uptownprimary.ae (and www.uptownschool.ae redirects to www.uptownprimary.ae).
• Uptown School only offers KG1-Grade 5 classes so it is included in the list of Dubai primary schools. From Grade 6, students attend Uptown High School (UHS).
• Fees information updated for 2009-2010 (was AED 25,520-34,800 for 2008-2009). Add application fee of AED 500.
• Email contact updated (fdharsey@uptownprimary.ae no longer valid?). Email info@uptownprimary.ae also valid.
• Uptown School website says they cater to "exceptional children" - "through a dedicated department staffed by qualified and passionate specialists in this important area of education" which could mean they accept some Special Needs children. The Uptown High website refers to catering for "physically challenged" and "specific learning needs" students which seems to imply they do.

02 August 2008

• Uptown School and Uptown Primary School (UPS) usually refer to the same school (the name has changed back and forth a couple of times) and the Tasleem (school owner) website currently has Uptown School. The new high school (in a different location) is called Uptown High according to the Taaleem website.
• Fees updated for 2008-2009. Previously was 25,520-39,440 dhs for 2007-2008 grades 1-9, but school is now only grades 1-6?
• Principal's email was liz_loadwick@beacon-education.ae (unknown if still valid).
• Uptown High School in Mirdiff / Muhaisnah continues from Uptown Primary for grades 6-10 and eventually grades 11-12.
• Uptown Primary School website changed. Domains www.uptownschool.ae and www.uptownprimary.ae forward to the Uptown Primary School (also referred to as Uptown School) section at www.taaleem.ae (not www.taleem.ae), www.uptownhigh.ae forwards to the high school website. Domain www.uptown.ae returns an error, www.uptownschool.com is spam, and the other .com versions return errors.
• Madaares bought Taaleem & Beacon Education in June 2007, and in May 2008 the company was renamed as Taaleem (not Taleem).

08 August 2007

• Name changed from Uptown Primary School to Uptown School.
• Both domains www.uptownprimary.ae and www.uptown.ae forward to the same website.
• School now operates KG to Grade 9 classes. Fees information updated for 2007-2008.

11 January 2007

• Classes to grade 7 in September 2006 and possibly grade 8, eventually grade 9.
• Multinational students and staff. Alternative email mbotha@uptownprimary.ae.

Schools in the same area as Uptown Primary School

Last update 29 April 2012

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