Abu Dhabi is adding another big British name to its education scene. Harrow — the UK school founded in 1572 under a royal charter from Elizabeth I, and the alma mater of Winston Churchill, several British prime ministers and India's first PM Jawaharlal Nehru — will open Harrow International School Abu Dhabi on Saadiyat Island from August 2027.
The campus sits in cultural company: close to Cranleigh Abu Dhabi, New York University Abu Dhabi and the Berklee College of Music. It will open with classes from FS1 up to Year 6, mirroring the launch model of Harrow's Dubai campus, which opened in August 2026 with Early Years and primary years and plans to grow to roughly 1,800–2,000 pupils. Older year groups in the capital will be phased in, with Years 7 to 13 added in later academic years, eventually running through to Sixth Form.
Adrian Frost has been named Founding Head Master, and admissions are already open. Fees run from Dhs74,100 per year for FS1 up to Dhs125,275 at Sixth Form level — firmly in premium territory, though fairly typical for top-tier British curriculum schools in the UAE.
Harrow is not arriving alone. The UAE is on a run of headline British school openings. Gordonstoun, where King Charles III was educated (and which Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed reportedly attended for a summer), is building its first overseas campus on Abu Dhabi's Jubail Island, with doors expected to open next year. Epsom College follows in September 2028, and King's College School Wimbledon — nearly two centuries old — is also set for 2028, on Fahid Island. Dubai, meanwhile, already has the new Harrow campus running.
Why does this matter to travellers? If you're a family weighing a move to the Emirates — whether for work, a long stay or an extended Gulf chapter — school options are usually the deciding factor. The arrival of Harrow, Gordonstoun, Epsom and King's College Wimbledon means Abu Dhabi is quickly becoming one of the strongest markets in the world for British-brand education outside the UK itself. It also signals how seriously the capital is investing in Saadiyat and its neighbouring islands as full family neighbourhoods rather than just beach and culture destinations — think the Louvre Abu Dhabi, Manarat Al Saadiyat and long stretches of protected shoreline, now paired with serious schooling.
If a UAE relocation is on your horizon, it's worth tracking these openings and their catchment areas now, as places at new campuses of famous schools tend to fill quickly. Applications for Harrow Abu Dhabi's inaugural year are open already, more than a year ahead of the first bell.
