Heritage | History and heritage of BISR, an international day school for boys & girls, junior, senior & sixth form - Saudi Arabia

BISR’s Exceptional 45 Year Heritage

45 years of excellence. 45 years of nurturing minds and shaping futures.

• 1979 September With the support of the British Embassy, the Saudi British Bank and the Al Hollandi Bank, the school opened as the Riyadh Continental School to meet the needs of the expat community, providing a British education for students ages 4-13.
• 1981 March The school was incorporated into the Saudi Arabian International Schools and was renamed as the British International School Riyadh.
• 1982 Summer Due to increased popularity and rapidly rising student numbers, the school moved to the Rawdah site.
• 1995 September The school moved into its present purpose-built site adjacent to the Al Hamra Compound, located in the northern suburbs of Riyadh.
• 2002 September BISR expanded to offer GCSE subjects to Year 10 students, with Year 11 coming on stream in 2003.
• 2004 September The 6th form section of the school was opened by Prince Charles (now King Charles), catering for students up to 18 years of age.
• 2007 September Salwa school, part of the BAE Systems Saudi compound, opened, catering for pupils aged 3-11.
• 2020 February BISR signed a contract with the Diplomatic Quarter General Authority (DQGA) in Riyadh to open a third campus.
• 2020 September The Diplomatic Quarter campus opened as a two-form entry Primary school, with plans to expand further.
• 2020 September The BAE Systems primary schools at Tabuk and Taif joined the BISR family.
• 2021 February The Diplomatic Quarter campus opened to Year 7 and Year 8 students.
• 2022 September The Diplomatic Quarter campus opened to Year 9, 10 and 12 year groups. This thriving campus allows us to support the growing demand for international school places within the city, and to broaden different pathway choices and provision for BISR families.
• 2024 September The Al Saqr campus opened for primary students in Al Majma’ah - a purpose-built hub dedicated to providing BAE families with a transformative and innovative educational experience.
• 2025 January Al Sharq campus opens in the heart of Riyadh, becoming the fourth BAE school in the BISR family. This new primary school offers a state-of-the-art educational experience, with play-based learning and pupil agency at the heart of our educational philosophy.
• 2025 June Successful transition of 1700 students to the newly opened, purpose-built Al Waha campus of 30,000 sq metres within a 50,000 sq metre site.