David Wade

I have been with GEMS Education since 2018 and was appointed Principal/CEO of GEMS FirstPoint School – The Villa in the summer of 2022. Prior to joining FirstPoint, I held the position of Principal/CEO of GEMS Winchester School – Fujairah, where I proudly served the community for the best part of four years.

I have extensive school leadership experience in a variety of international settings, having led two prestigious independent schools in the UK for seven years and having spent another seven years at the helm of premium schools in Singapore and Malaysia, before arriving in the UAE. I have led schools with both Primary and Secondary sections for more than 20 years and consider myself a ‘whole school’ educator.

Originally a Business graduate, I initially spent three years qualifying as an accountant before making what I consider my finest professional decision – to retrain as a teacher. Having found my true passion and vocation, I went on to gain a master’s degree in Educational Leadership with a rare ‘High Distinction’.

I consider it a genuine honour to be able to influence the lives of young people. I am fully committed to my personal philosophy of lifelong learning and am delighted to have the opportunity to continue to learn from the students and colleagues around me on a daily basis. 

I am a keen sports enthusiast and a firm believer in driving innovation, reflected in a previous role as Director of Innovation in an Apple Distinguished School. I am fully committed to the FirstPoint community, with my son already happily enrolled in the school for a number of years.