King’s College Riyadh will introduce a Pearson-resourced Key Stage 3 curriculum from the 2026/27 academic year, expanding its British education pathway for pupils in Years 6 to 8 at its Diriyah campus and preparing families for the school’s planned secondary growth at SEDRA.The move places the school’s lower secondary provision on a more structured academic track, linking classroom learning, assessment and future qualifications through Pearson resources and Pearson Edexcel pathways. It comes as Riyadh’s private education market continues to expand, supported by population growth, rising demand from families seeking international curricula, and the Kingdom’s broader push to improve education quality under Vision 2030.
King’s College Riyadh said the new KS3 pathway will combine the National Curriculum for England with internationally recognised learning materials, structured schemes of work and assessment tools aimed at tracking student progress more consistently. The curriculum will cover core subjects with textbooks, digital learning platforms and age-appropriate content intended to strengthen independent learning, critical thinking and preparation for later examination routes.
The enhanced pathway will support pupils across Years 6, 7 and 8 at Diriyah, while providing continuity for students expected to move into the future SEDRA campus. The school’s expansion plan is designed to create a fuller secondary offering, with the SEDRA campus scheduled to open in August 2027 as an all-through school from Pre-School to Year 13.
Principal Jacqueline Doran said the introduction of the Pearson-resourced KS3 curriculum marked “an exciting step forward” for secondary provision in Riyadh. She said the school was seeking to create “a more connected academic journey” through stronger learning resources, clearer progression routes and preparation for future qualifications.
King’s College Riyadh intends to become a Pearson Edexcel iGCSE and A Level school once the SEDRA campus opens, subject to formal accreditation and approval of examination facilities. That ambition reflects a wider shift among premium international schools in the Gulf towards clearer end-to-end academic pathways, where families can see how early and middle years learning connects to globally recognised school-leaving qualifications.
The Diriyah campus currently serves pupils from Pre-School to Year 7, with the school positioning itself as a British curriculum institution adapted to the Saudi context. Arabic language, Islamic Studies and Saudi social studies remain part of the programme, alongside mathematics, science, English, humanities, languages, arts, sport and co-curricular activities.
The SEDRA campus is expected to add scale to that model. The planned school will occupy a 36,300-square-metre site within ROSHN Group’s SEDRA community in north Riyadh. It will open initially from Pre-School to Year 9 and expand year by year towards Year 13, allowing the secondary section to grow in phases rather than immediately admitting all year groups.
Facilities planned for SEDRA include science and technology laboratories, specialist libraries, art and music studios, a performing arts theatre, an eight-court sports hall, two padel courts, basketball courts, a full-size floodlit football pitch and a 25-metre six-lane swimming pool. The campus is being developed as part of a wider community model, placing education near residential, recreational and social infrastructure.
King’s College Riyadh is part of the Cognita family of schools and carries the heritage of King’s College in the UK. Its Riyadh offer has been marketed around British academic standards, pastoral care and co-curricular breadth, while adapting the curriculum to local requirements and cultural expectations.
Pearson’s role gives the school access to curriculum materials, assessment frameworks and examination progression used widely across international British schools. For parents, the immediate significance lies in greater predictability: pupils entering KS3 will be taught through a defined framework that leads towards recognised assessment points, rather than moving from primary to secondary learning without a clearly signposted route.
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Saudi Arabia