What does O'Keeffe Education Consultancy do?

OEC is an independent education consultancy supporting investors, founders, owners and boards across the UAE, GCC and Saudi Arabia. It works across five areas: quality assurance and inspection readiness; governance and board advisory; leadership and school improvement; early years and nursery excellence; and strategic advisory and due diligence.

Who does OEC work with?

Investors, family offices, founders, owners, boards and senior leadership teams of schools, nurseries and education groups.

Which regions does OEC serve?

The UAE, the wider GCC and Saudi Arabia. OEC is based in Dubai and has operated in the UAE education sector since 1995.

What makes OEC independent?

OEC has no affiliation with regulators, inspection bodies or training providers. The only interest is the client's success, which allows a candid, evidence-based view that is difficult to obtain from anyone with a stake in the outcome.

Who is Janet O'Keeffe?

Janet O'Keeffe is the founder of OEC, with more than 25 years at executive and board level in UAE education as a teacher, school leader, director, board member and chair of governance. She has been based in Dubai since 1995.

How do engagements work?

Every engagement begins with a no-obligation conversation. Scope, milestones and investment stages are agreed before work begins, the view is always independent, and impact is measurable.

Services

How OEC works with you

Q: Which regulatory frameworks does OEC know?

KHDA, SPEA, the UAE School Inspection Framework, the ECCE Quality Framework, Loughat Al Daad, NEASC accreditation and BSO accreditation, across British and American curricula.

Five areas of practice, one consistent standard. Most clients begin with a single focused engagement; many continue as a long-term advisory relationship. Each pillar below sets out what the work involves and the outcome it is designed to deliver.

Quality Assurance & Inspection Readiness

Flagship

For owners, principals and boards

OEC conducts independent quality assurance reviews, validates self-evaluation against the evidence, and supports leaders in identifying the priorities that improve children's learning, wellbeing, inclusion and continuous improvement. Through candid evaluation and a senior leadership debrief, schools and nurseries gain a precise understanding of their strengths and the priorities for improvement. It is work Janet has led from the inside, preparing schools and nurseries for inspection under both KHDA and SPEA.

Services include

✓Independent quality assurance reviews
✓Self-evaluation validation
✓Inspection readiness (KHDA, SPEA and UAE School Inspection Frameworks)
✓Senior leadership debriefs
✓Evidence-based improvement planning
✓Post-inspection support
✓Continuous improvement advisory
✓Quality assurance visit preparation and support

The outcomeA clear, evidence based view of where you stand, and the priorities that will most improve outcomes for children.

Governance & Board Advisory

For owners, boards and founding families

OEC strengthens governance, safeguarding, inclusion and wellbeing oversight, ensuring boards keep a clear focus on outcomes for all learners, including students of determination. Independent governor support and retained board advisory provide an experienced, independent educational voice alongside owners and leaders. Having served at once as board member, chair of governance and executive leader inside major UAE education groups, Janet works alongside owners and boards as a natural counterpart.

Services include

✓Governance and board effectiveness reviews
✓Independent Governor services (retained)
✓Retained board advisory
✓Governance structures and advisory for new and growing organisations
✓Safeguarding, inclusion and wellbeing oversight, including Students of Determination

The outcomeGovernance that earns the confidence of regulators and stakeholders, and frees leaders to lead.

Leadership & School Improvement

For owners and senior leaders

OEC supports sustainable school improvement through leadership development, strategic change and organisational capacity building, guiding organisations through transition and coaching principals and senior leaders through the decisions that define a year. The emphasis is on cultures of continuous improvement that strengthen outcomes for children and young people.

Services include

✓Strategic improvement planning
✓School improvement and turnaround support
✓Leadership development, coaching and mentoring
✓Organisational change, transition and capacity building

The outcomeLeaders who are clearer, more confident, and measurably more effective.

Early Years & Nursery Excellence

Specialist Practice

For founders, owners and nursery operators

The first years shape whether a child feels secure, whether they belong, and how they come to see learning for the rest of their lives. Quality here is never about a beautiful room or a compliant file. It is about understanding how young children actually learn, and building settings where children, families and educators all flourish.

Learning environments should be designed with pedagogical intent. OEC brings together educational design, environment planning and operational readiness, ensuring settings are intentionally created to support children's wellbeing, belonging and development from the outset.

OEC supports the establishment of new nurseries and Early Childhood Centres from first concept to a confident opening: the academic and Education and Care Plan, the Educational Services Permit and licensing pathway, coordination with KHDA, the Municipality, DHA and Civil Defence, the learning environment, and operational and inspection readiness.

For existing settings, OEC supports quality enhancement across the domains of the KHDA ECCE Quality Framework, with particular attention to children's wellbeing, pedagogical practice, enabling environments and leadership for continuous improvement. Bilingual learning and Loughat Al Daad are approached with intention and authenticity, ensuring belonging and inclusion are embedded throughout the setting.

Throughout the process, Janet provides educational oversight to ensure educational intent, safety and operational functionality remain central to implementation decisions.

Janet has led the establishment of nurseries from first concept to confident opening, authoring academic plans, guiding regulatory approvals and supporting settings through opening and first inspection under both KHDA and SPEA.

Services include

✓New nursery and Early Childhood Centre establishment, from concept to opening
✓Academic Plan and Education and Care Plan development
✓Educational Services Permit and licensing pathways
✓Regulatory coordination (KHDA, Municipality, DHA and Civil Defence)
✓Learning environment and educational design
✓Pedagogically informed learning environment design
✓Operational and inspection readiness
✓ECC quality enhancement against the KHDA ECCE Quality Framework
✓Bilingual learning and Loughat Al Daad implementation
✓Educational oversight throughout implementation

The outcomeA setting built to be excellent for children, and ready for inspection, from the first day.

Strategic Advisory & Due Diligence

Specialist Capability

For investors, family offices and groups

Independent due diligence, feasibility and market entry advice, and the integration support that decides whether an acquisition actually performs. This is the senior, specialist end of the practice: the view the financials do not show. Drawing on extensive experience across British and American curriculum settings, OEC contributes educational judgement, governance insight and quality assurance expertise alongside specialist teams supporting school establishment, transition and growth.

Services include

✓Educational due diligence
✓Feasibility and market entry advice
✓Acquisition and post-acquisition integration support
✓School establishment, transition and growth, as educational advisory alongside specialist teams
✓Educational advisory for investors, owners and education groups
✓Strategic growth advisory

The outcomeConfident decisions, grounded in educational reality and regulatory fluency.

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Reserved for any final approved service bullet points from the Corporate Profile, to be supplied separately. (This note is for the build team and can be removed once the final bullets are confirmed.)

Grounded Here

Aligned to the UAE's priorities

OEC's advice is current and grounded in the frameworks that shape education in this region: the Dubai Education 33 Strategy, the KHDA ECCE Quality Framework, the UAE School Inspection Framework, the Dubai Inclusive Education Policy Framework and The Gift of Good Governance, alongside international best practice in early childhood and school improvement.

The work reflects the national priorities these frameworks carry: wellbeing, belonging, inclusion and continuous quality improvement for every child. OEC is built for the realities of this market, not imported wholesale from elsewhere.

Fluent Across

Regulatory & framework fluency

KHDASPEAUAE School Inspection FrameworkECCE Quality FrameworkLoughat Al DaadNEASC AccreditationBSO AccreditationBritish CurriculumAmerican CurriculumEarly Childhood birth to sevenGovernance FrameworksUAE & GCC Regulatory Compliance

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Whether you lead a school or nursery, sit on a board, own a group, or are weighing an investment in the region's education market, the first conversation costs nothing.

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