The policy in Saudi is for employers to hold your passport and issue you with an iqama (government ID card). Holding your passport is frowned upon in other countries (but it does happen) - but in Saudi Arabia expect it to happen especially if you work for the Royal Commission. In Saudi you also need an exit visa before you can leave at the end of your contract/stay.

The MD at ENS admitted that he/admin are checking what is being said about the school on various boards.

Anyone who has worked at ENS would not be surprised at this. Everything you read here about that place is true. I am at ENS now and can't wait to leave this summer. It is A TERRIBLE school.

Staff are treated terribly and the Management is bullying, dictatorial, and incompetent. Staff meetings are jaw-droppingly depressing - they are not even meetings - just berating sessions where only negative remarks about staff are thrown around. In fact, outside of these 'hate sessions', meetings have all not taken place for nearly 2 months now.

The smug, oily MD has that rare ability to destroy morale with a single sentence. On one occasion personal details/emails of a sacked colleague were read to the whole staff. There is a lack of forward planning at all levels and many management decisions seem to be made on a whim and then simply changed, regardless of consequences.

The school is all about surface presentation - so long as it 'looks good' seems to be all they care about. The IB situation is a joke - it is never going to happen here - they just want the cachet.

It is true that staff are forbidden to speak to parents on pain of dismissal.

There is no job security here - the school is run on fear and intimidation and I would go as far as to say it is a racist attitude against 'western' staff. There are definite moves to replace us with arabic staff .No way could this be called an international school. One department here will have no 'western' staff left by the end of this term.

Teachers are quitting or leaving across the board. It is also true that the school will hire people with little or no teaching experience because they are desperate for the numbers. Of course the kids suffer and it isn't long before these 'teachers' crumble and go off sick or leave altogether. That means added cover duties for those who remain.

The MD claims that staff are not spied on (a recurring complaint) - and even read out the dictionary definition of 'spying' (purrlease! :roll: ) - but the fact is staff are spied on - you can catch admin staff prowling corridors and peering through classroom windows and scurrying back to management. The IT department actively monitor computer use to see who is posting things about the school online. Desks and offices are routinely rifled at weekends and after school.

Another problem is the attitude of certain members of the 'western' staff - there is a lot of back-biting and back-stabbing here. Teachers run to management and rat out their colleagues or go to the MD to complain about colleagues for very minor issues they ought to sort out between themselves. There are quite a few cranks here - at least two near alcoholics and a couple of folks with obvious mental health issues.

ENS is a place to be avoided - it is sad that there seems to be a number of apologists and others who have never worked at ENS who don't believe what is said about this school.