IBIS was founded in 1963 by a group of parents and for many years was called the British Embassy Preparatory School (BEPS). When many of the embassies moved to Berlin in 1997, the school changed its name to IBIS to reflect the broad international nature of the school.
Since 2001 IBIS has had the official approval of the German authorities as an "Ersatzschule der Primarstufe".[5] This allows it to prepare children for the German system of education as well as other international destinations.
In 2020, the school became the first in Germany to receive the Carnegie Centre of Excellence for Mental Health in Schools Bronze Award.[6]