Jamiatul Uloom Al - Islamia

Jamiatul Uloom Al-Islamia 364–370 Leagrave Road, Luton, Bedfordshire LU3 1RF

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

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Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Senior leaders have a clear vision for the school, which is shared by teachers, parents and pupils. This is a school that continues to improve.  Procedures to monitor, evaluate and review the work of the school are in place. However, these are not yet fully systematic.  The choice of subjects is broad. The balance between secular studies and the Islamic curriculum is appropriate.  Pupils’ attitudes in lessons are positive. They are committed to their learning and respect their teachers.  The school cares for its pupils well. It keeps them safe and secure and teaches them to understand right from wrong.  The school actively promotes fundamental British values, as well as pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Teaching ensures that pupils make good progress overall, particularly the most able pupils. Some of the lower-achieving pupils do not always understand the work they are given.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Pupils’ progress in history does not match that of other subjects in key stage 3.  Occasionally, teachers do not allow pupils enough time to answer the questions they ask, and resort to answering the questions themselves.  The teaching of Islamic studies and pupils’ memorisation of the Koran are strong features of the school.  Pupils contribute well towards the leadership of the school, as well as towards the local community.  Pupils leave the school well qualified and ready for the next stages of their education, although careers education is weaker in the lower years.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The school meets the requirements of the schedule to the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014 (‘the independent standards’) and associated requirements.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen leadership and management by: – monitoring, evaluating and reviewing the effectiveness of the provision in a more systematic way in order to identify strengths, weaknesses and trends – improving careers education in key stage 3.  Make outcomes outstanding by: – making sure that teaching more precisely meets the needs of the lower-achieving pupils – providing the lower-achieving pupils with more opportunities to respond to teachers’ questions and ensuring that teachers show more patience if these pupils give an incorrect answer – improving the progress made in history by pupils in key stage 3.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

 Leaders’ vision for the school is known by staff, pupils and parents. Senior leaders have a clear plan in place to maintain the good standards achieved at the time of the previous inspection. The school development plan correctly identifies a wide range of actions which also allow for the impact of these to be measured.  Leaders have ensured that the school continues to be fully compliant with all of the independent school standards. This demonstrates their good understanding and effective implementation of the standards.  Parents are highly supportive of what the school strives to achieve for its pupils. One parent wrote: ‘The school exemplifies the characteristics which I have been trying to instil in my child. It provides a safe and enjoyable atmosphere for children to become the best version of themselves, with strong morals and manners.’  Staff at the school feel well supported by their senior leaders, and many teachers also

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

have key responsibilities due to the small size of the school. They fulfil these additional duties well, and take pride in the role they play in making this an effective school.  Teaching is suitably managed through observations of lessons and the provision of appropriate training of staff. Teachers’ performance is evaluated by senior leaders, which results in teachers being set targets to encourage them to improve.  The choice of subjects offered to pupils is broad and balanced. Leaders have skilfully combined Islamic studies and secular subjects so that each is seen to be as important as the other. Pupils have the opportunity to gain qualifications in up to three modern languages, including Arabic.  Pupils are provided with a wealth of extra-curricular activities through the ‘curriculum enhancement and community engagement programme.’ This involves opportunities to join the Jamia school council, attend lectures and seminars and take part in art and sports

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

competitions. Pupils are also encouraged to take part in conservation outings, and to support their local community by clearing rubbish off the nearby roads.  The school actively promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and fundamental British values very well. The school’s values deliberately replicate the fundamental British values. Pupils have a very strong awareness of these and model them through their attitudes and their work in school.  Pupils have a good understanding of people designated as having protected characteristics under the Equalities Act (2010). They are tolerant of people who they see as ‘different’ or who lead alternative lifestyles. Pupils told inspectors, ‘Everyone is equal.’  The school maintains effective contact with parents. Reporting on pupils’ progress is regular, and informative newsletters ensure that parents keep up to date with school activities and developments. Staff are available at the start and end of the day to meet

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

with parents. This helps to establish positive relationships. Informal discussions about pupils’ progress take place on a more informal basis, when parents and teachers worship together at the mosque on Fridays.  Procedures for routinely monitoring, reviewing and evaluating the work of the school are not yet fully systematic. This means that trends which might act as a barrier to further improvement are not always picked up quickly enough.  Although pupils in key stage 4 are offered work experience placements, careers education lower down the school is underdeveloped.

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Governance

 The board of trustees acts as the school’s governing body. The trustees meet as a group, as and when required. Governors remain aware of the quality of the provision by making visits to the school and attending staff training sessions. Finances are managed well, within tight budgetary constraints. Governors are aware of their duties to keep pupils safe in the school and fulfil these duties effectively.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.  All staff are up to date with their training in the safeguarding of children. Staff have been issued with part one of ‘Keeping children safe in education’ (2016) and all have received training in the government’s ‘Prevent’ duty, which aims to prevent young people from being drawn into extremism. The school’s risk assessment for their ‘Prevent’ duty involves working closely with the local authority and the police.  The school’s vetting systems for checking the suitability of staff are thorough, and records of the details of these checks have been recorded on the single central register. Any minor administrative errors in the recording process were immediately rectified by leaders when identified by the inspection team.  Trustees have ensured that the school has published a suitable safeguarding policy on its website. It also provides this policy to parents on request.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

 Teachers’ strong subject knowledge and pupils’ positive attitudes in lessons contribute towards making learning an enjoyable experience. Teachers’ high expectations are clearly conveyed to pupils and pupils respond accordingly.  Teachers are particularly adept at planning for the needs of the most able pupils. This group of pupils are stretched and challenged through the good-quality teaching they receive. Teachers ensure that, when the most able pupils have completed a task, they are provided with work that is even more challenging, rather than being given more of the same.  Reading and writing skills are developed well by teachers. Inspectors saw a wide range of different types of writing in pupils’ books, including good use of persuasive writing and also effective planning for essays on moral issues, for which pupils have to consider both sides of an argument.  Teachers regularly track the progress pupils make in every subject through monthly

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

assessments. They use this information smartly to repeat topics or aspects of learning which pupils have not fully understood. This supports pupils to maintain their good rates of progress.  Teachers diligently implement the school’s marking and feedback policy. When this is done well, pupils revisit their work to make sure that they do not make the same mistakes in their next piece of work.  The ‘Hifz’ sessions, in which pupils memorise extracts from the Koran, are well planned and develop useful skills which pupils apply to other subjects.  Pupils’ understanding of the work they do is deepened further through home learning, which forms part of the school’s teaching and learning policy. All of the parents who responded to Ofsted’s questionnaire believe that homework given is age-appropriate.  The school reports regularly to parents on their child’s progress, once in the middle of the year, and later in much greater detail. Parents are highly satisfied with the information

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

they receive.  Some teaching does not consistently meet the needs of lower-attaining pupils. Occasionally, teachers can be impatient if these pupils do not provide the correct answer, which leaves pupils confused. Some teachers tend to ask pupils questions and then provide the answers before the pupils have time to respond.  Some planning for lower-attaining pupils does not take sufficient account of how the needs of these are to be met, and does not identify strategies which will move their progress on. When this occurs, these pupils are at risk of falling behind in their learning.  Pupils of all ages sit on the floor during all of their lessons. Pupils told inspectors that they do not really like this practice as they feel it is not conducive to effective learning. It also makes it harder to present work as neatly as they would like.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.  The school site is safe and secure. Signing-in procedures for visitors are thorough.  Leaders have suitable risk assessments in place to ensure that the school site is well maintained and that any activities undertaken by pupils outside of school are well planned and safe. For example, one inspector accompanied pupils to a nearby park where they played football. They were suitably escorted along a busy road and reminded to walk in single file on the footpath by members of staff.  All fire safety checks are carried out in accordance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.  Pupils understand how to keep themselves safe. They have a good understanding of the risks associated with the use of the internet and social networking sites. Bullying is a rare occurrence.  Pupils are supervised well during lunchtime and their morning break. Effective systems

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Personal development and welfare

are also in place to supervise pupils when they pray jointly with members of the public in the mosque.  All pupils who completed their studies in Year 11 in 2017 moved on to further education.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils behave well in lessons and when moving around the school. This is important as some of the corridors and staircases are quite narrow. Leaders only exclude pupils from school as a last resort.  Pupils are courteous and polite towards one another and towards visitors to the school. They work very well collaboratively and often support one another in lessons.  Pupils respect the school environment. There is an absence of any form of graffiti and there is very little litter around the school.  Low-level disruptive behaviour in lessons is rare. Teachers maintain good levels of behaviour because they are passionate about the subjects they teach and this enthusiasm is clearly conveyed to the pupils.  Pupils appreciate the school’s merit system, which rewards them for having positive attitudes. The boys say that they find this system a good way of encouraging them to

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Behaviour

work hard.  Pupils attend school regularly and there is very little persistent absence.

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Outcomes for pupils Good

 Pupils make good progress over time from average starting points. This is due to the good quality of teaching they typically experience and their positive attitudes towards their studies.  Senior leaders have introduced improved systems to establish pupils’ starting points when they join the school in Year 7. This enables them to measure progress more accurately.  Pupils who left the school in 2017 made good progress over time and achieved well in their GCSE examinations, including in English and mathematics. They achieved particularly well in science, statistics, religious studies, information and communication technology and in their heritage languages.  The school’s results compare favourably with other schools in Luton. In the past few years, the school has achieved results which compare positively with not only the best schools in Luton, but also with all secondary schools nationally.  The good progress made in Year 11 in 2017 is also replicated across other year groups

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Outcomes for pupils Good

and in a wide range of subjects, particularly for the most able pupils.  Pupils’ progress in memorising the Koran is strong. This achievement is highly regarded by teachers and parents. By the time they leave the school in Year 11, some pupils have memorised the complete Koran with the correct pronunciation. It is not unknown for pupils in lower years to have achieved this goal early, including in Year 7.  The school successfully produces well-rounded individuals who, in addition to being well prepared academically, are also ready for the next stage of their educational career.  Although all pupils make progress in the school, some of the lower-achieving pupils make progress at a slower rate than might be expected. This is because teaching is not always finely tuned in order to sufficiently meet their needs. This sometimes leads to them not fully understanding what they are learning.  Progress made by pupils in history in key stage 3 does not match progress made in other

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School details

This inspection was carried out under section 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008, the purpose of which is to advise the Secretary of State for Education about the school’s suitability for continued registration as an independent school.

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School details

Date of previous inspection 20 January 2015

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Information about this school

 Jamiatul Uloom Al-Islamia is situated in a residential area of Luton. It opened in September 2004 and is a non-selective school for boys aged between 11 and 16 years of age.  The school was last inspected in January 2015 and its overall effectiveness was judged to be good.  The headteacher resigned in July 2017. The school is currently led by a team of senior leaders and the proprietor.  The school is registered to admit up to 80 boys. All pupils are from Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Indian or Sri Lankan heritages. All are bilingual and speak English as their first language fluently.  The school aims to provide a high-quality education for each individual pupil, to promote equality and to develop young people with the attitude and skills to become successful members of society.  The school has no pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities or an education, health and care plan.  No disadvantaged pupils attend the school.

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Information about this school

 The school does not make use of any alternative provision.  The school aims to provide the highest standard of Islamic and secular education, with emphasis on spiritual, moral, social and cultural development based on Islamic teachings and doctrines.

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Information about this inspection

 This inspection took place with no notice.  Inspectors observed learning across a range of year groups and subjects. Inspectors also looked at a range of pupils’ books to focus on progress made over time.  Meetings were held with the proprietor and principal, other senior leaders and two groups of pupils.  Inspectors scrutinised the school improvement plan, policies, information on progress, records of the quality of teaching, learning and assessment and information on pupils’ behaviour and attendance.  Inspectors listened to pupils read.  The school’s records of the vetting of staff were scrutinised. Additional documents and records relating to safeguarding matters were reviewed.  Inspectors considered 23 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, and seven responses to the staff questionnaire.

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Inspection team

John Daniell, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Heather Yaxley Her Majesty’s Inspector guidance ‘Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

Parent View You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when and as part of the inspection.

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Inspection team

You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk , or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted .

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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