The King David High School

Inspection of The King David High School Eaton Road, Crumpsall, Manchester M8 5DY

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Inspection dates: 10 and 11 November 2021

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Inadequate Leadership and management Inadequate Sixth-form provision Good Previous inspection grade Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

The school was inspected in 2019, however, the inspection report was quashed by consent.

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Prior to the 2019 inspection, the school was inspected in May 2015 and was judged ‘Outstanding’. This was under a previous inspection framework. This reflected the school’s overall effectiveness under the inspection framework in use at the time. 10 and 11 November 2021

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What is it like to attend this school?

Many pupils, including students in the sixth form, said that they are happy at The King David High School. They feel safe, behave well and show respect for staff and their peers. However, a significant minority of pupils said that they are unable to share their worries with staff. Some pupils feel that staff do not treat them with respect. This makes these pupils feel anxious and unsafe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils perceive that incidents of bullying are rare, and that staff deal with these issues when they do occur. Despite this, some pupils and their parents and carers told inspectors that leaders have not created a culture where concerns, including worries about bullying, can be easily reported.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Inspectors concur with this view. Inspectors found that, over time, there have been widespread failures in how leaders protect pupils from harm. Consequently, too many pupils and their parents have little confidence in how well leaders manage safeguarding and welfare concerns.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Generally, teachers have high expectations of pupils’ and students’ behaviour. Mostly, classrooms are purposeful and pupils focus well on their learning. Corridors, stairwells and social spaces are calm and orderly. Pupils and students attend school regularly and are punctual to lessons.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have high expectations of what most pupils can attain academically. These expectations are reflected in the school’s ambitious curriculum. Most pupils attain well. Some pupils said that staff have unrealistic expectations of what they can achieve academically. These pupils said that this places them under a great deal of pressure. It has a detrimental impact on their mental health and well-being.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Many pupils and students value the wide range of extra-curricular opportunities on offer. Pupils who attend the main school, and Yavneh Boys, benefit from lunchtime clubs, such as table tennis, the debating society and the film club.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The pupils who attend Yavneh Girls are separated from all other pupils at the school throughout the school day, including during breaks and at lunchtime. The pupils who attend Yavneh Girls do not have the same access to extra-curricular activities as the pupils who attend Yavneh Boys and the main school. Yavneh Girls are unable to socialise with their peers outside of their unit.

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better?

The school is a mixed school, admitting both boys and girls. However, some parents choose to send their children to the single-sex units at the school, Yavneh Boys and Yavneh Girls. These units afford pupils the opportunity to study a ‘modern orthodox’ Jewish education. 10 and 11 November 2021

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The pupils who attend the Yavneh units appreciate the high-quality education on offer. However, the pupils who attend Yavneh Girls told inspectors that they feel isolated and that the current arrangements, and the behaviour of some staff, prevent them from mixing socially with pupils in the main school and pupils in Yavneh Boys.

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The current arrangements are discriminatory because the pupils who attend Yavneh Boys can mix socially with pupils (both girls and boys) in the main school, whereas pupils who attend Yavneh Girls cannot. Yavneh Girls are, therefore, subject to a detriment because of their sex. This constitutes unlawful direct discrimination on the ground of sex, contrary to the Equality Act 2010.

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Pupils achieve highly. They benefit from an ambitious and academic curriculum that is typically delivered well by teachers. This is particularly the case for pupils in key stage 4 and students in the sixth form.

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Although the key stage 3 curriculum is suitably ambitious for pupils, not all younger pupils have access to the same curriculum offer. For example, some pupils in Year 9 study creative subjects on a carousel, while other pupils have the chance to study these subjects throughout the year. This means that some pupils do not study these subjects to the same depth as their peers. Leaders have plans in place to ensure that all pupils receive an equitable curriculum offer at key stage 3 by November 2022.

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Subject leaders have considered the knowledge that they want pupils in each year group to know. Teachers have an expert knowledge of their subject. They are highly skilled in designing learning that supports pupils to know and remember more of the intended curriculum, including for those pupils working remotely. Mostly, teachers use their expertise well to help pupils to embed learning and to address misconceptions.

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Leaders have taken appropriate steps to ensure that teachers receive appropriate guidance about pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teachers use this information increasingly well to adapt how they deliver the curriculum for pupils with SEND. More recently, leaders have begun to identify the needs of pupils with SEND in a timelier manner.

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For the most part, pupils and students focus on their learning. Disruptive behaviour rarely prevents staff from delivering the curriculum effectively. Recently, leaders have strengthened the systems that teachers use to manage pupils’ behaviour. This includes additional support for the minority of pupils who struggle to manage their own conduct.

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Many pupils, and students in the sixth form, benefit from a wide range of extra- curricular activities at lunchtimes and after school. This includes orchestra club and boxing. Leaders have recently introduced a ‘learning for life’ curriculum. This provides pupils and students with the opportunity to learn about healthy relationships and how to keep themselves safe in the community. Staff have 10 and 11 November 2021

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received training to help them to deliver this curriculum. However, some staff do not feel confident to teach aspects of the programme. For example, some teachers felt ill-equipped to teach about contraception. Older pupils said that they do not learn enough about different types of families or relationships.

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Leaders ensure that pupils and students have access to some careers information, education, advice and guidance. Even so, some older pupils, including students in the sixth form, do not receive the guidance that they need to make informed decisions about their next steps. For instance, some students outlined how they would appreciate more support to make decisions about their choice of university.

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A few members of the governing body do not understand their roles and responsibilities. They are overly involved in the day-to-day running of the school. This hampers senior leaders’ ability to take appropriate steps to improve the school and to safeguard pupils. Additionally, those responsible for governance do not fulfil all of their statutory duties, for example in relation to safeguarding.

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Some parents feel that their voices have not been heard by leaders and governors when they have raised legitimate concerns about their children. Since the appointment of the executive headteacher, leaders have started to address this issue and re-establish effective relationships with parents. Leaders are increasingly considerate of the workload and well-being of staff.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.

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Safeguarding

Some pupils are reluctant to report safeguarding concerns to staff. They have little confidence that staff will take their worries seriously. This is particularly the case for pupils who are anxious about their mental health, their physical safety and issues relating to peer-on-peer abuse. These pupils explained that they are reluctant to report concerns due to the way that some staff might react.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and governors have not followed statutory guidance when carrying out safer recruitment checks on staff. Although this was rectified by leaders during the inspection, it is unacceptable. Furthermore, leaders were unable to offer a satisfactory explanation to inspectors about how they had managed allegations against adults who may be a risk to pupils.

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Safeguarding

In recent months, leaders have acted to ensure that appropriate systems are in place for staff to report safeguarding concerns. However, due to a legacy of chaotic safeguarding practices, some pupils and parents still have little confidence in the school’s safeguarding arrangements.

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 Leaders and governors have not ensured that the arrangements for safeguarding pupils are effective. Although leaders have recently taken steps to ensure that appropriate systems for reporting safeguarding concerns are in place, more work needs to be done to strengthen the culture of safeguarding. Some pupils and parents have little confidence that leaders will address the concerns that they raise about pupils’ safety. This includes how leaders deal with issues relating to peer-on-peer abuse. Leaders must take immediate action to ensure that there is a strong and effective culture of safeguarding, where all concerns are taken seriously and dealt with swiftly and effectively. Leaders must also take steps to win the confidence and trust of parents and pupils in relation to the school’s safeguarding arrangements.  The governing body has not ensured that the school fulfils its statutory duties under the Equality Act 2010. The school is unlawfully discriminating against pupils

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who attend Yavneh Girls in relation to the protected characteristic of sex. Pupils who attend Yavneh Girls, unlike pupils in Yavneh Boys and pupils in the main school, are deprived of the opportunity to mix socially with boys and girls in other parts of the school. This constitutes a detriment to those pupils due to their sex. Leaders and governors must act to fulfil their duties under the Equality Act 2010 by ensuring that they do not discriminate against pupils in the Yavneh Girls on the ground of sex.  Some members of the governing body do not understand the parameters of their role. They interfere with the routine operation of the school. This impedes the actions that senior leaders, including the executive headteacher, can take to improve the quality of education and protect the safety and well-being of pupils. The governing body must review how it operates so that it fulfils its statutory functions by ensuring a clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction, that it holds

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leaders to account for the quality of educational performance of the school, and that it maintains an oversight of the financial performance of the school.  Some staff do not have the confidence to deliver aspects of the ‘learning for life’ curriculum as well as they should. As a result, some pupils said that they do not feel prepared to take their place in society. Leaders should ensure that staff have the knowledge and confidence to deliver this curriculum effectively.  Leaders have not ensured that pupils and students receive careers education, information, advice and guidance of a consistently high quality. This means that some pupils, and students in the sixth form, feel unable to make informed decisions about their next steps in employment, education and training. Leaders should ensure that all pupils and students benefit from a coherent programme of careers information, advice and guidance so that pupils and students feel suitably

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informed to make decisions about their futures.  Leaders have not ensured that all pupils benefit from an equitable curriculum at key stage 3. This means that some pupils are unable to study some creative subjects in sufficient depth. Leaders must ensure that all pupils have the opportunity to gain sufficient knowledge to study creative subjects at GCSE. The transitional arrangements were used on this inspection to confirm that pupils benefit from a good-quality education. 10 and 11 November 2021

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Having considered the evidence, the inspector is of the opinion that the school should not appoint early career teachers.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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How can I feed back my views?

If you are the school and you are not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted .

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. 10 and 11 November 2021

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School details

Inspection number 10203497 Type of school Secondary

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sixth form

Appropriate authority The governing body

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sixth form

Date of previous inspection 6 and 7 May 2015, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This is a mixed Jewish school. Within the school there are three units. A main mixed school, Yavneh Boys and Yavneh Girls. The two Yavneh units are single-sex units.  The school makes use of two alternative providers for a small number of pupils.  The school meets the requirements of the Baker Clause, which requires schools to provide pupils in Years 8 to 13 with information about approved technical education qualifications and apprenticeships.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. 10 and 11 November 2021

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In accordance with section 44(1) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

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 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with school leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation.  The lead inspector met with three members of the governing body, including the chair of governors. The lead inspector also met a representative of Manchester local authority.  Inspectors met with the executive headteacher, the deputy headteacher and senior leaders. They also met with other members of school staff. Inspectors did not speak with the headteacher.  Inspectors spoke with groups of pupils about their experiences of school life.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: science, art and design, English, foreign languages, and personal, social, health and economic education. In each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders, reviewed curriculum plans and visited a sample of lessons. Inspectors met with teachers and spoke with

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pupils about their learning. Inspectors also scrutinised samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors reviewed leaders’ curriculum plans and pupils’ work in a range of other subjects. Inspectors spoke with subject leaders in some of these subjects.  Inspectors considered a range of school documentation relating to governance, behaviour, and attendance.  The lead inspector checked documentation relating to safeguarding, including the single central record. An inspector spoke to a representative from each alternative provider used by the school.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, including free-text comments, the responses to Ofsted’s pupil questionnaire, and the responses to Ofsted’s staff questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Emma Gregory, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Michael Pennington Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Ahmed Marikar Her Majesty’s Inspector 10 and 11 November 2021

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