Bnei Zion Community School

Inspection of Bnei Zion Community School 49–51 Ravensdale Road, London N16 6TJ

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Inspection dates: 13 to 15 September 2022

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

The quality of education Inadequate Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Inadequate Early years provision Inadequate Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Inadequate

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils do not learn to read in English well enough or soon enough. This means that they are not as prepared as they should be for the next stage of their education or their future lives. There are gaps in pupils’ skills and knowledge in some other subjects. Over time, limited leadership capacity has resulted in aspects of the curriculum lacking ambition. Leaders and teachers are beginning to expect more of pupils, but this is yet to improve the quality of education. Leaders have not ensured that the school meets the requirements of all the independent school standards (the standards).

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well without the need for reminders from adults. Lessons and breaktimes are calm and relaxed. Pupils enjoy coming to school. This helps keep attendance high. Pupils say that bullying is not a problem here and that they trust staff to deal with any worries they may have. Staff manage such concerns effectively. This ensures that pupils feel safe and are kept safe in school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Parents and carers appreciate the care that staff show towards their children. They also value the way leaders tell them about how their child is doing and what is happening at the school.

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better?

Leaders are not making sure that pupils can read well enough in the English language. In early years, a new phonics programme is being used. However, reading materials do not match the children’s stage of development in reading. This means that children are not well enough prepared for Year 1. Older pupils do not have a wide enough range of books to help develop their love of reading and their knowledge of different types of literature.

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better?

Pupils learn a broad curriculum. However, they are not taught the skills and knowledge they need in some subjects, such as science and geography. Leaders have realised this and have started to introduce more ambitious and well-sequenced curriculum thinking. However, this has not been in place long enough to fill the gaps in what pupils should learn in primary school. Teachers have not had enough training to make sure that they have the necessary subject knowledge to implement the revised curriculum for all pupils successfully.

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better?

The mathematics curriculum is well designed. This enables pupils to build on what they have learned before. Staff understand what it is that pupils are expected to learn in mathematics.

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better?

Teachers in early years make sure that children experience all the required areas of learning. They check on how much children have learned and remembered. However, the curriculum is muddled. This makes it hard for staff to sequence learning effectively to help children build on and practise what they have learned before. 13 to 15 September 2022 Leaders identify pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) promptly. They make sure that specialists from outside the school help pupils with SEND to tackle barriers to their learning.

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better?

Leaders have taken too long to decide what pupils should learn about religions other than their own. Although this has now been identified and the curriculum is suitably ambitious, it has not yet been implemented. This means that pupils have not learned about the beliefs and cultures of others. The programme for personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education helps pupils develop an understanding of a wide range of issues, including healthy eating and online safety. Leaders have created intelligent links with the Jewish religious curriculum that help support pupils’ spiritual and moral development. Leaders have produced an appropriate policy and curriculum for relationships education. However, this has not been fully implemented. This means that pupils are not taught about different types of relationships that people may have and the legal rights of those with protected characteristics.

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better?

Until recently, there has not been sufficient leadership capacity to ensure that the school meets the standards. As a result, the school’s weaknesses have not been addressed swiftly enough. The school continues to admit pupils who are aged above the maximum age that its current registration allows.

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better?

The proprietor has now appointed a new special educational needs coordinator (SENCo), premises manager and associate headteacher. A class teacher has recently taken over responsibility for leading science. These steps are leaving the secular headteacher with more capacity to drive the necessary improvements.

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better?

The proprietor is ensuring that the school complies with schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010.

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better?

Pupils and adults treat one another with great respect. Pupils generally behave well in lessons, although the attention of some pupils occasionally strays when content confuses them or they lose interest. In early years, children take responsibility for tidying up and organising equipment willingly and independently.

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better?

There is a wide range of opportunities on offer for pupils to express their creativity and nurture their talents. Pupils enjoy playing chess at breaktimes. They look forward to preparing for and performing in musical productions for one another. They also benefit from visits to museums and galleries.

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better?

Staff say that they enjoy working at this school. They feel that their workload and well-being are managed well.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 13 to 15 September 2022 Leaders understand statutory safeguarding guidance. They make sure that staff receive the training they need to apply this guidance and remember established aspects of safeguarding procedures.

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Safeguarding

Pupils, staff and parents speak highly of the way in which leaders consider safety. Despite the school admitting older pupils beyond its registration agreement, pupils report that they feel safe. They learn about how to keep themselves safe and healthy. Trusting relations between staff and parents help bring to light and tackle any concerns that arise.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have ensured that pre-employment checks and risk assessments of the premises and off-site visits are effectively managed and maintained.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 Leaders are not making sure that pupils learn to read well enough or quickly enough. The teaching of phonics in early years is not preparing children properly for Year 1. Leaders should make sure that the agreed phonics programme enables pupils to learn to read successfully. This includes ensuring that staff show fidelity to the agreed phonics programme and use books that have been carefully matched to the sounds that pupils have learned.  Leaders do not provide or promote a wide enough range of books. This means that pupils are not developing a secure enough understanding of literature. Leaders should make sure that pupils have access to, and are encouraged to read, a wide range of books.  Structured curriculum thinking for some subjects has only recently been revised and introduced. Pupils have not yet learned and remembered the more ambitious content this includes. Leaders should make sure that these changes are resulting

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

in pupils learning and remembering subject content. Leaders should also make sure that teachers receive the training they need to adapt and use the new curriculum effectively.  The early years curriculum lacks clarity and structure. This means that staff are not making the most of the time and resources in the setting when planning lessons. Leaders should make sure that the early years curriculum is clearly sequenced and organised, so that children can better practise and build on what they have learned before.  Until recently, the proprietor had not secured sufficient school leadership capacity to address the weaknesses in the quality of education provided. As a result, leaders have not ensured that all the independent school standards are met. The proprietor should ensure that all leaders, including those who are newly appointed, have the skills and knowledge to make sure that the quality of education improves and all the standards are met.

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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. 13 to 15 September 2022

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School details

Annual fees (day pupils) Voluntary contributions

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School details

Date of previous inspection 3 to 5 December 2019 13 to 15 September 2022

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Information about this school

 The school occupies a single site at 49a Ravensdale Road, London N16 6TJ.  The school’s previous full standard inspection took place in November 2019, when it was judged inadequate.  The school is registered to admit up to 200 pupils between the ages of three and five. The school currently has 159 pupils on roll between the ages of three and 11. This means that the school is acting outside its registration agreement.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision.  Pupils study the Kodesh (religious) curriculum for most of their time in school. This is taught in Yiddish. Other subjects are taught mainly in English.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors carried out this inspection under section 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008. The purpose of the inspection 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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Information about this inspection

The school has failed to meet the independent school standards. These are the requirements of the schedule to the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school had received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation.  Inspectors met with the secular headteacher, early years manager, SENCo and the proprietor and conducted a tour of the school with the premises manager.  Inspectors did deep dives in early reading, mathematics, science and PSHE education. They spoke with teachers and subject leaders about the curriculum, visited lessons, met with pupils and looked at samples of their work.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documents about safeguarding, pupils’ behaviour, the curriculum and the work of governors.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour at the start of the school day, during a break outside and in lessons.  Inspectors met some parents and read letters they had sent in during the inspection to share their views of the school.

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Inspection team

Andrew Wright, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Jo Franklin Ofsted Inspector 13 to 15 September 2022

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

 2(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if–  2(1)(a) the proprietor ensures that a written policy on the curriculum, supported by appropriate plans and schemes of work, which provides for the matters specified in sub-paragraph (2) is drawn up and implemented effectively; and  2(2) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(1)(a), the matters are– – 2(2)(b) that pupils acquire speaking, listening, literacy and numeracy skills; – 2(2)(d) personal, social, health and economic education which– – 2(2)(d)(ii) encourages respect for other people, paying particular regard to the protected characteristics set out in the 2010 Act[9]; – 2(2)(f) where the school has pupils below compulsory school age, a programme of activities which is appropriate to their educational needs in relation to personal, social, emotional and physical development and communication and language skills; – 2(2)(h) that all pupils have the opportunity to learn and make progress; and

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

– 2(2)(i) effective preparation of pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life in British society.  3 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that the teaching at the school– – 3(a) enables pupils to acquire new knowledge and make good progress according to their ability so that they increase their understanding and develop their skills in the subjects taught; – 3(d) shows a good understanding of the aptitudes, needs and prior attainments of the pupils, and ensures that these are taken into account in the planning of lessons; – 3(e) demonstrates good knowledge and understanding of the subject matter being taught;

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Part 2. Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils

 5 The standard about the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils at the school is met if the proprietor– – 5(b) ensures that principles are actively promoted which– – 5(b)(v) further tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions by enabling pupils to acquire an appreciation of and respect for their own and other cultures; 13 to 15 September 2022 – 5(b)(vi) encourage respect for other people, paying particular regard to the protected characteristics set out in the 2010 Act;

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

 34(1) The standard about the quality of leadership and management is met if the proprietor ensures that persons with leadership and management responsibilities at the school– – 34(1)(a) demonstrate good skills and knowledge appropriate to their role so that the independent school standards are met consistently; – 34(1)(b) fulfil their responsibilities effectively so that the independent school standards are met consistently;

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requirements

1.13 The provider must ensure children have sufficient opportunities to learn and reach a good standard in English language during the EYFS, ensuring children are ready to benefit from the opportunities available to them when they begin year 1. 13 to 15 September 2022 regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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requirements

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