Toras Moshe

Inspection of Toras Moshe 12 Wellington Street East, Salford M7 2AX

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Inspection dates: 21 to 23 November 2023

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Good Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy being part of this warm and welcoming school. They look forward to coming into school each morning. Pupils play and work well together.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school encourages pupils to be happy, friendly and to grow spiritually. The youngest children settle in quickly when they join the school. Pupils across the school enjoy positive relationships with caring staff. Pupils know that there are trusted adults who they can speak to about any worries that they may have.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school expects all children from the early years and pupils in key stage 1, including children and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), to achieve well. This ambition has been realised for the children in early years and those pupils in key stage 1 in subjects such as English and mathematics. However, there are weaknesses in how well the key stage 1 curriculum is designed and delivered in other subjects. This means that some key stage 1 pupils do not achieve as well as they should.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are enthusiastic about their learning. They conduct themselves well around school and are kind and courteous to each other. They value the rewards that they receive for both behaviour and learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Toras Moshe is a school where everyone is valued. Pupils told inspectors about how important it is to them that they show respect to everyone, regardless of differences. They enjoy finding out about other religions and cultures. For example, they are fascinated by the different festivals and traditions.

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better?

Overall, the school has designed a curriculum that is broad, balanced and ambitious. This is particularly evident in the early years where the school has thought carefully about what it wants children to learn and the order in which this should be taught. This enables children in the early years, including children with SEND, to achieve well.

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better?

Across key stage 1, in some subjects, the school has given careful thought to the important knowledge that pupils should learn. In these subjects, learning is ordered logically so that pupils can build new knowledge securely on what they already know and can do. Pupils achieve well in these subjects.

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better?

In some other subjects, the school has not set out the order of the knowledge that it wants pupils to learn as clearly as it should be. This means that teachers are not certain what they need to teach and by when. This hinders how well teachers are equipped to design appropriate activities that help pupils move on with their learning. As a result, in these subjects, some pupils do not learn as well as they should. 21 to 23 November 2023 Teachers provide children in the early years with clear explanations. They make connections across the different areas of learning and provide opportunities for children to deepen their knowledge through real-life experiences.

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better?

In key stage 1, teachers receive the support that they need to deliver the curriculum with confidence in subjects such as English and mathematics. In other subjects, the school has not ensured that teachers are as well trained to deliver these curriculums expertly. In these subjects, teachers do not consistently design activities that enable pupils to learn the intended curriculum well. This hinders pupils’ ability to build a secure body of knowledge in these subjects.

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better?

In the subjects where the school is clear about what pupils should learn, staff use assessment strategies skilfully to check that pupils have understood their learning. However, this is not the case in those subjects where the school has not developed the curriculum sufficiently well. In these subjects, teachers do not use assessment systems as effectively to find out exactly where pupils are up to in their learning and identify appropriate next steps.

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better?

Reading is a priority throughout the school. Staff nurture a love of reading in pupils. Staff enthusiastically read stories, sing songs and recite rhymes with pupils. The school has invested in high-quality storybooks. Pupils take great pleasure in reading in the comfy book areas. Children in the early years delighted in telling the inspectors about the story that they had listened to about baby owls.

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better?

Pupils learn to read well. In the Nursery class, staff use their interactions with children to promote children’s grasp of language to positive effect. Staff make the most of these children’s interests and curiosity to encourage conversation. In the Reception class and in Year 1, pupils learn the letters and the sounds that they represent and how to blend these sounds together to make words. Staff are knowledgeable in the teaching of phonics and early reading. They are quick to identify any pupils who find reading more difficult. These pupils are well supported to build their confidence and increase their fluency in reading.

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better?

The school accurately identifies the additional needs of pupils with SEND in a timely manner. The school works well with parents and carers and external agencies. This collaborative approach ensures that teachers have the knowledge and strategies that they need to support these pupils. This helps pupils with SEND to learn successfully alongside their peers and participate fully in school life.

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better?

Pupils behave well. Children in the early years learn to follow routines. They quickly learn how to share and take turns. Older pupils pride themselves on being good role models for the younger children. Staff provide effective support for those pupils who struggle to manage their behaviour.

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better?

The school fosters pupils’ wider personal development well. Many aspects are woven throughout school life as well as being taught formally through the Kodesh (Jewish religious studies) curriculum. For example, pupils make links between British values and the school’s values. 21 to 23 November 2023 There were a few requirements of the independent school standards (‘the standards’) that were not met at the start of the inspection. The proprietor body ensured that these issues were rectified quickly so that all the standards were met by the end of the inspection. The school’s building was well maintained, clean and well resourced. The proprietor body has ensured that it adheres to health and safety requirements, including complying with fire regulations.

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better?

The school has an accessibility plan that sets out its plans to ensure that pupils with disabilities can participate fully in the school’s curriculum.

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better?

The governing body, which includes the chair of the proprietor body, has an accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and the areas that require improvement. It holds school leaders to account effectively for their work to improve the curriculum.

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better?

Staff are proud to work at the school. They feel well supported by leaders, who take account of staff’s workload and well-being when making decisions. For example, leaders support staff to access training so that they can do their jobs well.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is an appropriate culture of safeguarding in school. Leaders and staff have had suitable training. They know how to recognise and report any concerns about a pupil’s welfare or safety. Staff pass on any concerns that they may have about the well-being and safety of pupils. However, there are minor weaknesses in the school’s safeguarding arrangements. Specifically, the school’s systems for recording low-level concerns about pupils’ welfare are not as robust as they should be. Moreover, the school’s risk assessment when all of the required pre-employment checks are not finalised before a member of staff takes up their post lacks sufficient detail.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 In some subjects, leaders have not considered precisely what pupils should learn and in what order this should be taught. This hinders some pupils in achieving as highly as they could. Leaders should finalise the curriculum content in these subjects to ensure that teachers know exactly what knowledge pupils must learn and by when.  In some subjects, teachers are not as well equipped to deliver aspects of the curriculum as they could be. Where this is the case, some of the activities chosen do not help pupils to learn the intended curriculum well. The school 21 to 23 November 2023 should ensure that teachers have the knowledge, skills and expertise that they need to implement the subject curriculums successfully.  In some subjects, leaders’ assessment strategies are not used effectively. In these subjects, teachers are not clear about what pupils have learned and where there are gaps in their learning. The school should ensure that teachers have a

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

clear understanding of exactly where pupils are up to in their learning and use this information to determine pupils’ next steps.  A small number of the school’s systems to ensure pupils’ welfare and safety are not robust enough. This means that leaders do not have the information that they need to be reassured that they can spot any patterns or trends and that risks to pupils are minimised. The proprietor body should make sure that the school’s safeguarding systems are thorough, robust and ensure pupils’ safety.

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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. 21 to 23 November 2023

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School details

Unique reference number 149063 DfE registration number 355/6042

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School details

Inspection number 10286496 Type of school Other independent school

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School details

Email address admin@torasmoshe.co.uk 21 to 23 November 2023

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Information about this school

 Toras Moshe was registered as a school by the Department for Education on 10 October 2022. This was the school’s first standard inspection.  The school operates from one site. The school is located at 12 Wellington Street East, Salford M7 2AX.  Toras Moshe is a Chassidic Jewish faith school serving several orthodox communities.  Although registered for 100 pupils, the school presently has 17 pupils on roll. This is because leaders are admitting a small number of children to the early years each academic year. As these children have moved through the school, the number on roll has increased. At the time of the inspection, there were pupils on roll in the Nursery Year, Reception Year and Year 1.  The proprietor body has appointed a small group of governors to work alongside it. The proprietor body intends that this group of governors will provide support and challenge to the school. The chair of the proprietor body is also the chair of

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Information about this school

the governing body.  The school does not use alternative provision.

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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 meets the independent school standards. These are the requirements set out in the schedule to the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.  During the inspection, inspectors spoke with the headteacher, senior leaders and staff. An inspector spoke to the chair and members of the proprietor body. An inspector also met with the chair of the governing body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading and phonics; mathematics; and history. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with curriculum leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, looked at samples of pupils’ work and, where appropriate, spoke to some pupils about their learning. Inspectors also spoke to leaders about the curriculum in some other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and 21 to 23 November 2023

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Information about this inspection

considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The lead inspector made a tour of the premises. Inspectors also reviewed documentation and other information to check the school’s compliance with the standards.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View. Inspectors also considered the responses to Ofsted’s staff survey.  There were no responses to the pupil survey. However, inspectors spoke with some pupils about their work and school life. At the request of the headteacher, inspectors’ meetings with pupils were carried out in the presence of a member of staff. The questions that inspectors asked pupils were agreed with the headteacher.

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Inspection team

Sue Eastwood, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Lindy Griffiths Ofsted Inspector 21 to 23 November 2023 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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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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