Bobov Primary Boys School

Inspection of Bobov Primary Boys School 87 to 90 Egerton Road, London N16 6UE

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

The quality of education Inadequate Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Inadequate 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?

Staff want pupils to achieve highly. However, in practice, pupils do not learn well enough in their secular studies. They do not build up their knowledge securely in different subjects. They are not well prepared for the next steps in their learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children in the early years settle in and are very well cared for. However, the school has not considered well enough what children need to learn and when. There are too many inconsistencies between the different classes. Some areas of learning are not well promoted in the Reception Year.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy whole-school reward trips to theme parks and adventure camps. However, they do not benefit from a wide range of enrichment opportunities. For example, they do not get the chance to take part in any extra-curricular activities.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy their time at school. They are proud to be part of the school’s friendly and welcoming community. Pupils look out for each other and show kindness and respect to everyone. Staff take good care of pupils’ well-being. The school helps pupils learn how to keep themselves safe in different situations. Pupils feel confident to report any concerns that they have. They behave well and build positive relationships with staff and each other.

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better?

The school has not acted with sufficient urgency or rigour to address the weaknesses identified at previous inspections. Over time, the proprietor has not ensured that the school meets the independent school standards. The school has increased the time given to secular subjects. It has expanded the range of subjects offered to pupils. However, for too long, pupils’ education in the secular subjects has been inadequate. The proprietor ensures that the statutory safeguarding obligations are met. However, procedures for identifying and addressing areas for development in other aspects of the school’s work are not strong enough. This limits the school’s capacity for further improvement.

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better?

The school has a range of suitable curriculum plans in place for each of the different subjects. However, some subjects have taken a long time to get up and running. For example, the school has only recently started to implement design and technology. Some classes have not yet received any teaching in this subject. Subjects such as geography, science and physical education (PE) are also fairly new to the school. Pupils have not been taught these subjects before. Because of this, they have some significant gaps in their knowledge and understanding. The school has not considered how or when to address these gaps.

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better?

There are too many inconsistencies in how well the curriculum is delivered in each subject and in each year group. This is because staff lack teaching expertise and subject knowledge to deliver the curriculum effectively. Despite curriculum plans being in place, staff do not use these well enough. They are not routinely clear 4 to 6 June 2024 about what pupils need to know and remember. They often provide pupils with activities that do not align with the intended curriculum. For example, younger pupils are asked to complete written tasks in English as part of their learning about other curriculum subjects, such as geography. This can cause pupils to struggle because they do not have the writing skills to be able to complete the writing tasks successfully. As a result, pupils’ learning in these subjects is hindered by writing activities that are too difficult for them.

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better?

There are also inconsistencies in how well subject content is presented and explained to pupils. For example, in PE, pupils respond well when staff model how to carry out activities such as how to warm up. They work well as part of a team to replicate these movements before going on to complete activities such as racing against their friends. But on other occasions, staff do not explain things clearly to pupils. They do not routinely check what pupils have learned before moving on to new content.

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better?

In different subjects and different year groups, pupils do not progress through the curriculum well enough. Their knowledge is variable. For example, pupils in Year 6 recalled accurately their learning about the circulatory system and how blood takes oxygen around their bodies. However, they have not been taught science before this year and so their understanding more broadly is extremely limited.

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better?

As a result of these weaknesses, pupils are not well prepared for the next stages in their learning. Not enough consideration has been given to what children learn in the early years. Curriculum thinking lacks precision, particularly in the Reception Year. Staff have worked hard to improve specific aspects of the early years. For example, children in the Nursery now get to use and experience a range of resources, including outside in the garden, to support their learning. However, children in Reception are not well prepared for the move to Year 1 because the curriculum is not implemented well enough.

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better?

Over the past year or so, the school has improved the teaching of phonics. Pupils enjoy their daily phonics sessions from the start of Reception. Leaders are clear about the importance of pupils learning to speak, read and write in English from the early years up. Overall, pupils progress through the phonics programme well and they learn to read using phonics. In phonics sessions, pupils use texts which are appropriately matched to the sounds that they know. However, outside of the phonics programme, there are too few English reading books for pupils to enjoy and learn from.

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better?

The school’s work to identify and support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) has some clear strengths. These pupils, including in the early years, benefit from specialist input from well-trained school staff. The school works effectively with parents and carers and a range of professionals to set and review pupils’ individual targets.

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better?

Pupils learn about the features of good friendships and how their actions affect others. Through their religious studies, pupils are taught about their own faith. They 4 to 6 June 2024 regularly reflect on what it means to them as individuals. For example, pupils referred to stories in the Torah which helped them to realise the importance of respecting other people, whatever their background or religion. Pupils are particularly excited about the upcoming Shavuot celebrations. They are looking forward to decorating their homes with flowers and marking this special time with family meals and celebrations. Some pupils get the chance to take on posts of responsibility in school. For example, older pupils manage the tuck shop where they learn about budgets and customer service. Pupils are taught about democracy. For example, pupils work hard to win the votes of their classmates during Purim.

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better?

The school’s work to develop pupils’ understanding of different religions, faiths and cultures is limited. The school’s relationships and sex education programme does not give due regard to all the requirements of the statutory guidance for secondary-age pupils. The school has an appropriate careers programme in place. The school complies with schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010 because it has an appropriate accessibility plan in place.

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better?

Pupils behave well and attend regularly. They are keen to learn and do their best. They enjoy earning raffle tickets to win school scratch cards and other prizes for good behaviour and learning. Pupils enjoy the reward trips that take place each year. Children in the early years enjoy trips out into the local area, such as to the post office or to meet ambulance drivers. However, throughout the rest of the school, enrichment opportunities are extremely limited. Pupils do not get the chance to develop their interests and talents. The school does not provide any extra-curricular activities for pupils to enjoy.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 The secular curriculum is weak. Some subjects have only recently been introduced and, in some cases, are not taught regularly in each year group. Across all subjects, the curriculum is not implemented well enough. Staff knowledge and expertise are too variable. Staff often choose activities for themselves which do not help pupils to learn the intended curriculum. Pupils’ knowledge across different subjects is not secure. Many pupils have gaps in their knowledge because, over time, the curriculum has not been taught well enough. The school should ensure that staff have the right expertise and knowledge to implement the secular studies curriculum. The school should ensure that pupils build up their knowledge in each subject securely so that they are well prepared for the next stages of their education.  The school has not worked out precisely what children in the early years need to learn and when, especially in the Reception Year. This leads to significant

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

inconsistencies in how the curriculum is implemented. In some areas of learning, 4 to 6 June 2024 children’s experiences are too limited or not well thought out. Children do not build up the knowledge they need in readiness for the move to Year 1. The school should ensure that the early years curriculum is well planned and implemented, particularly in Reception, to ensure that children are well prepared for their next steps in learning.  There is a lack of English reading books in the school. The school should ensure that pupils benefit from high-quality resources, including reading books, to support their English language learning.  The school provides too few suitable opportunities which aim to develop pupils’ interests and talents. Curricular or extra-curricular enrichment opportunities are minimal. This limits the school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development. The school should ensure that pupils receive a wide, rich set of experiences in

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

school to support their personal development.  The school’s relationships and sex education programme for secondary-age pupils does not give due regard to statutory guidance. Throughout the school, teaching about different religions, faiths and cultures is limited. The school should ensure that the programme for secondary-age pupils covers what is required and that pupils are appropriately supported to develop their knowledge of different religions, faiths and cultures.  For too long, the school has not met the independent school standards. The proprietor has not acted with sufficient urgency or rigour to address the weaknesses identified at previous consecutive inspections. This has resulted in pupils continuing to receive a poor standard of education in the secular subjects. The school should ensure that all the independent school standards are met and that pupils’ education improves, including in the early years.

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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. 4 to 6 June 2024

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School details

Date of previous inspection 9 to 11 November 2021 4 to 6 June 2024

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Information about this school

 The school is an independent day school for Orthodox Jewish boys. It is registered to admit pupils from the age of two to 13. At the time of this inspection, the school did not have any pupils on roll in Years 7 and 8. Pupils study religious education in Yiddish for the majority of each day.  The school is registered to admit up to 310 pupils. At the time of this inspection, there were 190 pupils on roll.  The school has provision for two-year-old children.  The school does not use alternative provision.  The school has a sole proprietor and does not have a governing body. At the time of this inspection, the headteacher was absent. The head of curriculum was deputising in the headteacher’s absence. The senior leader responsible for the religious curriculum as well as leaders responsible for safeguarding also lead the school.  The school’s most recent standard inspection took place in November 2021. A

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Information about this school

progress monitoring inspection took place in November 2022.

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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

Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.

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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

 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the head of the religious curriculum, the leader of the secular curriculum and leaders responsible for safeguarding and SEND. The lead inspector spoke with the proprietor.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, geography and PE. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to staff, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors also looked at curriculum plans and pupils’ work in some other subjects. 4 to 6 June 2024  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and

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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.  Inspectors toured all parts of the school and looked at a range of documentation to check the school’s compliance with the independent school standards.  Inspectors spoke to pupils and staff throughout the inspection. They considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View.

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Inspection team

Gary Rawlings, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Julie Wright His Majesty’s Inspector 4 to 6 June 2024

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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)(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)(h) that all pupils have the opportunity to learn and make progress; and – 2(2)(i) effective preparation of pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life in British society.  2A(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor- – 2A(1)(b) ensures that every registered pupil who is provided with secondary education at the school is provided with relationships and sex education, except

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

in so far as the pupil is excused as mentioned in sub-paragraph (2), – 2A(1)(d) in making arrangements for the purposes of paragraphs (a), (b) or (c), has regard to any guidance under section 80A of the Education Act 2002 that applies in relation to the provision of education by maintained schools, – 2A(1)(f) consults parents of registered pupils at the school before making or revising a statement under sub-paragraph (e)  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(b) fosters in pupils self-motivation, the application of intellectual, physical and creative effort, interest in their work and the ability to think and learn for themselves; – 3(c) involves well planned lessons and effective teaching methods, activities and

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

management of class time; – 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; – 3(f) utilises effectively classroom resources of a good quality, quantity and range; – 3(g) demonstrates that a framework is in place to assess pupils’ work regularly and thoroughly and use information from that assessment to plan teaching so that pupils can progress. 4 to 6 June 2024

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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(a) actively promotes the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs; – 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; – 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. 4 to 6 June 2024 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

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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