Tiferes High School

Inspection of Tiferes High School The Community Centre, 18 Raleigh Close, Hendon, London NW4 2TA

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

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

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is a nurturing place to be. Staff provide high levels of support and care for their pupils. They prioritise pupils’ safety. As a result, pupils are happy here and enjoy their time at school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff, pupils, parents and carers have created a real sense of community within the school. Whole-school events such as celebrations of Jewish festivals, hiking trips, class competitions and charity fundraising days take place frequently. Older pupils enjoy organising the annual school show. They make sure that everyone has a part to play, from dancing and singing to costume design and scriptwriting.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Around the school and in lessons, pupils are unfailingly polite and respectful. They look out for each other. Pupils in Year 11 act as ‘big sisters’ to Year 7 pupils, helping them to settle into secondary school. Pupils are motivated to work hard and behave well. Staff reinforce to pupils the importance of resilience and responsibility. Pupils develop their leadership skills through taking on various roles.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s careers programme is well thought out. Staff give pupils insight into a wide range of future jobs and post-16 options, ensuring that pupils receive independent and impartial guidance.

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better?

The school ensures that pupils study a wide range of subjects. This includes information technology, humanities, Hebrew and creative subjects such as art and sewing. Older pupils have a variety of optional subjects to study at GCSE level or equivalent. The curriculum is well planned.

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better?

In lessons, teachers check pupils' learning and identify gaps in understanding. They use formal tests to check that pupils retain knowledge in the long term. Teaching is adapted where needed to make sure that any gaps or misconceptions are addressed. Teachers are secure in their subject knowledge. They help pupils to recall their prior learning and support them well in developing their written and spoken language. Staff receive professional development to help them successfully deliver their subjects. They enjoy working here and are well supported by leaders.

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better?

As at the time of the previous full inspection, despite changes to curriculum thinking, the content that pupils are taught is limited in a few subjects. Where this is the case, pupils are not helped to build up a broad and deep body of knowledge as a result. This contrasts with the strengths seen in other subjects. In science, for example, leaders are clearly ambitious for all pupils, with a high number of pupils successfully taking separate sciences at GCSE. While pupils achieve well overall and across the curriculum, they could do better.

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better?

Pupils like reading. They have a selection of non-fiction and fiction texts at school that they can borrow to read independently. Staff give pupils suggestions for further 25 to 27 June 2024 reading. The school provides additional support to pupils who struggle with reading. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified accurately when they join the school. The school identifies personalised strategies for pupils with SEND. However, when staff do not use these strategies routinely to support pupils with SEND, the learning of pupils with SEND is reduced.

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better?

Pupils are well behaved. They understand and follow the school’s clear expectations for behaviour. Attendance rates are high. Staff identify any pupils whose attendance is a concern and work with parents to address any barriers to attendance. Punctuality is an ongoing focus for the school. Staff have systems in place to promote the importance of arriving to school and lessons on time.

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better?

Personal, social and health education (PSHE) is integral to the curriculum. It is taught through subjects such as citizenship and Jewish studies as well as assemblies, ‘circle time’ and various workshops run by external speakers and organisations. The programme is wide-ranging and planned across the year. Pupils are taught, for example, about healthy living, dealing with stress and anxiety, online safety and managing friendships and family relationships.

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better?

Pupils have been taught about the importance of equality. For example, in history, pupils learned about the work of the suffragette movement. This tied in with a visit to parliament when pupils watched a debate about the pension age for women. The school's ethos encourages tolerance and respect for people in a general way. However, the PSHE programme does not pay particular regard to all protected characteristics of which pupils must be made aware at a timely point. The school’s relationships and sex education (RSE) programme does not cover all the required content as set out in statutory guidance.

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better?

Governors work with leaders closely and fulfil their statutory duties. Governors and leaders have not fully addressed weaknesses in the quality of education identified at the previous standard inspection. Unmet independent school standards relate to the personal development of pupils, in particular with regard to the school's PSHE and RSE programme, and leadership and management. The school meets the requirements of schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 In a few subjects, the subject content is limited and lacks depth. Where this is the case, pupils do not routinely gain a deep and broad body of knowledge. Pupils' outcomes in these subjects are not so strong as in other subjects. The school 25 to 27 June 2024 should review their curriculum thinking in these subjects and ensure that pupils develop in-depth knowledge and skills across the curriculum.  There is variability in how well staff use identified strategies to support the learning of pupils with SEND. This means that pupils are not supported routinely well across the curriculum. The school should ensure that staff know and use the identified personalised strategies for pupils with SEND.  The school does not cover the required content for relationships education as set out in statutory guidance. The school does not pay due regard to the full range of protected characteristics. The school should ensure that the school’s RSE and

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

PSHE programme covers all aspects of statutory guidance.  Leaders have not ensured that all the independent school standards are met. Leaders have not fully addressed areas for improvement identified at the previous inspection. The proprietor and those responsible for governance should ensure that weaknesses are addressed and that the independent school 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. 25 to 27 June 2024

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School details

Unique reference number 131403 DfE registration number 302/6110

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School details

Inspection number 10286397 Type of school Other Independent School

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School details

Date of previous inspection 9 to 11 November 2021 25 to 27 June 2024

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Information about this school

 Tiferes High School is a secondary day school for girls aged 11 to 16 of Orthodox Jewish faith.  The headteacher took up post in January 2022.  Leaders do not use any alternative provision.  The school does not have a website. Policies, including the safeguarding and child protection policy, are available in hard copy to parents and carers on request.  The school’s most recent inspection was a progress monitoring inspection in November 2022. This followed the previous full standard inspection in November 2021.

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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

 Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the second routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher and other school leaders. The lead inspector met with the chair of the proprietor body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, information technology, science and personal, social, health and economic education. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors also considered the curriculum in other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector reviewed the single

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Information about this inspection

central record, took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors considered responses to the online survey, Parent View, and responses to the online staff and pupil surveys. 25 to 27 June 2024  Inspectors met with groups of pupils. In line with leaders’ request, the inspectors did not ask pupils anything about sex education and different relationships, including anything to do with sexual orientation and gender reassignment.

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Inspection team

Jude Wilson, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Luke Stubbles His Majesty's Inspector 25 to 27 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];  2A(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor-

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

– 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 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,

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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)(vi) encourage respect for other people, paying particular regard to the protected characteristics set out in the 2010 Act; and

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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; and – 34(1)(c) actively promote the well-being of pupils. 25 to 27 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

for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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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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