Kerem Shloime

Inspection of Kerem Shloime Gloucester House, Back Duncan Street, Salford M7 2EY

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Inspection dates: 26 to 28 November 2024

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

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

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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?

Pupils are happy and safe at Kerem Shloime. Warm relationships feature throughout the school. Pupils look out for each other and are clear about the school’s high expectations of their behaviour and conduct. Learning is rarely disturbed. Pupils show positive attitudes to school and encourage others to do the same.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s expectations for pupils’ achievements are not high enough in some subjects. This happens when staff are less clear about what pupils should be learning, and when. In key stage 1 and key stage 2, the curriculum design is under- developed. As a result, pupils do not learn as well as they could. In contrast, children in the early years learn well because there are clear expectations and a well-organised curriculum.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe in different situations. They identify risks and know what to do if something worries them. Pupils are confident that there are a range of adults who they can speak to in school with any concerns. They said that staff would act quickly to help them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Parents and carers are happy to send their children to the school. They see it as a supportive and nurturing environment.

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better?

The school now has a curriculum in place that interests and engages pupils across the full range of subjects. The Chol (secular) curriculum now covers a broad range of subjects that meets the independent school standards (‘the standards’). Staff appreciate and benefit from significant training to develop their subject knowledge across the newly introduced curriculum. That said, the curriculum in too many subjects does not identify the most important knowledge for pupils to know and remember. In addition to this, the order that pupils learn it in does not help them to deepen their understanding well enough.

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better?

The school has started to check what pupils understand. There are examples where this process is used to accurately understand what pupils know and remember. For example, in phonics, checking the letters and sounds that pupils know is used to plan pupils’ next steps based on what they already know. In subjects where this is not embedded, pupils do not learn as well as they could because teaching does not take their prior knowledge into account.

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better?

The school identifies the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities well. It shares this information with teachers to put effective personalised support in place for pupils.

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better?

The school has developed a consistent approach to teaching phonics. This is now embedded from the early years and pupils learn to read well. Pupils read books that contain the sounds they know. This helps them to build confidence and fluency. Staff 26 to 28 November 2024 swiftly spot pupils who find reading difficult and give them the extra help that they need to succeed.

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better?

Children get off to a strong start in the early years because the curriculum is well organised. Staff know children as individuals and plan learning based on their interests and abilities. Learning activities help children to deepen their understanding because staff are clear about what they want them to know. Staff have the knowledge and experience of how young children learn. They use this to know when to provide guidance and when to let children develop independence.

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better?

Pupils across the school share, take turns, communicate effectively and resolve conflict with ease. Pupils who are new to the school describe it as a friendly place. They are clear that staff are there to support them and would take any reports of bullying seriously. Pupils struggled to remember a time when bullying had happened.

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better?

Pupils know why it is important to show respect to everyone, regardless of their background. They know why the fundamental British values are important in society. For example, pupils learn that voting gives them a voice. However, pupils’ knowledge of how different people live is limited. For example, pupils know about different religions, but their understanding is shallow. This does not prepare pupils well enough for life in modern Britain.

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better?

The school monitors pupils’ attendance well. There are systems in place to swiftly identify any pupils who cause concern. The school has strong oversight of pupils’ pastoral needs and uses this to plan suitable support. For example, pupils who may need support from staff to establish and maintain friendships.

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better?

The proprietor has taken effective action to improve the school. It has appointed additional leaders with the relevant knowledge and experience of the standards to begin to positively impact the quality of education that pupils receive. However, some parts of the school’s plans for improvement do not prioritise the aspects that will make the biggest difference to pupils’ education.

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better?

The school complies with 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)

 The school has not identified the most important knowledge for pupils to know and remember in some subjects. In addition, the sequence of learning in some subjects does not support pupils to build knowledge well. Pupils do not learn the curriculum as well as they could. The school should identify the key knowledge it 26 to 28 November 2024 wants pupils to know and remember in all subjects and ensure that the sequence of learning supports pupils to achieve this.  In some subjects, teaching is not informed by pupils’ prior knowledge. Where this is the case, pupils are unable to learn what is intended in the curriculum. The school should develop assessment systems in all subjects so that learning is based on pupils’ prior knowledge.  Pupils’ knowledge of how different people live is limited. This means that pupils are not prepared well enough for life in modern Britain. The school should ensure that pupils know enough about the range of ways that people may live differently

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

to them.  Some parts of the school’s plans for improvement do not prioritise those aspects that will make the biggest difference to the quality of education that pupils receive. This means that the school’s actions to improve the quality of education do not happen quickly enough. The proprietor should make sure that there are effective systems in place to check on the effectiveness of the school’s actions to further improvements.

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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. 26 to 28 November 2024

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School details

Unique reference number 140491 DfE registration number 355/6001

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School details

Inspection number 10342093 Type of school Other independent school

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School details

Annual fees (day pupils) Voluntary contributions

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School details

Date of previous inspection 24 to 26 January 2023 26 to 28 November 2024

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Information about this school

 Kerem Shloime is an orthodox Jewish faith school.  The school operates from premises at Gloucester House, Back Duncan Street, Salford M7 2EY.  Leaders do not make use of any alternative provision.  The school is registered for up to 300 pupils.  The previous standard inspection took place on 24 to 26 January 2023. At the time of the previous standard inspection, the school did not comply with the standards.  The Department for Education (DfE) required the school to prepare an action plan. This plan was statutory. Ofsted evaluated this plan on 23 June 2023. The DfE accepted the action plan with modifications on 21 July 2023.  Following the standard inspection in January 2023, the school’s first progress monitoring inspection was carried out on 18 October 2023. A second action plan was evaluated by Ofsted on 29 January 2024. This plan was statutory. The DfE rejected this action plan. A second progress monitoring inspection was carried out

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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 evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors spoke with the headteacher and other school leaders. The lead inspector also spoke with representatives of the proprietor body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, art and design and personal, social, health and economic education. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors also listened to some pupils reading to a familiar adult. 26 to 28 November 2024  Inspectors also looked at curriculum plans and spoke to leaders about some other

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Information about this inspection

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 considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors made a tour of the school premises and checked documentation in relation to the standards.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for parents. There were no responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff. However, inspectors spoke to staff to discuss leaders’ support for their workload and well-being.

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Inspection team

Jane Dennis, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Lindy Griffiths Ofsted Inspector 26 to 28 November 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 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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