Jamia Al-Hudaa Residential College

Inspection of Jamia Al-Hudaa Residential College Forest House, Berkeley Avenue, Mapperley Park, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire NG3 5TT

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Inspection dates: 16 to 18 September 2025

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Overall effectiveness Good

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

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Overall effectiveness Good

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils experience a warm and welcoming environment at this school. They enjoy learning each day and attend well. Pupils use words like ‘family’ and ‘sisterhood’ to describe the relationships that they form with their peers and staff. They behave well and demonstrate respect and courtesy to one another and visitors. Pupils are not worried about bullying or unpleasant behaviour. They are confident that they could share any concerns with staff and that they would be supported well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is ambitious about what pupils can achieve and has made significant improvements to the curriculum and the wider offer that is in place. This ensures that pupils achieve well. They learn about themselves and other cultures during their time at the school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The notion of contributing to society is central to the school’s vision for the pupils. Pupils play a role in the local community by litter picking and visiting the local care home. They develop their confidence and resilience including by practising public speaking. Students in the sixth form support their younger peers in lessons and organise the school’s tuck shop. Pupils often support one another in lessons, providing encouragement and advice.

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better?

The school has worked hard to develop the breadth and ambition of its curriculum. Pupils now study a broad range of subjects during key stage three. In each subject, teachers know what to teach and when. The school has paid particular attention to developing pupils’ knowledge of subject-specific vocabulary. Key terms are identified in the curriculum and highlighted in each lesson. Pupils confidently use terms such as ‘transubstantiation’ and ‘Reformation’ when discussing history, for example. They develop their understanding well.

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better?

Teachers have secure subject knowledge. They share explanations with pupils clearly and select purposeful activities that are accessible to pupils. The school uses strategies in each subject to check how well pupils are learning the curriculum. Teachers help pupils to address any misconceptions that they may have. This helps pupils to progress well through the curriculum. Teachers use strategies that are effective in helping pupils recall what they have studied previously. During lessons as well as in their written work, pupils demonstrate their knowledge of the curriculum well. For example, they use their biological knowledge when describing the functions of the human body.

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better?

Pupils are less confident when engaging with the most complex aspects of some of the subjects they study, such as how to think like an historian or a geographer. In subjects such as these, the curriculum and the way in which it is taught do not focus well enough on providing opportunities to deepen pupils’ understanding. For example, pupils do not routinely benefit from opportunities to develop their 16 to 18 September 2025 understanding of fieldwork in geography. As a result, pupils are not consistently able to deepen their knowledge and understanding.

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better?

Students in the sixth form are well prepared for their next steps. They leave the school well equipped for further study, employment and training. Students value the support that they receive about life beyond school and say that they feel ready to move on. Pupils throughout the school receive personalised and high-quality careers advice. They hear from visiting speakers and attend careers fairs as well as participating in work experience. As a result, pupils are aware of the options available to them at the end of Year 11 and their time in the sixth form.

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better?

At the time of the inspection, the school did not have any pupils on roll with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). However, leaders have been proactive in ensuring that staff understand how to identify and cater for a range of needs. Teachers take account of pupils’ different starting points and adapt their teaching successfully to enable pupils to know and remember more of the curriculum.

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better?

Pupils are polite and mature. They value their education and most take a great deal of pride in their work. Pupils enjoy working independently. Teachers praise pupils for their achievements regarding academic successes and pupils’ contributions to school life.

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better?

The school caters well for pupils’ personal development. Pupils learn about a range of faiths and share their understanding of different religions. The school focuses on ensuring that pupils communicate respectfully and sensitively about difference. Pupils’ behaviour and attitudes reflect this practice. They learn about how to keep themselves safe, including online. Pupils develop an understanding of healthy relationships and lifestyles. The school provides wider opportunities for pupils, including educational visits and experiences such as sports day and learning how to crochet. However, the school does not provide pupils as well as it could with as wide a range of opportunities to develop their talents and interests. Pupils and students in the sixth form do not develop their talents and interests as well as they might.

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better?

Leaders have brought about significant improvements in the quality of education that the school provides. They have ensured that areas for improvement identified in previous inspections have been addressed. Staff echo pupils’ comments about the family feel of the school. They enjoy their work. Staff appreciate the consideration that the school gives to their workload and well-being. The proprietor has ensured that the school meets the requirements of the independent school standards and schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010.

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better?

The school has not, however, ensured that it has been sufficiently evaluative in some areas of its work. This is the case, for example, where pupils’ behaviour and attendance are concerned. The school gathers a wealth of information about individual pupils and provides them with the necessary support and guidance. However, the school does not use that information to evaluate the quality of the school’s work in those areas well enough. This can hinder the school’s ability to identify priorities for further improvement. 16 to 18 September 2025

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 In some subjects, the curriculum and the way in which it is taught do not routinely provide high-quality opportunities for pupils to deepen their understanding. As a result, pupils are not confidently able to engage with the most complex aspects of those subjects, such as how to think like an historian. The school should ensure that staff know how to provide appropriate opportunities that enable pupils to learn about the most sophisticated aspects of the subjects that they study.  The scope of the extra-curricular provision for pupils is not as broad as it could be. The school does not have precise oversight of how well pupils take up this offer. This means that pupils do not develop their talents and interests as well as they might. The school should ensure that the breadth of opportunity for pupils to develop their interests, and its oversight of this offer, enables pupils to broaden their experiences and develop their talents.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 In some areas, such as behaviour and attendance, the school does not yet have an accurate overview of the impact of its actions. As a result, it is unable to evaluate fully the impact these actions are having on pupils. The school needs to ensure that it evaluates all aspects of its work effectively so that it can quickly address any shortcomings and build on the strengths that already exist.

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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. 16 to 18 September 2025

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School details

Unique reference number 131119 DfE registration number 892/6012

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School details

Inspection number 10391721 Type of school Other Independent School

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School details

School category Independent boarding school

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School details

Gender of pupils in the sixth form Girls

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sixth form

Date of previous inspection 19 to 21 September 2023 16 to 18 September 2025

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Information about this school

 The school is based at Forest House, Berkeley Avenue, Mapperley Park, Nottingham NG3 5TT.  The school is an Islamic school. It provides a faith-based curriculum alongside a range of national curriculum subjects.  The school is an independent boarding school for girls aged between 11 and 19. The school also has provision for day pupils.  The school does not use any alternative provision.  The school’s previous standard inspection took place from 19 to 21 September 2023. The school received an overall judgement of requires improvement.  Progress monitoring inspections took place in October 2024 and April 2025.  Parents and carers contribute to the costs of their children’s education, according to their ability to pay.

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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 met with members of the proprietor body including the chair. They met with senior leaders, including the leaders responsible for behaviour and attendance, the special educational needs coordinator and the designated safeguarding leads. Inspectors met with leaders responsible for the provision for pupils’ personal development and the sixth form.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: mathematics, science, history and geography. 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.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors also visited lessons, spoke with pupils, reviewed samples of pupils’ work and reviewed documentation in relation to a number of other subjects.  Inspectors toured the premises to review the suitability of the site. 16 to 18 September 2025  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, 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 considered the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View and Ofsted’s online surveys for school staff and pupils.

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Inspection team

Matthew Fearns-Davies, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Kirsty Norbury His Majesty's Inspector 16 to 18 September 2025 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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