The Wisdom Academy

Inspection of The Wisdom Academy Sycamore Road, Aston, Birmingham, Birmingham, West Midlands B6 5UH

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Inspection dates: 23 to 25 September 2025

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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 Requires improvement Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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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 proprietor has set a clear vision for The Wisdom Academy of providing high- quality education ‘where Islamic and British values go hand-in-hand’. The school underpins this vision by having high expectations of pupils and what they can achieve. The curriculum is well designed to meet these aims. However, recent wholesale staff changes have resulted in inconsistencies in how well the curriculum is taught. As a result, the quality of education that pupils receive is mixed.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is a caring and nurturing environment. Adults work hard to quickly get to know their pupils and forge strong relationships. Pupils repay this with positive behaviour. They are welcoming, friendly and curious. Lessons are calm and orderly. Children in the Reception class begin to learn about how to behave in school as soon as they arrive. Interactions across the school are respectful and kind.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school works well to enhance pupils’ personal and character development. Pupils benefit from a wide range of activities that develop their personalities. These activities include trips, residentials and charity work. For example, pupils collect food for local food banks and learn how to be active in their local community. Pupils speak passionately about these opportunities.

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better?

In the last academic year, almost all of the teaching staff have left the school. The proprietor has employed new staff, many of whom are new to teaching. Full staff induction and training has not been fully implemented. The school has not ensured that staff have been effectively supported to provide pupils with activities and learning that supports them to achieve all that they could. As a result, pupils’ experiences in lessons are variable.

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better?

The curriculum includes an appropriate range of subjects. In key stage 1 and 2, the curriculum clearly identifies the knowledge that pupils should learn and in what order. However, this is not consistent. In Reception, the curriculum is less well designed. This means that staff are not always sure what to teach and when. Consequently, children do not effectively build upon their previous learning.

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better?

The checks that the school completes to find out what pupils can do and have learned in the past are not as effective as they could be. At times, pupils’ misconceptions and gaps in learning go unnoticed. Sometimes, teachers move pupils on to new learning before pupils are ready to do so. This makes it more difficult for pupils to make sense of what they are taught. When this happens, some pupils do not get the help they need to catch up and their progress through the curriculum slows.

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better?

The school prioritises reading. Pupils read widely and often and enjoy reading across the curriculum. Pupils receive the help they need to become fluent readers. Staff spot pupils who may need extra help and support them effectively to improve. 23 to 25 September 2025 The school works well to identify and support anyone who needs additional help. Staff get to know pupils very quickly and share information with others on how best to support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, including in lessons. This work is generally effective.

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better?

Many children in the Reception class have never attended an educational setting prior to joining the school. Staff quickly forge strong relationships with children. Care and nurture underpin learning well. Children quickly settle and learn what daily school life is like. They start learning about letters and numbers as soon as they start. However, due to weaknesses in the curriculum design, staff are not supported to prioritise the most important knowledge and skills that children should learn.

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better?

The school provides a calm and orderly learning environment. There are high expectations for pupils’ conduct. Pupils consistently meet these expectations. Pupils behave well, show respect and positive relationships are commonplace. Pupils enjoy their school. They show this through high attendance. Many describe the school as a community.

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better?

The school has thought carefully about the programme to broaden pupils’ personal development. The personal, social and health education (PSHE) programme and enrichment opportunities offered to pupils ensure that they learn about what it means to be a citizen in modern Britain. Leaders ensure that pupils’ character development within the Islamic faith is supported alongside pupils being supported to have an understanding of fundamental British values. For example, pupils regularly engage in the local community through charity events. Furthermore, the school offers a range of extra-curricular activities, which many pupils keenly attend. Pupils, parents and carers value these opportunities.

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better?

The school meets the requirements of the Equality Act 2010. However, the proprietor has not ensured that the independent school standards (‘the standards’) are met consistently. Leaders are new to their roles this academic year. In a very short space of time, they have accurately identified the school’s strengths and what needs to improve. They have devised many improvement strategies. However, due to the short time that leadership has been in place, these improvements have not been implemented or had an impact on the education provided by the school. Staff are proud to work here. Many parents are unanimous in their praise for the school and its staff.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 23 to 25 September 2025

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 The school has not ensured that staff who are new to the school have been effectively supported to provide pupils with activities and learning that supports them to achieve all that they could. This hinders the depth to which pupils learn. The school should support staff to build consistency in the delivery of the curriculum so that pupils’ learning is maximised.  The school does not routinely check that pupils are fully secure with prior learning before they move on to learn new content. This means that pupils do not build on their prior knowledge as well as they should. The school should ensure that staff check what pupils understand so that misconceptions and gaps in learning are quickly addressed before new learning is introduced.  The curriculum in the early years is not well structured. This means that staff often do not know what precise knowledge to teach and when. The school should ensure that the curriculum in all phases clearly identifies the precise knowledge

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

and skills pupils should learn and in what order.  The school has not implemented improvement strategies to support new staff and improve the standards of education at the school. This is because of their recent appointment. As a result, the standard of education has declined. The school should ensure that improvement strategies are implemented and evaluated effectively to ensure that standards of the quality of education provided by the school are raised.

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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. 23 to 25 September 2025

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School details

Unique reference number 135882 DfE registration number 330/6206

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School details

Inspection number 10391750 Type of school Other Independent School

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School details

Email address admin@thewisdomacademy.co.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 16 to 18 November 2022

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Information about this school

 The school is an independent day school registered for up to 180 pupils between the ages of four to eleven. It shares its premises on Sycamore Road, Aston, Birmingham B6 5UH with a secondary school run by the same proprietor.  From September 2025, all staff including the headteacher and deputy headteacher are either new to their roles or new to the school. The school currently employs six early career teachers.  The school’s last standard inspection was 16 to 18 November 2022 when it was judged to be good.  The school has an Islamic ethos.  The school does not use any alternative provision. 23 to 25 September 2025

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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 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 the headteacher, the deputy headteacher, the school’s finance and business manager and other teachers. An inspector held a meeting with early career teachers. The lead inspector met with the proprietor and held a telephone meeting with an external consultant.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: phonics/early reading, mathematics, science and PSHE. 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 looked at curriculum plans and spoke to leaders about some other subjects.

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Information about this inspection

 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 reviewed a range of documentation, including school policies, risk assessments, attendance information and behaviour logs.  The lead inspector toured the school site with members of staff to ascertain the safety of the school site.  Inspectors took account of the parent free-text comments and the responses on Ofsted Parent View survey. The inspectors also considered the responses to the pupil and staff surveys.

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Inspection team

Bianka Zemke, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Keri Baylis His Majesty’s Inspector 23 to 25 September 2025

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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.  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(c) involves well planned lessons and effective teaching methods, activities and 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(f) utilises effectively classroom resources of a good quality, quantity and range;

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

– 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.

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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. 23 to 25 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

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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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