The Light Christian School

The Light Christian School, 17 June 2026 1 The Light Christian School Suite 1, Queensgate Centre, Orsett Road, Grays RM17 5DF

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report:

Overall outcome The school does not meet all of the independent school standards that were checked during this inspection

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report:

At its most recent inspection, the school was judged to not meet all of the independent school standards.

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report:

The purpose of this inspection was to monitor the progress the school has made in meeting the independent school standards and other requirements that it was judged to not comply with at its previous inspection.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

When we carry out progress monitoring inspections of independent schools, we report on the school's likely compliance with part 8 of the independent school standards first. Under part 8, the proprietor is required to ensure that the school meets all of the independent school standards consistently. The standard in part 8 is intended to ensure that the quality of leadership and management at the school is sufficient for that purpose.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

At the previous standard inspection, the proprietor did not ensure that the independent school standards (the standards) were met. The proprietor and the governing body did not have sufficient oversight of the school. Therefore, their understanding of the quality of the school’s provision was inaccurate. The processes to check the quality of the school’s provision lacked rigour.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

In the school’s action plan, leaders proposed to address weaknesses in leadership and governance by establishing a self-evaluation and compliance monitoring framework. This would be subject to termly review. The proprietor proposed to provide governor training and seek external advisor support. The Light Christian School, 17 June 2026 2 Leaders have strengthened quality assurance processes in the school. Leaders have a clear view of how well staff are implementing the new curriculum. They check this through regular lesson visits and scrutiny of pupils’ work. Leaders report on progress with improvements to the governing body. There is a strategic approach to monitoring the school’s improvement plan. Governors visit the school to see first hand the changes and their impact. In addition, governors utilise external advisors to evaluate the school’s improvement. This includes the provision for special educational needs and/or disabilities

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

(SEND) and early years children. However, as yet, the proprietor and governors have not established how they will ensure ongoing compliance with the standards. It states in the school improvement plan that a system for this will be established in May 2027. This lacks timeliness of action.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

Governance is in the early stages of development. Governors have undertaken training so that they understand the generic role and responsibilities of governance. Link governors for specific areas of responsibilities, such as SEND, have not yet undertaken relevant training to understand how to discharge their duties in this regard. Governors do not know the standards sufficiently well to hold the school effectively to account.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

Leaders’ self-evaluation is over-generous in its assessment of progress with improvement and impact. That said, the school improvement plan has an appropriate focus on the areas that require further improvement. The planned actions are the right ones to achieve the stated milestones and the overarching objectives. However, in some areas of the plan, there has not been sufficient attention to the order and timeliness of actions.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

The requirements of this standard remain unmet.

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Curriculum

At the previous standard inspection, the curriculum was not suitably designed for the mixed-age classes that the school has. Pupils were being taught the same things regardless of their age or stage of learning. It was also the case that the early years curriculum lacked clarity. It did not consider adequately the progression in children’s learning from Nursery to the end of the Reception Year.

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Curriculum

In the school’s action plan, leaders proposed to review the curriculum with a view to implementing changes. This would be to ensure a suitable curriculum was in place for the mixed-age classes as well as for early years.

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Curriculum

Leaders responded quickly to the findings of the standard inspection. They implemented commercial curriculums for mixed-age classes. This included a new curriculum for relationships and sex education (RSE). Leaders also separated the key stage 2 class. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 are now taught together in the upper key stage 2 class. Pupils in Years 3 and 4 make up the lower. The Light Christian School, 17 June 2026 3 The early years curriculum has been redesigned. There is now clear distinction between what is to be learned in Nursery and what is to be learned in Reception. There is clear sequencing of learning from the time children start in early years to when they end Reception. This covers all the areas of learning that children in the early years need to experience.

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Teaching

At the previous standard inspection, the curriculum was not well delivered. This was because teachers did not take sufficient account of the age and stage of the pupils. Staff were not adapting their teaching to meet pupils’ needs. Gaps in children’s knowledge, including that of phonics, went unaddressed.

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Teaching

In the school’s action plan, leaders proposed to train staff on the new curriculum and adaptive teaching. Early years staff were to receive training in early years pedagogy.

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Teaching

The proprietor has invested in extensive training for staff. They can see the benefits of the new curriculum. Staff receive weekly training on curriculum delivery through the commercial company. With agreement from parents and carers, the proprietor laid on two additional days of training. Staff also worked on materials during their own time. Training for staff included the identification of pupils with SEND and adaptive teaching. The external advisor for SEND has worked with the school on its identification procedures. Support plans for individuals have been sharpened. Staff now benefit from specific guidance on how to cater for pupils’ needs in lessons.

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Teaching

The training for staff is having impact. Pupils are now in receipt of an appropriate curriculum. Staff provide clearer guidance to pupils to help them learn. They indicate clearly, for instance, misconceptions. Staff model and scaffold their points. Pupils have regular opportunities to revisit learning. This means they recall more the key content. Helpful working walls provide the visual stimuli for pupils when they discuss mathematical ideas or write responses.

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Teaching

In early years, phonics teaching is more specific to the ability and needs of the Reception children. There is appropriate separation between the Nursery cohort and that of Reception. Staff make adjustments for those children who are more advanced with their early reading. However, it remains the case that in other areas of learning, such as with free-flow play, activities are not well considered. There is further work to do to ensure staff undertake purposeful interactions to help develop children’s language and learning.

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Assessment

At the previous standard inspection, teachers did not use their checks on pupils’ learning to inform their next steps in teaching. For children and pupils learning to read, books were not always suitably matched to their phonics knowledge. Leaders had not identified and addressed sufficiently pupils’ gaps in knowledge of RSE. The Light Christian School, 17 June 2026 4 In the school’s action plan, leaders proposed to provide staff training on the use of assessment. There was no mention of how the school intends to ensure books read are matched to pupils’ reading knowledge.

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Assessment

In the new curriculums, assessment is clearly linked to the units of learning. The assessment tasks are focused on the objectives for learning. Built within the units of work are key pedagogic approaches which help staff check learning as it takes place, such as the use of hinge questions. These help staff determine whether pupils understand a concept before moving on to the next step in learning. As part of the training package, staff have undertaken input on the use of assessment in the curriculum. Staff are using such approaches consistently. For example, pupils act on advice to improve their work in their books. Pupils’ work shows marked improvement.

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Assessment

Staff checked pupils’ prior knowledge of RSE. Pupils receive extra sessions and one-to-one guidance on aspects they do not know that they should know for their age. This is in tandem with the delivery of the new RSE curriculum which is age appropriate.

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Assessment

The proprietor has engaged the services of an early years advisor to provide guidance on early years pedagogy and the use of resources. Staff apply the checks they make on children’s phonics knowledge to choose appropriate resources in phonics lessons. However, there is still work to do to ensure that staff understand when it is a suitable time in children’s learning to change their reading books.

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Assessment

Some of the requirements for standards checked in this part remain unmet.

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Safeguarding

At the previous standard inspection, safeguarding standards were met. This remains the case. Staff continue to receive safeguarding training, so their knowledge remains up to date. The safeguarding policy follows government guidance. It is available to see on the school’s website.

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Safeguarding

The requirements for these standards remain met. The Light Christian School, 17 June 2026 5

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

The school does not meet the requirements of the schedule to The Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014 ('the independent school standards') and associated requirements that were checked during this inspection, as set out in the annex of this report. This included the standards and requirements that the school was judged to not comply with at the previous inspection. Not all of the standards and associated requirements were checked during this inspection. The Light Christian School, 17 June 2026 6

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About this inspection

Inspectors carried out this inspection under sections 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008, at the request of the registration authority for independent schools. Inspectors checked the school's compliance with 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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About this inspection

Following our updated inspection framework, all inspections are now led by His Majesty’s Inspectors (HMI) or by Ofsted Inspectors (OIs) who have previously served as HMIs.

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About this inspection

This inspection was conducted without notice.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with the co-proprietors, members of the governing body, staff and pupils during the inspection.

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About this inspection

The school had its first standard inspection on 3 February 2026. At that time, it did not comply with several of the independent school standards.

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About this inspection

The school applied to the Department for Education (DfE) for a material change to increase the age range from 11 to 13. On 15 April 2026 the DfE rejected the request.

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About this inspection

After the standard inspection, the Department for Education required the school to prepare an action plan. This was a statutory requirement. Ofsted evaluated the school’s action plan on 11 May 2026. This was deemed to be unacceptable. The DfE rejected the school’s action plan on 27 May 2026.

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About this inspection

The school has a Christian religious ethos.

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About this inspection

The school does not use alternative provision.

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About this inspection

There have been no relevant changes since the previous inspection.

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Lead inspector

Liz Smith His Majesty's Inspector The Light Christian School, 17 June 2026 7

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About this school

Proprietor Mr Afolabi Joseph and Mr Olaniyi Olujobi Headteacher Mr Afolabi Joseph Type of school Other independent school Capacity 80

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compulsory school age on roll

Age range of pupils 3 to 11 Gender of pupils Mixed Annual fees for day pupils £7,188 Email address info@thelight-school.org The Light Christian School, 17 June 2026 8

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

 3 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that the teaching at the school- – 3(c) involves well planned lessons and effective teaching methods, activities and management of class time; – 3(f) utilises effectively classroom resources of a good quality, quantity and range;

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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

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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(1)(b) the written policy, plans and schemes of work- – 2(1)(b)(i) take into account the ages, aptitudes and needs of all pupils, including those pupils with an EHC plan; and  2(2) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(1)(a), the matters are- – 2(2)(f) where the school has pupils below compulsory school age, a programme of activities which is appropriate to their educational needs in relation to personal, social, emotional and physical development and communication and language skills; – 2A(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor- – 2A(1)(a) ensures that every registered pupil who is provided with primary education

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

at the school is provided with relationships education, The Light Christian School, 17 June 2026 9 – 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(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;

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

 7 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that- – 7(a) arrangements are made to safeguard and promote the welfare of pupils at the school; and – 7(b) such arrangements have regard to any guidance issued by the Secretary of State.

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Part 6. Provision of information

 32(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that- – 32(1)(c) particulars of the arrangements for meeting the standard contained in paragraph 7 are published on the school's internet website or, where no such website exists, are provided to parents on request; The Light Christian School, 17 June 2026 10 M1 2WD

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Part 6. Provision of information

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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