Family & Education
Ofsted criticises staff apathy and 'habitually late' pupils
State-aided Beis Yaakov High School in Salford is downgraded to inadequate
November 21, 2022 11:49
State-aided Beis Yaakov High School in Salford is downgraded to inadequate
November 21, 2022 11:49Ofsted has delivered a scathing assessment of a state-aided Strictly Orthodox girls’ secondary school in Manchester, criticising apathy among staff and disrespectful pupils who are often late for lessons.
Inspectors downgraded Beis Yaakov Girls High School from “requires improvement” to inadequate, saying its quality of education had declined to “unacceptable standards”.
“There is a deeply entrenched culture among staff of apathy and lack of routine. Staff do not take their roles as educators seriously enough,” Ofsted said.
“They have low expectations for how pupils should behave and what pupils should achieve. Leaders, and staff, have failed pupils.”
The lack of a broad and balanced education stifled aspirations. There was “insufficient time” for pupils to learn any secular subject in depth and leaders’ efforts to increase the breadth and depth of the curriculum in key stage 3 (for 11 to 14 year olds) had been “in vain”.
“For many pupils, socialising has taken precedence over their learning,” Ofsted reported. “Pupils are habitually late to lessons. They are slow to settle and some display negative attitudes towards their teachers. This impedes how well pupils learn.”
They “often roam the corridors when they should be in classrooms” and “often display disrespectful attitudes towards staff and their environment”.
Some staff “regularly arrive at school late” and others “are not in classrooms when lessons start and pupils are unsupervised”.
Leaders and staff “have a laissez-faire approach to safeguarding”.
Systems and arrangements for safeguarding pupils are “not fit for purpose” and staff are “not suitably trained to recognise when a pupil may be at risk of harm”.
Leaders have begun to accept “endemic weaknesses” in safeguarding procedures and commissioned a root-and-branch review, Ofsted said.
While pupils feel happy and safe at Beis Yaakov, they are “not safe”, Ofsted said. “Staff attendance and punctuality are erratic. Pupils are poorly supervised and frequently left to their own devices.”
The school was approached for comment.
* The Talmud Torah London nursery in Stamford Hill was rated good in all areas by Ofsted, which reported that “children happily run into this welcoming and safe setting, ready for a day filled with exciting play and learning experiences”.
Healthy lifestyles are promoted and children learn what it means to be kind and respectful to others “regardless of their beliefs or abilities”, Ofsted said.
* Beis Trana, an independent school in Stamford Hill which takes girls from 3 to 16, was downgraded from “requires improvement’ to inadequate. Ofsted acknowledged the curriculum was ambitious in most subjects but said pupils achieved very few formal or recognised qualilfications by the time they leave.
Climbing frames in the playground were found to be in poor condition and pose “a potential danger”.
* Also rated inadequate was Talmud Torah Chaim Meirim Wiznitz in Stamford Hill, which takes boys from five to 13. Although there had been improvements since the previous inspection and pupils study a wide range of secular subjects, too little time was allocated to teaching these, Ofsted said.
Pupils “find it difficult to communicate in English and to understand lessons that are taught in English”.