Yesodey Hatorah School

Overview

This is a “friendly and welcoming school” where pupils are “safe, happy and valued as individuals” and describe the setting as their “second family”. While the quality of education is rated Good, with strong outcomes in reading and GCSEs, the school’s overall effectiveness requires improvement due to inconsistencies in early years provision and failures to meet statutory requirements for relationships and sex education.

Strengths

• Pupils achieve well, with many succeeding in GCSE qualifications, supported by a “broad and ambitious” curriculum.
• The focus on English, particularly reading, makes a “positive difference”, with phonics implemented “consistently well” from Reception.
• Behaviour is excellent; pupils are “polite and considerate”, concentrate well in lessons, and attendance rates are high.
• Teachers use subject knowledge effectively to help pupils “think deeply” about themes in subjects such as art and history.
• Enrichment opportunities, including trips and a residential, help pupils develop leadership and teamwork skills.

Areas to improve

• The early years curriculum is not implemented consistently, hindering children’s language, communication, and physical development.
• In some subjects, activities do not align well with intended curriculum knowledge or provide sufficient opportunities to build on prior learning.
• The relationships and sex education (RSE) programme does not meet statutory requirements for secondary-age pupils, lacking information on protected characteristics and different types of relationships.

Safeguarding

The report states that “the arrangements for safeguarding are effective”.