Lubavitch Girls Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils delight in coming to school. They are keen to learn and try hard in their lessons.

The school encourages pupils to be community minded citizens. For example, the pupils on the school council organise fundraising events for international humanitarian charities. Older pupils are encouraged to be responsible leaders in the school.

Pupils in Year 6 take on roles as prefects. They support breaktimes and help younger pupils to play together in harmony.

The school has high ambitions for pupils' achievement.

The curriculum in the foundation subjects has been strengthened in the recent years. All pupils study a broad range of national curriculum subjec...ts. Teachers get to know pupils well.

They are passionate about the subjects they teach and help pupils to remember what they have been taught. This helps pupils to achieve well.

Pupils enjoy the books they read.

From the start of Reception, they learn to read in both Hebrew and English. Throughout the school, pupils read a range of well-chosen texts, including fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Pupils enjoy being creative in their writing.

They are curious learners who enjoy finding patterns and meaning in the texts that they read. Pupils are encouraged to question the world around them. They take part in regular debates.

The school fosters confidence in public speaking.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school has increased the ambition of the curriculum in recent years. Leaders have identified the key knowledge they want pupils to learn in each subject.

Overall, learning is broken down and sequenced logically so that pupils build up their knowledge over time. There are regular opportunities for pupils to revisit the concepts they learned previously. This helps pupils to securely remember what they have been taught.

Teachers support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) well to access the curriculum. Each year, pupils attend a range of educational visits linked to what they have been learning.

Teachers have secure knowledge of the subjects they teach.

They help pupils to explore new ideas and embed their learning. The explanations of teachers are typically clear. They regularly check what pupils know before moving on.

At times, the introduction of new vocabulary lacks precision. When this happens, pupils are less confident when using subject-specific vocabulary. In the early years, the discussions between adults and children do not securely support the development of language and communication skills.

Staff use the school's phonics scheme effectively to teach pupils to read in English. Staff model sounds with accuracy. Pupils join in with the routines of their phonics lessons with enthusiasm.

Pupils read books that are well matched to the sounds they have learned. The school identifies quickly the pupils who fall behind in the phonics programme. Pupils are supported well to become confident and fluent readers.

Good behaviour is noticed here. Pupils are rewarded for demonstrating positive behaviours such as kindness and for doing good deeds. Routines for good behaviour are established firmly in the early years.

Pupils have lessons in personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education. They are taught how to stay safe, including online. However, the school's programme for PSHE does not routinely build on what pupils have been taught previously.

Opportunities for pupils to learn about different faiths and cultures are not as well planned as they might be. This includes pupils' learning about different religions and cultures. This means that pupils may learn content in the same way more than once, rather than deepening their understanding over time.

Staff promote pupils' personal development effectively, including through the Jewish studies curriculum. Through this curriculum, pupils are taught about key themes such as fairness and their rights and responsibilities. The school keenly promotes the value of life-long learning.

Children in the early years are happy and safe. They enjoy learning about the changing seasons and the traditions of different Jewish festivals. However, the curriculum in the early years does not clearly identify the most important things that children need to know and learn over time.

The school has not considered carefully how children's learning should be adjusted for the mixed-age classes. This means that the curriculum is not sufficiently ambitious for children in the Reception Year. At times, the learning environment and resources are not used effectively to support children's learning.

The school places high importance on getting to know pupils and their families well when they join the school. As a result, communication with parents and carers is strong. Pupils with SEND are identified quickly.

Leaders work closely with parents and staff to ensure everyone understands these pupils' needs. Attendance is an ongoing priority for leaders. The school works with families effectively to get them the help they need and to improve pupils' attendance.

Staff are happy at the school. They appreciate the leaders' efforts to reduce staff workload and support well-being. Teachers at the early stages of their careers are supported well.

The school provides staff with well-planned training opportunities. This helps to develop their professional knowledge and skills. The trust has ensured that leaders have the resources they need to continually improve the school.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• There are inconsistencies in how well the PSHE programme is planned and delivered. This means that, at times, the curriculum does not clearly build on what pupils have learned previously, particularly around teaching pupils about other faiths and cultures.

The school should ensure that the programme for PSHE is refined further and implemented consistently. ? The early years curriculum does not clearly define what leaders want children to know in each area of learning. The learning environment does not promote children's learning well.

Some children do not learn what they need in order to be ready for Year 1. Leaders should ensure that there is clarity in what children need to learn in the early years. The school should ensure that the learning environment and the use of resources enable children to learn effectively.

• In the early years, staff do not maximise opportunities to promote children's language and communication development. For example, staff interactions with children are not used well enough to develop and extend children's language and vocabulary. The school should ensure that staff in the early years are well trained to support children's language and communication development.

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