Leeds Jewish Free School has received a ringing endorsement from Ofsted which described it as “a special place to learn”.
It maintained a “strong standard” for attendance and behaviour – the second highest of the five evaluation grades in Ofsted’s new system – while reaching the expected standard in the other six categories.
Inspectors found it to be “a small caring school where the Jewish ethos supports to achieve and develop a sense of belonging.The school goes beyond faith or cultural identity and is genuinely inclusive. A school that has strong values at its core.”
Pupils from different faiths and background “interact harmoniously”, they said.
The country’s only Jewish secondary free school has 131 pupils – six more than its official capacity.
Executive head Charlie Kelsey said the report was “a wonderful recognition of our pupils, staff, governors, families and wider community. We are incredibly proud that Ofsted recognised not only the academic progress being made by our students, but also the warmth, inclusivity and strong Jewish values that sit at the heart of our school.
“The report reflects our unwavering belief that every child should feel known, valued and inspired to succeed. We look forward to building on these strengths as we continue our journey of excellence for every pupil."
Leaders efforts’ had resulted in “sustained improvement” in attendance, inspectors noted, with that of special needs pupils in particular “consistently well above” the national average.
Pupils were “attentive, enthusiastic and engage in learning readily”.
Inspectors highlighted “enthusiastic and knowledgeable” staff with “highly effective” oversight by leaders.
Inclusion had gone from “strength to strength”.
While knowledge of other faiths was underdeveloped, the introduction of culture weeks and visiting speakers had had a “positive impact” in addressing this, Ofsted reported.
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