North London school criticized by Ofsted for 'not giving any physical education lessons' for pupils

A north London school has been criticized by Ofsted for “not teaching any physical education lessons”. The Talmud Torah Tiferes Shlomoh School, in Hendon, was inspected by the schools regulator and found that it was not “preparing pupils for modern Britain”.

The Independent Orthodox Jewish School for Boys near Cricklewood is registered for up to 360 pupils aged 3-15. But the bosses violated their record by having 361 students. Ofsted criticized the school for an overemphasis on religious education at the expense of ‘secular’ subjects.

The school, which has a tuition fee of £4,500 a year, had just introduced teaching history, geography and science for one hour a week. The inspectors added: “Secondary-age pupils still do not receive creative, technological or physical education. They still receive only 90 minutes of secular education every afternoon, Monday through Thursday. This is not enough. There are still no extracurricular activities.” offer, beyond an optional after-school club that focuses on additional religious education”

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The school, which has a fee of £4,500 a year, had just introduced the teaching of history, geography and science.

The report, released this week (March 20) added that relationship education and sex education (CSR) did not follow legal guidance. It did not teach about ‘protected characteristics’, ie race, gender, disability, etc. The inspector said: “This inspection confirms that the school’s focus on protected characteristics remains unchanged. It is clear to leaders that the religious ethos of the school means that no consideration is, or will be, paid to some of the protected characteristics.

“When students leave school at the end of Year 10, they have not been introduced at the appropriate ages to safety concepts, including aspects of sexual consent and harassment or abuse. These failures…mean that students continue to being prepared for life in modern Britain”.

However, Ofsted said that the quality of secular education is gradually improving. There are new and appropriate resources, including textbooks and reading books, for English, mathematics, humanities, and science, which you did not see on a previous inspection.

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