My friend is Muslim and she wants to send her DD to a private all girls Muslim school. There are some in the area taht have a good reputation but the one shes choosing is far from good. The recent ofsted had comments like

- The majority of students don't like their time at school
- Some teachers are still awaiting the return of CRB checks
- There is no work experience scheme
- There is an 11% authorised absence rate

I've told my friend about all of this but she insists the ofsted is irrelevent and this school is right for her DD. She also says the ofsted reporters were probably racist and didn't understand the school.

(there are also rumours going round the area that the school has been infiltrated by Taliban extremists but I have no proof of this and no reason to believe its true!)

I know its my friends decision but I hope she changes her mind

Have you asked her why she has set her hear on that particular school?

Does she know the reputation of this school and the other local muslim girl schools?

I would be very worried at those reasons, in particular the fact that the majority were unhappy and the CRB check thing. very, very worried at the latter.

If it was just something like 'The library is too small' you'd possibly ignore it. But those two would have big alarm bells ringing.

I would also wonder at 11% absernce rate and why that is happeneing

I imagine the 11% authorised absence is because parents take their children abroad for long periods of time.

If your friend is paying for her to go there then i am sure she and her husband have properly thought it through. Ofsted reports aren't exactly the key thing parents should rely on. Perhaps they thought the school fit their ethos and daughter as they see best ?

My son's school has inadequate SATS results, and I am very very happy with it. I think you should actually keep your nose out and leave her to make a decision that is hers alone to make.

The main thing and it would be a huge thing for me is that the majority of students don't like their time at school. Most kids when talking to ofsted/filling in ofsted questionnaires will be positive about their school. For the majority to say they are unhappy would ring alarm bells in a big way.

I'ld be very worried indeed about the majority of students not liking the schoo1. A shame if there are other better Muslim schools locally she could send her to.

Schools can have inadequate Ofsted results and still be good but the alarm bells ring on that one.'The majority of students don't like their time at school'.Get her to look at that one statement and ask her if she wants it for her DC.

I don't think that Ofstead is the only thing that parents should think about. But if the majority of the children going to the school are not happy I think you would have to ask why.

I would also be very unhappy about teachers not being fully CRB checked.

I was not allowed to be left alone with students until mine had come through, when I was a student teacher.

tbh it is unusal for independent shcools to have Ofsteds beyond the Foudnation Stage , so what is said may not reflect the entire shcool. Worrying thoguh m, but not your concern really, her choice. Is there also an ICSIS one to comapre ?

Smugcolditz you are right I should probably keep my nose out of it.

The school seems to have some sort of link to my friends mosque so maybe that explains her decision.

At the end of day its up to them but I couldn't not tell them about the ofsted having seen it. I found it by chance - I was looking for ofsteds for local schools and this one had just been done and was linked through ofsteds front page

??? Ofsted doesn't inspect private schools

Well they've inspected this one so apparantly in some circumstances they do

First para reads:

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under section 162A of the Education Act
2002, as amended by schedule 8 of the Education Act 2005, in order to advise the
Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families about the school’s suitability for
continued registration as an independent school.

It does, Scienceteacher, if the school is not affiliated to any of the ISI-linked professional bodies (IAPS etc)
All schools now have to be inspected - so Ofsted plugs that gap in the private sector
Unhappy children and lack of CRB checking would bother me hugely, I agree a less than glowing OFSTED Report would not in itself bother me
I think you have to leave it though milliec, you have warned her of the content of the report. Let's hope it is the right school for her dd.

There are some inspections in private schools I thought.

She might want to the girl taught away from boys, to be subservient to men, to accept marriage at 16 and that kind of stuff which I presume can be more important than exam results, particularly if she's going to have to do what her husband tells her for the next 50 years in which case the less education she gets the better I suppose. Also the ethos or moral position might be we aren't here to be happy or enjoy ourselves.

You wouldn't expect work experience if the girls will never work of course so I wouldn't worry about that.

Ofsted have just taken over the inspecting of our boarding facilities. Previously done CSCI.

Xenia I am not going to rise to your sterotypical attitude.

Suffice to say the mother in question is a well respected solicitor AND a single mother.

Then why does she want a Muslim girls' school? They're hardly top of the league tables and that Saudi school in London has had such a bad press (although I think it's mixed) with text books villifying the jews etc.

What are the schools' GCSE results like? Do the kids sit GCSE? I don't think that being top of the league tables is important, but having at least 50% of the girls getting 5 good GCSEs is.

Passing an OFSTED inspection is about ticking boxes and fitting a certain criteria. Private schools are different by their nature.

I doult that the OFSTED inspectors were racists, but there is a probably an element of truth that they did not understand the particular school. Does the report say whether the OFSTED inspectors were Muslim?

I know someone who went to a private Muslim girls school and she tells me it was hell. Mainly because of a completely inappriopate facilities. For example the particular school had nowhere for the children to play and was very cramped. There was no practical science.

I go to a church which had a private school attached, one which achieves a barely satisfactory OFSTED report. The parents who choose this school (many of whom I am friends with) are fully aware of its shortcomings especially academically.

In one sense if you have personally known your dc's teacher for 10 years or more through church then the fact that their CRB hasn't come through isn't going to be such a concern: - the chances are you know plenty more stuff than would ever crop up on a CRB.

Now I would never and have never send my own children there (a point of controversy as we are on the leadership team of the church). However if I were to send my children to another private Christian school which has a better OFSTED ~(and there is one less than half a mile away) then I would be seen as deliberately snubbing my friends (including teachers at my church school). So if this particular school is attached to her mosque I would similarly assume that it would be a fairly major statement for her to choose a different school of a similar nature, especially if her faith, and her involvement in her mosque community, is an important part of her life.

I'm assuming you're talking about W? I know you shouldn't judge a school solely on its ofsted report, but it was damning.
I know a young lady who went there from Y7- was very bright, all level 5s at KS2.
She left with just 2 GCSEs- Urdu and Art. She also had mild CP and the school did not really do as much as it could have to meet her needs.
In a mainstream school she would have really done well. Its not as if there aren't enough single-sex schools around here either is it? [grr]

Has your friend considered A-F or A-H? There is also B, though that is the other side of the city.

CaptanNancy who are you? If you have cat drop me an email. Your knowledge of Birmingham schools seems to be enormous - do you work for LEA or something? It would be interesting to discuss a couple of issues with you offline. You seem omniscient so you most likely know exactly who I am and what I do already LOL. We've done as much as we can to help W locally but to be honest its a bit of an uphill struggle and this ofsted is a massive setback.

yes I do mean W. My friend is unfortunately set on the idea. I've tried to encourage her to consider others but she just won't think about them.

I know of the school and have read its ofsted. Although not a Muslim I do understand why parents would want a religious education , until we were going to move were going to send dd to a local religious independent school that had issues that we were willing to overlook because it upheld the religious ethos and beliefs we wanted for dd. But I would not touch this school particularly as its ofsted says the majority of pupils are not happy and there seems to be very little organisation, planning or educational thought to the lessons the girls are recieving.

But if your friend won't listen there is little you can do beyond suggesting other alternatives.

From what I can see none of the OFSTED reports for Islamic schools in Birmingham are great, any are unsatisfactroy and can scrape a satisfactory at a push, so I can understand why your friend thinks OFSTED does not understand these schools. A lack of careers education for girls is picked up in more than one school.

but it will grind out good results

Thanks everyone. Well she phoned me yesterday and said she'd changed her mind and was looking at one of the other islamic shools. Appears she didn't believe the ofsted could be so bad and thought I was exagerating but she's now got round to reading it and talking to some of the girls there.

Phew.

PS Babs10000 what do you mean by your comment, unfortuantely this school does not grind out good results in terms of gcse's at least

sorry had a name change there and forgot to change back