Following its recent inspection, Ofsted has awarded Side by Side - an inclusive nursery and special needs school in Stamford Hill - a “Good” rating. In the report many of its features, including Behaviour and Attitudes, Personal Development, Leadership and Management and Early Years Provision were regarded as “Outstanding.”

Ofsted’s report is glowing in its praise for the school, describing how Side by Side “gives children and pupils the highest quality of care and support” and its “provision for pupils’ personal development is excellent.” It mentions how staff are “dedicated to pupil’s well-being” and “understand each pupil’s different challenges to learning and celebrate their unique achievements”, while referencing that the school “changes pupils’ lives for the better.”

Since its founding, Side by Side has sought to give every student a place to feel at home, catering to the specific educational needs of each child. The recent Ofsted report notes how it achieves this through a tailored, “broad and ambitious” curriculum, offering both Jewish and secular studies with “opportunities to promote pupils’ personal, social and emotional skills” woven through. The report also refers to the provision of high-quality care and schooling from a wide range of professional staff including learning support assistants, teachers, and therapists.

There is also recognition by Ofsted of the school’s communal atmosphere, and how “staff know pupils and their families extremely well, keeping parents and carers up to date with their children’s work and development.” The inspection body even mentioned how “parents speak highly of the school’s provision and the care their children receive.”

Ofsted’s inspection, undertaken in July 2022, was the first routine inspection of the school since the pandemic began. It also comes just a few months prior to the school’s move to a more expansive, purpose-built premises that will cater for 150 pupils and offer bespoke facilities designed to further improve the personal and individual care offered to students at Side by Side. Families in the North London Jewish community have called the building project a “dream.”

Gerald Lebrett, Headteacher of Side by Side, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have received Ofsted’s recent report which recognises all our staff’s dedication to providing the highest-quality education and support to each and every one of our pupils. Side by Side remains the only DfE registered special school offering places for 2–19-year-olds within Stamford Hill’s Jewish community, and with the community’s large growth in recent times, we are proud to continue to serve this crucial need.”