Restart of Jewish studies inspections stalled yet again over Covid fears

The restart of inspections of Jewish education in Jewish schools has been pushed back again, to the start of the summer term, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Pikuach, the Board of Deputies body responsible for inspecting Jewish education in maintained Jewish schools, had been due to begin its Section 48 inspections in January, but said this week it was further delaying them by a term.

The announcement mirrors one by national school inspectorate Ofsted, which has said it too will be delaying the recommencement of its in-person audits for several months, as Covid-19 infections remain high.

There is a statutory requirement that Section 48 inspections take place every five years, so delaying the restart means that some Jewish schools will need to be exempted by the Department of Education.

Director of Pikuach Jeffrey Leader said: “We have shared the latest news with all the relevant schools and will be updating them with any developments.

“In the meantime, Pikuach has started the process of training inspectors on the new framework that was launched in September and will be setting up training sessions in the spring for school leaders, Jewish Studies teachers and chairpersons.”