| Sinai Jewish Primary School | |
| Native Name: | Sinai School |
| Coordinates: | 51.5795°N -0.2821°W |
| Type: | Voluntary aided school |
| Religious Affiliation: | Jewish |
| Head Label: | Headteacher |
| Head: | Juliette Lipshaw |
| R Head Label: | Director of Jewish Studies |
| R Head: | Rabbi Nicky Goldmeier |
| Chair Label: | Chairman of Governors |
| Chair: | Darren Simons |
| Address: | Shakespeare Drive |
| City: | Kenton |
| County: | Brent |
| Country: | England |
| Local Authority: | London Borough of Brent |
| Urn: | 101549 |
| Staff: | 154 |
| Capacity: | 690 |
| Gender: | Mixed |
| Lower Age: | 3 |
| Upper Age: | 11 |
| Website: | www.sinaischool.com |
Sinai Jewish Primary School is a large three form entry voluntary aided modern orthodox Jewish primary school, under the auspices of the United Synagogue and is situated in Kenton in the London Borough of Brent. It is a co-educational primary school for up to 690 children aged 3–11. The school includes a nursery. It is the largest Jewish primary school in Europe.[1] In addition to the name Michael Sobell Sinai School, the school is widely known and colloquially referred to as Sinai School.
The Michael Sobell Sinai School began as the Bayswater Jewish School at 1 Westbourne Park Villas, St James's Terrace, Harrow Road, founded by members of the Bayswater Synagogue in 1866. It moved to a new building in Harrow Road in 1879, and by 1903 it educated 419 pupils.
In 1902, 222 of its pupils took part in the Paddington Children's Coronation Procession. In 1930, the school moved to Lancaster Road and changed its name to Kensington Bayswater Jewish School, which later became Solomon Wolfson. The new Michael Sobell Sinai School (MSSS) opened in September 1981 with the pupils and staff coming from Solomon Wolfson and Yavneh schools to form the new nucleus of the school.[2] In following years new facilities were added, including a gymnasium and a purpose-built block housing the school's nursery and reception classes.
In 2005, the school was chosen for one of the first national short Ofsted inspections.
On 25 September 2008, Michael Sobell Sinai School pupils interviewed the NASA astronaut Gregory Chamitoff through a live satellite link up while he was aboard the Space Shuttle.[3] In 2017, Robert Leach resigned as head teacher and was succeeded by Juliet Lipshaw.
In January 2015, the school was inspected by Ofsted. The school was judged as Good in all five areas. The report[4] states that this is a good school because;
The school was also commended by Sir Michael Wilshaw, head of Ofsted for its work with children from different ethnic and religious backgrounds. "Schools like Sinai Jewish Primary School in Brent, where inspectors found that pupils are “proud to be Jewish” but also “enjoy working with pupils from different ethnic and religious backgrounds”.[5]
The school was previously inspected in March 2010, and was also graded as a Good school. The inspection report states that "This is a good school. The pupils enjoy school, feel safe and make a good contribution to the community. They are polite and effectively embrace the school's ethos of welcoming new pupils and visitors to the school".[6]
This inspection of the school was carried out under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 and in March 2010. The main findings of the report stated that "The quality of Jewish education at Michael Sobell Sinai School is good overall" and in the Early Years Foundation Stage, it is outstanding. Pupils are happy and they work hard. Parents are pleased with the school as evidenced from the parents’ questionnaires which were overwhelmingly positive."[7] The report continues "Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage make outstanding progress. This is due to the outstanding quality of provision that ensures that they learn well both socially and academically in a safe and secure learning environment".[8]
Sinai continues to produce high-level test results, and the majority of students achieve above-average levels in SATs.[9] In 2013, the students earned a KS2 Average Point Score of 30.3, putting them on the higher end of all schools.[10]
In 2013, the school came seventh in the Primary League Tables in Brent for its percentage of high-achieving pupils.[11]
In 2013:
Progress Data shows that in 2013, 100% of pupils achieved expected progress in writing. This is an increase of five percentage points since 2012.[14]
The school opened its doors on its current campus, which is located alongside JFS in September 1981. The school has expanded and now has three buildings for its pupils, including a separate Early Years Foundation Stage block, a full-size gymnasium and an Upper Key Stage 2 block. The school has undergone an intensive refurbishment programme in recent years and now has a dedicated art room, IT Hub and Computing Room, film studio and a large multiuse games area.