A report found that a boy’s boarding school in Bolton had “serious and widespread failures” following the latest Ofsted inspection.

Al Jamiah Al Islamiyyah - as listed in the report as Willows Lane, Bolton – was rated as inadequate for the overall experiences and progress of children and young people, how well children and young people were helped and protected, and the effectiveness of leaders and managers.

The inspection on June 13 and 15 of this year found that children and young people were “not protected” and “their welfare” was not promoted or safeguarded.

The quality of education itself is classed as ‘requires improvement’.

During an inspection to assess the effectiveness of the service in 2017, the school was rated as ‘good’.

The latest report however found : “Children are not fully protected from the risk of harm.

“Significant and widespread concerns in respect of the safety and well-being of children were identified during this inspection.

 

The Bolton News: “There are dirty bedrooms, inadequate mattresses, and a dirty kitchen with poor food hygiene.

“This poses a risk to children’s health due to inadequate storage of food and non-compliance with a food hygiene report and actions from the environment agency visit in May 2023.

“Some damage poses a danger, such as a broken toilet and bedroom window and sharp edges where windowsills are broken.

“Many toilets and showers are out of use and in an extremely unhygienic condition.”

The report also found that the person who oversees health and safety is untrained and is not supervised or supported.

The report continued: “Untrained staff administer medication.

“There is no pharmaceutical information to advise what specific medication is for.

“For example, one staff member believed that an item of medication was for diarrhoea when in fact it was for constipation.”

Inspectors noted that one member of staff supervised up to 80 children and slept overnight in the boarding house.

The report said: “In the event of an emergency, this staffing ratio compromises the safety of children.

“During the inspection, children’s behaviour was good.

“They were polite, respectful, and considerate.”

Children told inspectors that they enjoy the social opportunities available to them in boarding, but the inspection stated that these were limited to football, cricket, pool, and board games.

The inspection found that smartphones were not allowed in either the school or the boarding accommodation and that children have access to two phones in the boarding accommodation.

The report said: “However, only one of these phones is working.

“This severely limits children’s opportunities to call home and have contact with their families, and potentially reduces their time on the phone.

“Despite these shortfalls, most children say that they enjoy staying in boarding.

“They told inspectors they enjoy being with their friends and have good relationships with the staff.

“They said that they were happy with the condition of showers and toilets, despite their poor repair and hygiene.”

A spokesperson for Al Jamiatul Islamiyah said: “The Institute was disappointed by Ofsted's report and felt that it did not reflect the many positive aspects which pupils, staff and parents recognise; nonetheless we accept inspectors' findings and have done considerable work to improve the estate and secure safeguarding processes and procedures.

“We look forward to welcoming our pupils back in September to continue their learning.”

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