Cambridge Steiner School Reviews by Parents

Here's a school in the UK that is hiding the Ofsted report (state evaluation of the school).  Read about it here:

http://ukanthroposophy.wordpress.com/2009/03/04/51/#comment-1528

Here's an example of the wording of the report:

"Many of the policies to support the welfare, health and safety of the children are not written to current requirements and a number of regulations are not met. The attendance and admission register are not kept appropriately, and there is no policy on late arrivals. Some of these issues were identified in previous inspections. Furthermore, those policies and practices that do exist are not consistently implemented. There is no system by which the implementation and effectiveness of policies are monitored, and this depends too much on individual teachers’ inclinations."

Comments from the blog:

As a parent who considered sending her children to the Cambridge Steiner School and decided against it, I can add that my own impression was that the school was disorganized, poorly run and to my mind did not provide adequately for the children’s well-being, academically or otherwise. I think the CSS website is misleading, as it prominently displays a link to an independent school inspection report (by the Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship) using terminology similar to that of Ofsted. I would advise any parent considering this school to tread carefully and look diligently at all the information available. Saying that, there is a community of parents there who seem very committed to the school’s success and it could be that in time the school can improve its profile. Comment by Snorkmaiden — February 3, 2011 @ 11:59 am

If I may add a clarification to Snorkmaiden’s comment: the latest inspection report (Nov/Dec 2010) was produced by the School Inspection Service, to whom Ofsted recently delegated inspection of Steiner schools. The only other schools inspected by the SIS are those associated with the Focus Learning Trust, a.k.a. the Exclusive Brethren religious sect. Make of that what you will.
The SIS reporting framework for Steiner schools was worked out with the help of the Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship. This might lead some to question the independence of their reporting.
If the CSS website is misleading, it is that it’s missing a clear statement on the role of Anthroposophy in the ethos of the school. However, Steiner’s “The Education of the Child” does appear on the reading list page. The SIS report also tells us that “The weekly Faculty Meeting includes study of
Steiner’s work in relation to children’s healthy development.”
I would second Snorkmaiden’s suggestion for prospective parents to look carefully at all the information available, including careful study of the books on the schools reading list.
Comment by MarkH — February 5, 2011 @ 8:03 pm

Just pulled my little one out of CSS due to the staff’s ongoing mistreatment of bullish behaviour in the playground. I wish I checked things more seriously before making this mistake! I can say lots of nice things (and less nice as well) about this school, but it’s all worth nothing if a school cannot provide a healthy and safe environment to begin with!
PS. This year alone at least 3 families pulled thier children out of CSS kindergartens as a result of bullying.
Comment by Urielemil@yahoo.co.uk — May 21, 2012 @ 7:23 pm