Ilford Jewish Primary School is a voluntary-aided co-educational school in Ilford, Essex. It was established in 1970 and currently has 288 pupils on the school roll with a pupil intake of 45 children for reception. The school implements the full National Curriculum plus one hour of Jewish Studies daily and provides opportunities for pupils to widen their horizons through a diverse programme of study mapped for progression across the school, to ensure pupils increase their self-confidence (including Enabling Enterprise initiatives for their future careers), and have an interesting cultural diversity programme with links to other schools. WIJPS promote a positive commitment to modern Orthodox Judaism and a sense of identity with Israel. Pupils develop an in-depth knowledge of their traditions, heritage and culture together with a strong sense of identification with the state of Israel. Children in our nursery participate in a wide variety of activities including painting, dressing up, sand and water play, book corner and regular story time. There is daily tefilla and Kaballat Shabbat each Friday and parents are often invited to participate in nursery activities such as Chanukah and Purim mornings. They also join in with whole school activities including culture weeks and celebrations such as Yom Ha’atzmaut. WIJPS also provide the opportunity for parents to receive wrap around care through partnership with Excel (independent pre-nursery from 0-3 years), with an average of 18 children attending each day. Both nurseries follow the guidelines for the Early Years curriculum for the relevant phase of a child’s development. A kosher meaty or vegetarian hot lunch is cooked on the adjoining premises of King Solomon High School with whom we share our site and provides a family meal service for children throughout the school and for those children from nursery that wish to stay for afternoon sessions and an additional breakfast service is offered to parents wishing to make an early start, providing a sociable environment with a wide range of snacks offered. There are also a number of lunchtime and after-school clubs on offer, including football, choir, karate, Israeli dance and basketball. Trips include an outdoor pursuit residential visit to Kingswood and weekends away to Stubbers and Skeet, as well as The Kenneth More Theatre, Docklands Museum, Bethnal Green Toy Museum and Ragged School, Verulamium – St Alban’s and British Museum, West Stowe Anglo-Saxon Village and various art, sports and computing visits.
