Report suggests increase in children at unregistered Jewish schools

An increasing number of children in Charedi ('ultra orthodox') Jewish communities are being sent to unregistered faith 'schools', a new report suggests.

A study into the enrolment of children from Jewish communities at Jewish faith schools has said that, for the first time since 1995, the number of children attending registered Jewish schools decreased in 2023/24.

The report, published this month by the Jewish Policy Research Institute (JPR), said this decline "should be understood as a reduction of the number of pupils recorded in registered, Strictly Orthodox schools". It suggests these children may instead be attending unregistered schools.

Unregistered schools deliberately avoid regulation to teach children a restricted, narrow curriculum, frequently in unsafe settings. Many operate in some insular religious communities which want to restrict children's knowledge of broader society and secular subjects. It is illegal to operate an unregistered school.

Report: Figures draw attention to "persistent" phenomenon of unregistered schools

The study found 471 fewer pupils identified as Jewish were attending one of the 136 registered Jewish schools in 2023/24. This represents a decline of 1.3% on the previous year; the first fall in numbers "after decades of growth".

JPR said the decrease is "not the result of demographic decline" because the number of children in Charedi communities has continued to grow, and there is "no evidence of a shift in parental preference away from Strictly Orthodox education".

The report estimates that a quarter of children aged 11-15 in Charedi communities are not in registered schools, representing nearly 2,500 children. Among children aged 16-18, this rises to 85%, or nearly 4,200. In total, around 6,650 children in Charedi communities are not attending registered schools.

JPR said the drop in pupils at registered Charedi schools "draws attention to a persistent and more substantial phenomenon", which is that many children in these communities attend unregistered schools.

Unregistered Charedi faith schools routinely offer little to no education outside study of Jewish religious texts. Many children in unregistered Charedi schools are taught only in Yiddish and are left unable to speak, read or write in English. Acts of physical abuse through the use of corporal punishment have also been documented at some of these schools.

JPR said the decrease in pupil numbers at registered Charedi schools in 2023/4 was "largely due to a small number of pupil restriction orders" issued to Charedi faith schools in London.

The Department for Education (DfE) can restrict an independent school from admitting new pupils if it fails to meet school standards.

Since 2023, 16 independent Jewish faith schools have been issued warning notices from the DfE after failing Ofsted inspections. Even registered Charedi faith schools frequently fail to teach anything in the curriculum which may contradict their religious doctrine.

JPR notes the Government's Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which would introduce mandatory registration for all children not in school and new powers to tackle unregistered schools, would "likely have an effect on the reported number of children in Strictly Orthodox educational settings".

The bill has faced protest from some leaders in the Charedi community, who say it is "specifically designed to hinder religious practice".

The bill is widely supported by children's rights campaigners, including the National Secular Society and Jewish groups such as Nahamu and GesherEU.

NSS: Findings underline "urgent need" for mandatory register of children not in school

Megan Manson, head of campaigns at the NSS, said: "We should all be alarmed that, despite the rising awareness of the problem of unregistered schools in Charedi communities, the number of pupils languishing in such settings appears to be growing.

"JPR's findings underline the urgent need for the measures in the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill to tackle unregistered schools, including mandatory registration of all children not attending a school.

"Unregistered schools are a serious threat to children's education and wellbeing. Every child, regardless of their religious or cultural background, should receive a well-rounded, adequate education in a safe environment. That is a basic human right."