Curriculum Statement

The academy’s curriculum is underpinned by the values of aspiration and excellence whilst meeting the needs of the national curriculum. All students are entitled to a broad and balanced curriculum, centred around a traditional academic core, which provides opportunities for intellectual and personal development. The curriculum offers appropriate challenge and support and enthuses students about their learning. It provides numerous and varied opportunities for enrichment and character development and prepares students for life as competent, confident and responsible citizens. Students study most subjects offered by the academy in Year 7 and then choose their 'Options' subjects in Year 8 and begin studying these during Year 9.

In practice that means:

1. All students master the basics of literacy and numeracy in Key Stage 3
2. All students are entitled to study an academic core of English, Maths, Science, Humanities and a Modern Foreign Language
3. Vocational courses are offered where appropriate
4. Year 7 and 8 students discreet PSHE lessons each week.
5. All students have the opportunity to participate in a wide-ranging and character building Enrichment programme, which includes community service, international trips, cultural visits, guest speakers and outdoor activities

Further information about the national curriculum can be found here

Curriculum Plans - Year 7
Curriculum Plans - Year 8
Curriculum Plans - Year 9
Curriculum Plans - Year 10
Curriculum Plans - Year 11
Curriculum Plans - Year 12
Curriculum Plans - Year 13

View Knowledge Organisers here

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Key Stage Three Curriculum Assessment

Student attainment at Key Stage 3 is assessed against descriptors for ‘Steps’. Each Step describes the understanding that students must master by the end of Key Stage 3, in order to be on-track for a given grade at GCSE.   For example, if a student achieves Step 5 by the end of Key Stage 3, they will be on-track to achieve a GCSE Grade 5 at the end of Year 11.  Predicted Attainment Grades at Key Stage 3 reflect the Step that students are expected to achieve by the end of Year 8. Further guidance about our Key Stage Three Steps can be found here

Key Stage Four Curriculum Assessment

Our Key Stage Four students follow the new ‘reformed GCSEs’. The key features of reformed GCSEs are that they…

• will be more demanding and contain more challenging content
• will be ‘linear’, so students will take all of their exams at the end of the course
• will be assessed much more through exams than coursework
• will have a new grading scale from 9 to 1, instead of A* to G.

Although the old and new grades do not convert perfectly with each other, the table below will give you a rough indication of the value of the new 9 – 1 grades:

Under the old A* - G grading system, a grade C or above was considered to be a ‘good pass’.   Under the new 9 – 1 grading system, a grade 5 or above will be considered to be a ‘good pass’.

The government is taking a staggered approach to the introduction of the reformed GCSEs.    This means that students in some Year Groups will receive a mixture of 9 to 1 and A* to G grades. In summary,

• Year 11 students (sitting exams in 2018) will receive 9 – 1 grades in English, Maths and the vast majority of their other subjects.
• Year 10 students (sitting exams in 2019) will receive 9 – 1 grades in all of their subjects.

Further guidance about the subject content for each GCSE subject can be found here

Our students are taught in four groups for most subjects.  All students will study Science, Mathematics, English and English Literature at GCSE level.

Most students have selected a further 3 GCSEs or BTECs from a number of option blocks.  Students choose between the following optional subjects:

Key Stage Five Curriculum

We have redesigned our sixth form curriculum to better match what our current Y11 students were asking for, so students learning with us from September 2019 will follow an A-level based curriculum.

Click here to view the 6th form curriculum 2019/20. Most students are expected to study 3 subjects. 

A Levels Biology Maths Chemistry	5 Lessons 5 Lessons 5 Lessons
International Baccalaureate Higher Diploma Psychology History English Economics IT Design and Technology	5 Lessons 5 Lessons 5 Lessons 5 Lessons 5 Lessons 5 Lessons
IFS Finance Sport (BTEC Level 3) Art (BTEC Level 3)	5 Lessons 6 Lessons 5 Lessons

Extra Curriculum Provision

We offer a variety of enrichment activities for students to participate in during lunchtimes and afterschool. These activities have been designed to give students the opportunity to broaden their personal, social, moral, cultural and spiritual development and to undertake extra sport. Examples of activities include archery, sports clubs, art club and mindfulness.

Our Year 11 GCSE students are also asked to attend additional targeted booster sessions from Monday- Thursday.