Curriculum Overview

Context of the school

The Downs School & Sixth Form has a higher percentage of student attendance than national figures, with an even distribution of boys and girls. Fewer students at The Downs become NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) than nationally.  The percentage of students with SEN, and/or accessing an Individual Healthcare Plan (IHCP) are lower than national figures.  There are significantly fewer students with English as an Additional Language (EAL) or eligible for Pupil Premium (PP) funding/Free School Meals (FSM) when compared to national data. 

The Downs has excellent student outcomes.  The school is significantly above national average and had the highest progress and attainment in the county at both GCSE and A Level.  The school's 2022-23 Progress 8 figure of 0.78 was inside the Top 250 schools nationally for progress. 

Geographically, the school is set in a rural location with farming communities surrounding it.  It has a high number of feeder primary schools which can dilute effective transition work.  Students come from a variety of backgrounds, with a diverse range of prior experiences.

  Our curriculum has been adapted to address these contextual factors in the following ways:

• A comprehensive Personal Development Programme (PDP) to take account of existing and emerging challenges and bring students' focus to our core values of Resilience, Equality and Responsibility
• Daily tutor programme with weekly assemblies that incorporate British Values, spritual, moral, social and cultural development and our 'Thought for the Week' through which we are able to recognise and celebrate diversity
• Ensure our Ambition for all with a broad and balanced subject specific curriculum to better meet the needs of high prior attaining students and those eligible for pupil premium 
• Additional Year 7 lessons to support transition work and boost students’ confidence and love of reading 
• Cross-federation/Key Stage phase collaboration to plan for and improve Y6 transition
• The introduction of timetabled enrichment activities for students to boost students’ social and emotional development (particularly aimed at students with possibly limited access to such opportunities – for example those eligible for Pupil Premium)
• We have undertaken a comprehensive review of our Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance in the context of T Levels and the defunding of vocational qualifications such as BTECs, to ensure no NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) students

Curriculum Intent and Principles

Our curriculum is designed to align with our vision of ‘Educating today’s students for the world of tomorrow’ and our values of Courage, Responsibility, Equality, Ambition, Resilience, Creativity and Integrity (CREARCI), enabling our students to know more, remember more, and be able to do more. 

We promote equality of access and achievement for all, via a rich and diverse programme of study that allows students to become confident, well-rounded and creative citizens who are ambitious for their future selves.  They are resilient - able to bounce back from mistakes they make, meeting future challenges in education, training, and life with courage.  As a result, they act with integrity and take responsibility for themselves and their future success in education, training, and life.

The following principles underpin our intent (what is to be taught – knowledge & skills):

1. We are ambitious for students and have high expectations of all students and their potential 
2. We provide a knowledge-rich curriculum that meets and extends the National Curriculum and is coherent, challenging, and equally accessible to all 
3. Our broad and balanced curriculum provides the opportunity for students with different needs to access and achieve, ensuring equity of opportunity. 
4. We carefully sequence our curriculum to ensure continuity and progression between key stages, using assessment intelligently to inform teaching and learning, and not solely as a tool for summative judgment 
5. We provide a coherent and meaningful Personal Development Programme of education (including Citizenship, Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE), Spiritual Moral,  that ensures our students become courageous young people who act with integrity
6. We recognise the importance of both taught curriculum within the school’s timetabled programme and that which takes place out of normal lesson time or the school day, such as home learning, enrichment opportunities and super-curricular study which can be utilised to foster responsibility and creativity 
7. We provide expert, impartial, and up-to-date Careers Education, Information Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) that enables our students to make responsible, well-informed decisions about their future study and career aspirations 
8. We promote equality via the fundamental British Values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, mutual respect, and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs (paying particular regard to the Equalities Act, 2010) 
9. We ensure that students build resilience and are well prepared for the increasing academic demands of terminal examinations 
10. We maintain the highest standards of communication (reading, writing, speaking and listening) and numeracy across the curriculum, so that students acquire key skills that are essential to preparing them for the world of tomorrow.

Curriculum Implementation and Principles

Our curriculum covers all aspects of the National Curriculum but also extends and enriches it.  This implementation of our curriculum is founded on a belief that our teachers are our greatest asset.  We give our staff the autonomy to teach well-planned, meaningfully sequenced lessons, that utilise strategies to extend students and maximise their progress and attainment in line with sound educational research.

The following principles underpin our approach to implementing (teaching and assessing) our curriculum intent.  We expect all teaching staff to live our "CERARCI" values and:

1. Demonstrate ambition by being highly knowledgeable in relation to subject, pedagogical and pedagogical content knowledge 
2. Routinely check for misconceptions and adapt their approach, so that teaching is responsive to need
3. Ensure students’ long-term retention and recall of subject knowledge 
4. Identify and prioritise the teaching of key and threshold concepts, embedding these within a broader schema of learning
5. Use assessment to embed and use knowledge fluently, check understanding and inform teaching
6. Set challenging work for students that supports the gradual accumulation of knowledge to enable deeper understanding and enhanced skill development
7. Identify and incorporate opportunities to develop cross-curricular learning and careers education into planned lessons
8. Identify and incorporate opportunities to develop communication skills (reading, writing, speaking and listening) into planned lessons
9. Model high standards of communication skills (reading, writing, speaking and listening)
10. Engage with high quality professional development, always seeking to further improve their teaching efficacy.

Curriculum Structure and Implementation

At Key Stage 3, all students follow a common core of learning in Years 7, 8 and 9 which includes:

• English
• Mathematics
• Science
• French
• German or Spanish
• History
• Geography
• Religious Education
• Computer Science
• Drama
• Dance
• Music
• Art
• Design Technology
• Physical Education

In addition, students study our Personal Development Programme, which covers:

• PSHE – Personal, Social, Health & Economic Education
• SMSC – Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural development
• RSHE – Relationships, Sex and Health Education
• CIEAG – Careers Information, Education, Advice and Guidance

Students select their Key Stage 4 options at the end of Year 9.  All students study Religious Education, Physical Education and our Personal Development Programme, as well as the following examined subjects:

• English Language
• English Literature
• Mathematics
• Science
• History or Geography

Students then select three additional subjects to study.  The majority of students are expected to take a modern foreign language.  More able students are also given the opportuntity to study a further subject on reduced hours to offer them even greater breadth and challenge.  They can choose from Further Maths, Statistics or Triple Science.  

The allocation of time to the various curriculum areas is subject to annual review. 

Curriculum Model 2023-24  

Two-week cycle of 50 lessons 

 

KS3

Faculty	Subject	Year 7	Year 8	Year 9
English	English	8	6	8
	Reading	2	0	0
Mathematics	Computing	2	2	2
	Mathematics	8	6	8
Science	Science	6	6	6
Humanities	Geography	2	2	3
	History	2	2	3
	RE	2	2	2
Languages	French	4	2	4
	German	0	4
	Spanish	0
Design Arts	Art	2	2	2
	Design	2	2	2
Performance Arts	Dance	1	1	1
	Drama	1	1	1
	Music	2	2	2
PE	PE	4	4	4
Enrichment		1	1	1
Personal Development Programme		1	1	1
	Total	50	50	50

 

KS4

	Subject	Year 10	Year 11
Core	English	8	8
	Mathematics	7	8
	Science	8	8
Compulsory	Physical Education	3	2
	Religious Education	2	2
	Enrichment	1	1
	PDP	1	1
Option A	Humanities  (Geo or His)	5	5
Option B	Language (Spa, Fre, Ger)	5	5
Option C	Triple Science or Open	5	5
Option D	Open	5	5
	Total	50	50

 

Year group curriculum maps for Years 7 – 9, and subject curriculum summaries for Years 7-13 are available on this website and show the coverage of subject content across each year. 

Sixth Form

In the Sixth Form there are a wide range of subjects offered at Level 3 (Applied or A Level) – please see the Sixth Form Course Guide for details.

All students in Sixth Form are offered the opportunity to undertake an Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) in Year 12.

All Sixth Form students also take part in our “Personal Development Programme" and Enrichment Offer

Organisation of Teaching Groups and Timetable

Students are taught in a variety of groupings depending on the needs of the students and the demands of the particular curriculum area; these may vary from year to year. Teachers are knowledgeable and passionate about their subjects and demonstrate an unwavering commitment to ensure success shines through at all levels both academically and vocationally.

Mixed ability teaching groups are the most common for the teaching of Years 7 and 8. Broad ability groups or sets are introduced generally higher up the school. The school week is divided into an allocation of twenty-five periods, each of one-hour duration. The timetable operates over a two-week, fifty period cycle. In addition, other aspects of the curriculum, forming part of the Personal Development Programme (including Personal Social and Health Education, Careers Information Advice and Guidance, and Relationships and Sex Education) are covered in separate lessons and programmed events. Time is also allocated for a daily act of worship, assemblies and the registration of students.

 

English

Year 7 - Mixed ability groups, two ‘progress groups’

Year 8 and 9 - Two ‘half’ year groups, mixed ability classes

Year 10 - Mixed ability classes with one ‘progress group’

Year 11 - Mixed ability classes with two ‘progress group’

 

Mathematics

Years 7 to 9 - Two ‘half’ year groups with students in mixed ability groups appropriate to future Higher or Foundation tiers (placement reviewed each year)  

Years 10 and 11 - Set in ability groups  

 

Science

Year 7 - Mixed ability groups based on form groups  

Year 8 and 9 - Two ‘half’ year groups, each of mixed ability

Year 10 - Groups of separate sciences (core plus option); all other students follow a two GCSE course and are in ability groups 

Year 11 - Groups of separate sciences; all other students follow a two GCSE course and are in ability groups.  

 

Languages

All years are taught in mixed ability groups.  

Art, Applied courses, Drama/Dance, Geography, History, Computer Science, Music, Physical Education, Religious Education, Design Technology

These subjects are taught mainly in mixed ability groups. Occasionally the teaching of these subjects is timetabled alongside another subject and the groupings may follow a different arrangement. In PE, groups are of mixed gender for KS4 activities, at KS3 they are usually single sex.

The impact of our curriculum can be seen in our outcomes at Key Stage 4 and 5 via:

https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/110102/the-downs-school/secondary

Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9 curriculum maps can be found on the individual subject pages.

Courses offered for students entering Year 10Courses offered for students entering Year 12

KS4 and KS5 subject texts and revision books

Click here for more detailed information on individual subjects, including curriculum summaries.

How well are we achieving our aims?

Look at what our students have experienced and achieved.

Click here for information on our curriculum enrichment.

Click here for news and events

Click here for examination results

Click here for information on destinations.