Our Ethos and Values (Intent)

At Baldwins Gate CE Primary School, our curriculum is rooted in the September 2014 National Curriculum for Key Stages 1 and 2, alongside the DfE (2021) Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. Our carefully planned and ambitious curriculum, delivered through high-quality teaching, supports children in becoming well- rounded, empathetic individuals with a genuine love of learning. We provide every opportunity for pupils to let their light shine, nurturing a strong sense of moral purpose as well as respect for, and understanding of, others. In addition to meeting the statutory requirements of the National Curriculum, our curriculum is enriched through a wide range of extra-curricular activities, educational visits, and residential experiences, all designed to broaden and deepen children’s learning.

At Baldwins Gate Primary School, our vision is that every child will flourish and let their unique light shine brightly; this is at the core of everything we do. Inspired by the Christian message of 'let your light shine before others,' we encourage each child to discover their God-given talents and use them to do good in the world. 

From the moment they join us, children are welcomed into a warm and nurturing school family. We believe that by developing self-worth, empathy, and a capacity for service, they can become confident, compassionate, and responsible individuals. We want every child to thrive and reach their full potential.

Our vision is supported by the core Christian values of love, joy, and perseverance. These values guide everything we do, helping us to create a diverse and welcoming community where everyone, regardless of their faith or background, feels a sense of belonging.

Through an inspiring and diverse curriculum, we empower our children to embrace the fullness of life. We aim to equip them with the tools they need to succeed and to reach out to others, making a positive impact on their community and beyond. We are committed to helping every child flourish and shine.

Curriculum Aims:

• To provide a broad, balanced and ambitious curriculum for all pupils, which is coherently planned and carefully sequenced to support the cumulative development of knowledge and skills for future learning and employment.

• To enable pupils to build secure knowledge, develop understanding of key concepts, and acquire a range of skills that can be confidently applied in a variety of meaningful contexts.

• To support pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, enabling them to grow as thoughtful, respectful and responsible individuals.

• To actively promote fundamental British values and prepare pupils to participate positively in modern British society.

• To support pupils’ physical development, encourage healthy lifestyles, and foster responsibility for their own physical and mental wellbeing

• To promote positive attitudes to learning, resilience and a lifelong love of learning.

• To ensure equality of access to learning for all pupils, with high expectations, inclusive practice, and appropriate levels of challenge and support for every child.

• To ensure that all pupils make strong progress from their starting points and achieve the highest possible standards.

• To equip pupils with the essential knowledge and cultural capital they need to succeed in school and in later life.

• To provide an inspiring, engaging and enquiry-based curriculum that nurtures creativity, curiosity and a thirst for learning.

At our school, a broad and balanced curriculum extends beyond the taught subjects on the timetable and encompasses the whole child’s experience of school life. This includes the hidden curriculum’, such as extra-curricular opportunities, educational visits, careers- related learning, positive behaviour, respect and tolerance of others, and the promotion of good mental health and wellbeing.

Our curriculum also provides rich opportunities for the development of cultural capital, enabling pupils to gain a deeper understanding of the world around them. This includes experiences that support pupils’ social, moral, spiritual and cultural development, as well as an understanding of democracy, the rule of law and their role within society.

We recognise that a secure command of language, including a wide vocabulary and strong reading skills, is essential for pupils to access all areas of the curriculum. We are committed to ensuring that every child, regardless of background or starting point, has access to a rich, engaging and inspiring curriculum that prepares them well for life in modern society and supports future success in education and employment. 

Our curriculum design: (Implementation)

Our curriculum defines what we want our children to know and be able to do by the time they leave the school. The national curriculum is the skeleton on which we build our school curriculum.  We implement our curriculum through a subject specific approach, making meaningful links to other areas of the curriculum where appropriate. We use elements of a range of published schemes that are adapted in-house to meet the needs of our children and context.

Our curriculum will:

• provide opportunities for awe and wonder.

• ensure quality first teaching for all our learners.

• ensure the children are taught the national curriculum requirement so fulfilling their legal entitlement.

• ensure children are taught the functional skills of literacy and numeracy so they are both literate and numerate relevant to their age/ability.

• be relevant and holistic and has within it progression, continuity and challenge.

• develop skills and knowledge across all subjects.

• teach the agreed local syllabus for religious education.

• promote, through all our curriculum, a healthy lifestyle and the importance of being active.

Assessment of the curriculum

Short and medium term assessment is the responsibility of the class teacher and is in line with the assessment policy. However, teachers will use informal assessment and observation on a daily basis to determine what children can do independently and to plan the next steps for learning.

Formative assessments take many different forms and are reflected in a pupil’s books/work in the detailed marking and provision of constructive feedback (not every piece of work is marked in depth). Feedback follows the school’s policy and identifies areas for children to improve, giving focused challenges and expecting children to take ownership of their learning and respond and reflect in order to further improve. ‘Live’ marking and feedback are encouraged and recognised as good practice. Retrieval practice and high challenge/low threat quizzes demonstrate children’s learning

and identify any gaps which require addressing by teachers.

Summative assessments support teacher assessments in the core subjects and children are presented with these in a relaxed format so as to cause minimal anxiety for pupils. These are used to help prepare children through the year groups for the end of key stage testing as required by law.

Reception pupils are assessed using the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile. Pupil profiles are established for each child in Reception and assessments are made against the Foundation Stage Profile Statements.

Children’s progress and attainment in each subject will be assessed by their teacher against the end of year expectations. Pupil progress will be reported to parents at three points in the year, twice through an appointment where parents are invited to discuss their child’s progress, and in writing in the end of year report.

Impact

The impact of our school curriculum is that we develop well-rounded, confident children who achieve their personal best. The success of our curriculum can be measured in the feedback that we receive from our children, parents and our secondary schools about how well our children settle into the next stage of their formal education and continue to thrive. 

To find out more please click here to read out  Curriculum Policy.