Our Curriculum: Purpose, Principles and Ambition.
Our Curriculum Intent: What We Teach and Why
At Saint Mary’s RC Primary Academy, our curriculum is designed to ensure that every child fulfils their God-given potential and develops the knowledge, skills, understanding and character needed to flourish. Rooted in our Catholic mission, United in Christ, One Family in God’s Heart, our curriculum places Christ at the centre of school life and promotes the dignity, worth and potential of every individual.
We have designed an ambitious, broad and carefully sequenced curriculum that builds progressively on pupils’ prior learning and prepares them for future education and life beyond school. We identify the essential knowledge, concepts, vocabulary and skills pupils need to acquire within each subject, ensuring that learning develops coherently over time. Through planned opportunities to revisit, consolidate and apply prior learning, we aim for pupils to retain knowledge in their long-term memory and use it confidently in new contexts.
Our curriculum reflects the needs of our diverse, multilingual community. We place particular emphasis on communication, language, vocabulary and oracy, recognising that these are fundamental to accessing the curriculum, expressing understanding and succeeding across all subjects. We establish strong foundations in reading, writing and mathematics so that pupils can access increasingly complex learning and develop the confidence to participate fully in school and society.
Our thematic approach provides meaningful opportunities to connect learning across subjects while preserving the distinct knowledge and disciplinary understanding that each subject requires. We deliberately broaden pupils’ experiences, aspirations and cultural capital, enabling them to understand their local community, appreciate the diversity of modern Britain and develop a wider understanding of the world. We want pupils to become curious, knowledgeable and reflective learners who can make connections, ask questions and apply their learning beyond the classroom.
As a Catholic school, Religious Education is central to our curriculum and the formation of the whole child. Our faith, Gospel values and Catholic Social Teaching help pupils develop an understanding of human dignity, compassion, justice, service and responsibility. Alongside this, our wider curriculum promotes physical health, emotional wellbeing, positive relationships, personal safety, resilience and respect for others. Through these experiences, pupils develop the knowledge and character to make informed choices and contribute positively to their communities.
The National Curriculum provides the foundation for our curriculum, which is enriched to reflect our pupils’ needs, experiences and aspirations. We prioritise secure subject knowledge and the progressive development of skills, ensuring that pupils are prepared for the next stage of their education and a range of future pathways. English, mathematics and computing are taught as important disciplines in their own right and applied across the curriculum where these connections strengthen learning.
Inclusion is integral to our curriculum design. We recognise that pupils may face barriers to learning arising from disadvantage, special educational needs and disabilities, language acquisition or differences in prior experience and knowledge. We therefore plan for accessibility from the outset and use appropriate adaptations, explicit teaching, scaffolding and targeted support to enable pupils to access ambitious learning. We take account of pupils’ individual needs, including relevant provision specified in education, health and care plans, while maintaining high expectations and avoiding unnecessary limitations on what pupils can learn.
Our curriculum is informed by educational research and our understanding of how pupils learn. We aim to ensure that new learning builds on secure foundations, that essential knowledge is revisited and strengthened, and that pupils develop increasing fluency, independence and confidence. Through ongoing evaluation of curriculum implementation and pupils’ learning, we seek to ensure that our curriculum remains responsive to their needs and achieves its intended purpose.
Our ultimate ambition is that every pupil leaves Saint Mary’s with secure knowledge, strong foundations in communication and core academic skills, a firm grounding in faith and values, and the confidence and capability to embrace future learning and contribute meaningfully to society.
