Intent

A broad, balanced, rich and meaningful curriculum is vitally important as it enables students to be effective learners, providing them with the skills and knowledge required to successfully navigate the wider world. We aim to provide every pupil with a curriculum that is varied, balanced, challenging, engaging, personalised and motivating to them as individuals.

Teaching and learning supports our vision and we believe in lifelong learning for the whole school community. We believe that learning should be enjoyable, enabling learners to thrive and develop and to lead happy, rewarding and as far as possible, independent lives. This is our aim for all students regardless of ability, gender, ethnicity, religion or culture.

Everyone in our school has the right to learn and work in a safe, calm, purposeful, stimulating and supportive learning environment. We aim to develop a challenging, creative and diverse learning ethos where all members of the community are encouraged and supported to achieve their best.

At Melland High School, we are committed to inclusion, our curriculum offer is fully differentiated to meet the needs of all students. Additionally, we aim to reflect the context of the community and city in which we are based. Our curriculum offer is ambitious and staff are supported to deliver a bespoke curriculum package, which is both creative and ambitious. We ensure that students have a range of learning opportunities to develop the knowledge and understanding needed to enable them to play an active role in their community and to acquire the skills needed for lifelong learning. All students have Education, Health and Care Plans and outcomes are integrated throughout the curriculum and via Personal Learning Intention Maps.

Multi-agency Working

We work closely with a range of different agencies including Speech and Language Therapy, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy, CAHMS, 42^nd Street and school nurse. Where appropriate, joint working ensures that goals set for individual students by other agencies can be embedded into their school curriculum.

The key drivers which underpin the curriculum at all levels are:

Literacy/Communication, Numeracy, Creative IT and Media, Skills for Life/Employability Skills and Personal Development. An annual whole school cross-curricular focus for example in communication, reading and writing ensures that our key drivers are supported and embedded across the curriculum.

Through our drive for outstanding teaching and learning we aim to foster:

enquiring minds
effective communication and social skills
confidence and high self esteem
imagination and creative expression
conscientious young people who play a part in society, tolerant and respectful of others
lifelong learners
pride in achievement and a desire to learn and succeed
aspiration and high expectations on behalf of students and staff

Our overarching goals within KS3 and KS4 are to:

Provide students with a curriculum which is exciting, creative and fosters a commitment to learning.
Enable students to achieve, develop and remember their skills, knowledge and memory to the best of their ability utilising a wide variety of strategies to deeply embed learning.

Promote high standards and achievement in communication, reading, writing, maths & creative IT & media across a creative curriculum.

Develop a knowledge of themselves and others.
Learn and work through creative approaches.
Access learning styles and environments which best support their learning, knowledge and understanding.
Promote spiritual development and the understanding of British values.
Enable students to become positive citizens who are prepared for life in modern Britain
To fulfil all the requirements of the National Curriculum and the Locally Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education.

Promote physical and mental development and an awareness of the importance of a healthy lifestyle.
Be aware of the importance of and participate in the arts.
Enable children to develop moral sensibility through carefully taught values.
To understand the importance of truth and fairness, so that they grow up committed to equal opportunities for all.

Develop the personal and social skills of every child.
Provide equality of access, opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of adult life.
Provide appropriate accreditation and careers curriculum.

Additionally, our overarching goals within 6^th Form are to:

Enable students to make choices about their learning and vocational pathways.
Focus on applied learning to better prepare students for the world of work.
Teach through enterprise projects and real work.
Provide learning opportunities that simulate the workplace.
Support the views of parents/carers, students and the LA in our shared goal for all students to access a college place, supported internship or apprenticeship leading to supported employment and potentially independent employment.

Link the curriculum closely to the context of the local community through the creation of links with local employers.

Provide a robust and challenging qualification framework to ensure that all students have a pathway that leads to employment.