At Whipton Barton Federation, a forward-thinking school serving the community of Whipton, our mission is simple: to empower all children to embrace learning, achieve their personal best and build their emotional, social and physical well-being.

As part of a collaborative, innovative network, we have developed an ambitious, broad and balanced curriculum. It is comprehensive and it has a clear process of learning with specific learning goals for every National Curriculum subject.

The Ted Wragg Trust’s ‘Common Primary Curriculum’ sets out clear progression and application of skills across all areas. We aim to ensure pupils are independently-minded and confident citizens of the future who will contribute positively to our society. . Our curriculum drives progress through establishing a rigorous knowledge base and a life-long love of learning. We have considered the knowledge, skills and attitudes that are required to achieve academic excellence at secondary school and beyond. Subject leaders, subject experts and teachers then collaboratively plan backwards from this point. This ensures that pupils in each year group receive a rigorous, coherent and intelligently sequenced curriculum, which builds on previous knowledge.

The curriculum at Whipton Barton Federation is grounded in the strongest available evidence (focusing in particular on research from cognitive science) about how pupils learn and retain knowledge in the long-term memory. At Whipton Barton Federation, subject leaders and teachers think about the curriculum at three levels. The first is the intended curriculum – what we intend pupils to learn. Subject leaders set out this detail meticulously, drawing on their academic knowledge, the National Curriculum and experience of what is necessary for pupils to flourish in their subject. The second level is the implemented curriculum; the resources teachers use to deliver the curriculum.

Examples of these are the knowledge organisers, bespoke work booklets, lessons or resources that have been written for each subject and year group. Finally, we emphasise the importance of the enacted curriculum, where our skilled teachers bring all of this knowledge to life in a way that will be meaningful and exciting for the pupils. Our curriculum is devised to not only ensure that the impact on children’s progress and attainment is great in all subjects but also to develop children’s cultural capital to enable children to become successful and internationally minded citizens.

Each half term, Curriculum Stars are chosen from each year group and are celebrated for excelling in the given subject. This is further complemented by enrichment opportunities (school trips, residentials and/or visitors) each half term.

We expect learning to have context, with rich learning opportunities that link to and build upon previous learning, to enable children to develop transferable knowledge and skills. We maximise learning by carefully weaving our curriculum together so that subjects, within a theme, connect wherever possible.

The curriculum makes sense - everything has a purpose. It also takes full advantage of our locality and in selecting our areas of study, we consider our local area; what it is now and historically and how our area and its surroundings have been shaped over time. 

What we want for our children: 

• To develop awe and wonder and a lifelong love of learning in a range of subjects. 
• To be curious, motivated and excited about coming to school. 
• To adopt fundamental British Values and be responsible citizens with strong moral standards and to able to contribute to society. 
• To develop a sense of their own nationality and culture at the same time as developing a profound respect for the nationalities and cultures of others, especially those throughout modern Britain. 
• To be brave: to try new things without fear of failure. 
• To collaborate: to learn with and from others. 
• To talk about their learning and to know and remember more. 
• To be resilient, resourceful, develop meaningful relationships and reflect upon their learning. 
• To see that making mistakes and taking risks is a good thing. 
• To be up for a challenge. 
• For learning to stick, so that their knowledge can be built upon and connected with previous learning. 

We are confident that the impact of our approach is that we truly offer a broad and balanced curriculum to all pupils. It offers the chance for all pupils to encounter and understand the very best that has been thought, said, sung, danced, made and played. We believe that this will inspire pupils to go on and excel in their chosen field, with the widest range of opportunities available to them.

We encourage Parents/Carers to be involved as much as possible with their children’s learning; there are regular opportunities for Parent/Carer engagement with the school through Children’s Progress Meetings, focussed workshops and numerous school events. Parents can have total confidence that the needs of every child, as they grow and develop, can be catered for throughout their years in education with us at Whipton Barton Federation.