Intent

At Spring Bank Primary School, children are at the heart of our school, and we believe that every moment shapes their growth. We aim to equip our children to thrive as they transition to the next stage of their learning journey and to develop a resilient mindset to overcome challenges and adversity.  We help them to grow the academic skills needed for success and encourage them to be confident individuals who love learning.

Our curriculum is thoughtfully crafted to broaden children’s experiences and expand their horizons. It is designed to help all children view their unique abilities positively, understanding that everyone learns in their own way. At the heart of our curriculum are our “golden threads,” which serve as key foundations shaping our approach and guiding our teaching principles: A Sense of Belonging, Confident Communicators, and Enriching Experiences.

Our curriculum is tailored specifically to Spring Bank, embracing and celebrating the diversity of our school community. We encourage every child to embody our values of resilience, respect, collaboration, curiosity, and diligence. Through our collaboratively designed curriculum, we aim to inspire high aspirations, deepen knowledge, build essential skills, and promote global awareness.

Each term, we host a ‘theme week’ in partnership with other schools in our Trust, where we come together to plan and deliver a range of engaging, memorable learning experiences for all classes. Each theme week has a distinct, carefully chosen focus, fostering shared, enriching experiences across our community.

We encourage pupil voice across all areas of school life. We have an active school council and dedicated curriculum ambassadors who work alongside leaders to help bring meaningful improvements to our school.

Our curriculum is enriched across all subjects through educational visits, guest speakers, and other awe-inspiring experiences that offer children a broader perspective and help build their cultural capital. These opportunities are thoughtfully designed to connect with specific curriculum areas or support personal development, providing memorable experiences that deepen learning and foster growth.

Curriculum Implementation

Our curriculum is designed to be ambitious for every child, fostering a deep understanding and building on strong foundations. We aim to develop both disciplinary skills and substantive knowledge in tandem, ensuring both are explicitly taught and developed. We are committed to making the curriculum relevant and meaningful for our pupils by contextualising knowledge and reinforcing essential skills. Drawing from the National Curriculum, subject leaders ensure that coverage and progression are systematic, building on prior learning and laying the groundwork for future learning. Knowledge is consolidated across Key Stages through regular retrieval practices. The time allocated to subjects varies, with some taught daily and others on a weekly or alternate half-term basis.

We use our teaching principles to support with quality-first teaching: Creating a positive learning culture in each class; quality lesson planning and delivery; responding to the needs of the class; developing language and oracy skills and embedding knowledge into children’s long-term memory. 

Curriculum Impact

At Spring Bank Primary, our children leave with a rich foundation of knowledge and skills acquired from across the full National Curriculum. We employ a variety of monitoring methods to ensure the curriculum achieves its intended impact. These include, but are not limited to: lesson observations, pupil voice feedback, formal and informal assessments, book scrutiny, moderation with other schools in the Owlcotes Multi-Academy Trust, and comprehensive curriculum reviews.

Subject leaders play a crucial role in the success of the curriculum, regularly monitoring and evaluating their respective areas to ensure excellence. The impact of our curriculum is evident daily—not only in the quality of work produced or the knowledge retained but also in how confidently and resiliently our children approach learning and life’s challenges.

We also measure the success of our curriculum by seeing our pupils grow into well-rounded individuals who embody values such as equality, friendship and trust. At Spring Bank, our children are curious, compassionate and confident, fully prepared for the next stage of their education and for life in modern Britain.