Our curriculum

Intent

At Horizons Academy, we aim to ensure that all our learners are provided with opportunities to meet their individual needs and full potential. Our curriculum will be aspirational – we will provide a broad range of experiences and learning opportunities structured in such a way that it is bespoke and meaningful.

Our curriculum is underpinned by three core principles:

• Child-centred approach — ‘nothing about us, without us’
• Inclusion, support, and positivity
• High-quality teaching delivered in a meaningful way enabling every child to flourish

Implementation

We have the highest ambition for all learners and believe that the right curriculum taught in the right way in a supportive and nurturing environment can

• enable every child to flourish
• make the very best progress through secure knowledge, skills-acquisition and personal development
• be well-prepared for their next steps into adulthood

Our curriculum is founded on the National Curriculum and based on coherent and progressively sequenced content in all subject areas. Subjects are grouped as followed to ensure learning is meaningful:

A carefully planned curriculum for personal development weaves through and runs alongside the ‘academic’ curriculum ensuring that children develop the personal skills necessary for adulthood, learn about how to keep themselves safe and healthy in body and mind, and access wide-ranging careers and destinations information to provide inspiration and vision for the future.

Our curriculum is delivered in a meaningful way through pathways tailored to the needs of individual learners informed by EHC plans and wider pupil assessments. We adopt a range of teaching strategies and skilled teaching staff to ensure that the children are taught in a way that they learn best. We use waypoints within each curriculum area to provide learners with sequential learning, whilst acknowledging that our learners fluctuate and have a wide-span profile with regards to attainment.

Assessment is used continuously to ensure that children are moving along an appropriate pathway in the best way possible. We work closely in partnership with families to ensure that students are enabled to access appropriate qualifications. This may include GCSEs, A levels and BTEC National Diplomas.

Impact

The end goal for our learners is to prepare them to be able to access the next stage of their life with the correct knowledge and skills they require. We work closely with families and our partners to ensure that every child moves on from the school to their next placement, enabling them to live fulfilled and happy lives. This might include further education such as college, university or apprenticeship routes to employment.

We ensure that the holistic approach to our teaching and learning provides learners with a curiosity about the world and to be kind, compassionate and caring individuals.

The impact of our personalised curriculum with high aspirations will enable our learners to be happy, resilient, and independent individuals who are ready for their next steps in life. They have a voice, which is listened to, and the skills to be the very best version of themselves.