Our Curriculum

Building on over 100 hundred years of success we believe in the very highest standards and expectations to provide a rich and challenging education for each and every pupil.

Our pupils’ care is central to a successful education at Oldershaw and to support this we actively develop partnerships with parents and carers. We expect pupils, parents and carers to share our mission for Nurturing Happiness and Academic Success and to adhere to our core values of Pride, Kindness & Resilience, ultimately contributing to our vision of Excellence Together.

All achievement is celebrated and high standards are achieved with the dedication and ability of our staff. We believe that education is a partnership between home and school that aims to fulfil the ambitions of our young people.

The Oldershaw educational programme;

• aims to enable students to achieve the highest academic standards
• links academic and pastoral strands in order to realise the full potential of each individual
• is available to all students and promotes equal opportunities in order to eradicate prejudice based on gender, race, disability or any other attribute
• includes an aspirational pathway and elements of choice where possible to allow students to negotiate their own courses appropriate to their maturity, abilities and interest
• is broad, balanced and at an appropriate level, with coherent progression to the next step – A Levels, further training, apprenticeship or direct employment.
• is linked with the community and with Partner Primary Schools, local Secondary Schools and the Higher and Further Education sectors
• is under constant review in order to keep pace with the needs of students, the community and the demands of government initiatives
• is more demanding and has high expectations for example: increased opportunities to study Triple Science at GCSE
• meets all Gatsby Benchmarks

We have changed the approach to our school day from 2022/23, moving away from 6 x 50 minute lessons to 5 x 1 hour lessons across Key Stages 3-5. We believe this change allows us to devote more time developing core and specialist skills including wider and deeper opportunities for extended writing.

We are delighted to offer the ambitious Mastery Programmes for Mathematics and English at Key Stage 3 and plan to introduce it for Science. We believe that the high expectations and demands of these nationally recognised approaches will prepare students for the 2 years of KS4 study.

Each subject area is built on the principles of “one course” which starts in Year 7 and assumes study to the end of Year 13 regardless of whether students follow the specialisms to higher study. We believe that devising courses on this principle create coherence and progression.

Below is a list of courses currently running at the Academy. If you require any further information about our curriculum or facilities, please do not hesitate to contact us and we will be happy to assist you further.

There is a section of this website dedicated to the detailed Post 16 programme which is based around student choice and analysis of UCAS applications and growth areas within the local job market.

Please peruse the subjects currently on offer as part of our curriculum:

Extra-Curricular Activities

We believe that extra-curricular activities are fundamental in creating a welcoming environment in which pupils can succeed. We endeavour to offer a wide variety of clubs to ensure that every pupil has access to activities that not only interest them but also help immerse them in Oldershaw culture.

In 2022/23 we offer: