Curriculum

Through our REACH vision the curriculum will be built on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (1943), (self-actualization / esteem / belonging / safety needs / physiological needs) which is the foundation of our relationships-based approach to address individual gaps in learning and skills.

Curriculum Intent

At The Link School, our curriculum is designed to deliver an ambitious personal and academic progress for all learners, recognising that young people in alternative provision’s require a curriculum that is flexible, responsive and rooted in individual need. In line with Ofsted’s expectations, our curriculum is shaped by a clear understanding of our core purpose as an intervention, enabling learners to re-engage with education and secure successful next steps.

A pathways-led, personalised curriculum

• Our curriculum is structured through clearly defined pathways across KS1–KS4, ensuring learners access provision that is matched to their attendance, behaviour, SEMH needs and stage of learning.
• Pathways range from core academic provision and vocational routes through to short-term intervention and one-to-one support.
• Learners are placed following baseline assessment and induction, with ongoing review enabling movement between pathways to reflect progress and changing need.
• Each pathway provides a graduated curriculum offer, ensuring that all learners are supported to re-engage and succeed.
• This approach ensures that provision is adapted to the needs of the child, as required by alternative provision guidance, while maintaining high expectations for all.

An ambitious curriculum with core skills at its heart

• The majority of curriculum time is dedicated to core subjects, ensuring learners develop the essential literacy, numeracy and communication skills required for life and access to the wider curriculum.
• Across all pathways, learners access:
• English, Maths and Science as key foundations
• A broad offer including PSHE, reading, IT, ESports, and vocational opportunities
• Opportunities to gain GCSEs, Entry Level or vocational qualifications, depending on pathway
• We maintain a clear expectation that all learners will make progress towards national standards, narrowing gaps from their starting points through a sequenced and coherent curriculum in line with Ofsted expectations.

Personalised support and accelerated progress

• The curriculum is highly personalised and adaptive, ensuring all learners are both supported and challenged
• Teaching is differentiated and responsive, enabling accelerated progress from the point of entry
• Targeted interventions address the reasons for referral, including SEMH, attendance and gaps in knowledge
• A graduated SEND approach ensures needs are identified early, with appropriate support, including EHCP processes where required
• This ensures learners make meaningful academic, behavioural and personal progress

A curriculum as intervention, focused on reintegration

Our curriculum is designed as a time-limited, purposeful intervention.

• All pathways include clear entry, review and exit points
• Provision is focused on rapid re-engagement and removal of barriers to learning
• Learners are supported to transition to mainstream, specialist provision or post-16 pathways
• Structured transition processes and reintegration pathways ensure continuity of learning and progression across all phases.

Development through enrichment and intervention

Our curriculum balances academic progress with personal development and wellbeing, ensuring learners develop the skills needed for lifelong success.

• Creative curriculum, outdoor education and enrichment underpin SMSC and British values
• Learners develop resilience, independence, and positive behaviours
• Intervention programmes, therapeutic support and community activities enhance safety, wellbeing and engagement

Preparing learners for the future

Preparation for adulthood is embedded throughout all pathways:

• Careers Information, Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) is integrated across the curriculum
• Learners develop employability skills, independence and aspiration
• KS3 and KS4 pathways include vocational learning, work-related experiences and post-16 transition planning

This ensures that all learners are supported to move into education, employment or training, reducing the risk of NEET outcomes.

Implementation

The Link School delivers its curriculum through a structured, pathways-based model which ensures provision is matched precisely to learners’ needs, starting points and readiness to learn.

Pathways structure:
Teaching is organised into progressive pathways across KS1–KS4, including core academic, vocational, short-term intervention and one-to-one provision. Learners are placed following baseline assessments and induction, with regular review enabling movement between pathways as progress is made or needs change.

Curriculum delivery:
A significant proportion of time is dedicated to core subjects (English, Maths and Science) to secure essential skills, alongside access to a broad curriculum including PSHE, reading, IT, vocational learning and enrichment. Teaching is sequenced and cumulative, enabling learners to catch up and keep up.

Adaptive teaching and intervention:
Teaching is highly adaptive, with staff using both formative and summative assessment to identify gaps and tailor learning accordingly. Targeted interventions are embedded within all pathways, including:

• literacy and numeracy programmes (e.g. phonics, reading interventions)
• SEMH and behaviour support
• therapeutic approaches (e.g. mindfulness, art therapy)
• bespoke one-to-one support and re-engagement programmes

Personal development and enrichment:
A creative curriculum, outdoor education and enrichment opportunities are integral, promoting SMSC, British values and personal development. Intervention and community-based activities support wellbeing, safety and engagement.

Careers and preparation for adulthood:
CEIAG is embedded across all pathways, ensuring learners access careers education, vocational experiences and employability skills. KS3 and KS4 learners are prepared for post-16 education, employment or training through both academic and vocational routes.

EYFS/KS1:

For those learners entering within this phase, learning is categorised into:

Learning and development: communication and language; physical development; personal, social and emotional. Plus, 4 key areas: literacy, maths, understanding of the world and expressive art and design. These are achieved through play, exploring, active learning, creativity and thinking critically.

Through a book-based curriculum, we plan learning around a range of diverse and language rich texts which is dictated by the interest of the current cohort, linking as many subjects as possible, giving learners a more meaningful, creative, context-based experience.

Key stage 2:

We offer a book-based curriculum with the aim to provide our children with a literacy-rich environment to support and encourage a love of reading and writing. We plan learning around a range of diverse and language rich texts, linking as many subjects as possible, giving learners a more exciting, meaningful, creative and context-based experience.

We personalise learning by offering bespoke interventions during our tray time work and also during a timetabled intervention slot. Tray time is also an opportunity to focus on the basic skills, including reading, spelling, comprehension, tables knowledge and recall and handwriting.

We offer a rich, varied curriculum, with a good balance of academic and skill-based learning opportunities. This helps to build confidence, self-esteem and resilience as well as academic abilities. This balance also helps to re-engage reluctant learners back into education, allowing them to discover a love of learning and an enjoyment of education.

Secondary Curriculum

Our curriculum is divided into three distinct categories which motivates and supports learners towards their learning and employment goals. These are academic achievement, preparing for working life and becoming active and responsible citizens.

Key Stage Three

We provide an exciting and aspirational personalised curriculum with a strong emphasis on improving literacy and numeracy skills, as well as helping learners understand their emotions, build confidence, self-esteem and improve their behaviour. Enrichment activities are delivered on an afternoon with the focus on improving health, well-being and fitness.

Key Stage Four

We help learners aged 14-16 to overcome their difficulties and achieve their potential by raising their aspirations, confidence and self-esteem.  We provide an exciting and relevant individualised curriculum with a strong emphasis on important academic qualifications, functional skills, life skills, vocational skills and employability. The curriculum is designed to ensure that learners are equipped for the next stage in their lives.

Staff at the Link School are highly dedicated, professional and determined to help the learners who attend the provision.

Remote Learning (Respect, Effort, Achieve, Communication, Healthy)

In the event of a school closure, the school is committed to providing continuity of education to its learners and will do so through a process of remote (online) learning. Extensive remote learning would apply particularly in a situation in which the school is closed for an extended period of time, but a high proportion of learners and teachers are healthy, and able to work as normal from home.

The primary platforms the school will use to deliver continuity of education are:

Microsoft Teams: accessed via the relevant app or desktop application, or via the following URL: https://teams.microsoft.com

Century Learning: https://www.century.tech/

This is an online learning platform for secondary learners. Century adapts personal pathways contains micro-lessons called ‘nuggets’ designed to address gaps in knowledge, provide stretch and challenge and promote long-term memory retention.

The extent to which different methods of instruction are employed is likely to be determined by the length of any school closure and the ability of both learners and teachers to participate in remote learning.

Alternative Pathways to Core GCSE (Respect, Effort, Achieve, Communication, Healthy)

We offer a range of alternative pathways, to our core GCSE offer, aimed to meet the specific learning needs of our learners, to enable them to be highly employable. This includes our learners having access to work placements, we currently work with:

• Springboard – hair and beauty, mechanics, construction, joinery, painting & decorating, small animal care.
• Sports Pathway – English and maths, NCFE Sports and Fitness/OCR Nationals
• Pinnacle Training – Construction
• Chameleon Training – provides training, qualifications and apprenticeships for people wanting to pursue a career in the automotive industry.
• Learning Curve – provides vocational courses such as: bricklaying, carpentry/joinery, painting and decorating and electrical installation and plumbing.
• Bella Marie – specialises in hair, beauty and vocational training courses
• Future Pathways

All learners in KS4 study GCSE English Language, GCSE Maths and PSHE/RSE/RE.

In addition to this, various individualised pathways are offered to support learners, these include:

Most learners also studying GCSE Literature, GCSE Combined Science, GCSE Citizenship and GCSE options / vocational qualifications. Other pathways include a combination of the subjects offered above.

Some learners have future employability ambitions and therefore engage in a vocational placement alongside their core offer.

Those learners who require additional support with their English, mathematics and science studies are also offered entry level qualifications to enhance their learning.

All the offered pathways allow access to high quality CIEAG advice and guidance, enabling all learners to ensure they have the skills, knowledge and understanding to secure moves into their next destination of further education, employment or training.

Personal Development – Learners have a weekly lesson covering personal development topics in preparation for the next stages of their learning journey. The programme focuses upon Attendance, Behaviour/Attitude and Reading.

1 to 1 Programme (Respect. Effort, Achieve, Communication, Happy & Healthy)

For those learners who are significantly vulnerable and are unable to access the curriculum offer in school. These learners are offered one to one tuition where they access GCSE English Language, GCSE Maths and PSHE/RSE/RE. The aim is to re-engage them in learning and allow them to return to a more mainstream educational provision.