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Curriculum
Our whole academy curriculum vision
A personalised and ambitious curriculum that enables students to re-engage, succeed and prepare for their next steps.
Kickstart Academy provides an ambitious, inclusive and carefully personalised Key Stage 4 curriculum. Students join us with different educational experiences, starting points and future aspirations. We assess each student’s needs and create an appropriate pathway that supports academic progress, personal development and preparation for adulthood.
Our curriculum combines core academic learning, vocational qualifications, targeted intervention and wider personal development. Students are supported to address gaps in learning, develop confidence and resilience, gain meaningful qualifications and prepare for further education, employment or training.
English, mathematics, science and literacy are central to our curriculum. These are complemented by vocational, creative and practical opportunities including Digital Skills, Art and Design, Home Cooking, Hospitality and Catering, Sports Studies and the Duke of Edinburgh Award.
Students also receive planned provision through Thrive, Personal Development, Careers and Employability, and Cultural Education and British Values. Careers education is linked to the Gatsby Benchmarks. We work extensively with Future Focus to help students explore suitable pathways, complete applications and transition successfully towards positive post-16 destinations.
Our curriculum is underpinned by our expectations of Ready, Respectful and Safe. Student pathways are reviewed regularly in response to progress, engagement, attendance, identified need and intended destination. Where reintegration is appropriate, curriculum planning supports continuity with the student’s mainstream school. For longer-term placements, pathways focus on qualifications, preparation for adulthood and progression into education, employment or training.
Curriculum at a glance
Curriculum strand | Areas included |
Core learning | English, Mathematics and Science |
Literacy and intervention | Level Up Literacy and targeted English and mathematics intervention |
Vocational, practical and creative learning | Art and Design, Digital Skills, Home Cooking, Hospitality and Catering, Sports Studies and Duke of Edinburgh |
Personal development and preparation for adulthood | Thrive, Personal Development, Careers and Employability, and Cultural Education and British Values |
Reading and literacy across the curriculum
Reading, vocabulary, speaking and writing are developed across every curriculum area. Subject staff explicitly teach the language, texts and communication skills students need to succeed within their subject and beyond school. Where assessment identifies a specific literacy barrier, students receive targeted support through Level Up Literacy and wider intervention.
Assessment and pathway review
Assessment begins with students’ starting points and prior learning. Teachers use regular formative assessment, work scrutiny, practical evidence and formal assessment to identify gaps, adapt teaching and review qualification readiness. A student’s pathway is not fixed permanently on entry. It is reviewed in response to progress, engagement, attendance, emerging need and post-16 plans.
Curriculum impact and evaluation
Kickstart evaluates curriculum impact through qualification outcomes, progress from starting points, attendance, engagement, work quality, student and parent voice, destination information and subject review. Findings are used to refine curriculum planning and improve the support available to students.
