CURRICULUM STATEMENT

What makes us unique?

Bottisham Village College has been central to the life of its community for over 80 years. Many families have had parents, grandparents and close relatives pass through its doors. As the college has grown, our ethos has remained consistent and our curriculum is built with our community in mind.

Our wide range of students come from a predominantly rural Cambridgeshire background and are in need of a specific, tailored curriculum: cultural capital, awareness of other cultures and an awareness of the developing area;
In our context of a growing school and a broad range of students, our curriculum must be accommodating for 10 form entry, understanding students’ starting points and supporting students to address any gaps in their learning throughout their school journey;
Given our demographic, the curriculum aims to promote fundamental British values: tolerance, resilience, respect and good citizenship, coupled with social, moral and spiritual understanding;
Our curriculum aims to develop in our students the skills needed for working in East Cambridgeshire and beyond: creativity, problem-solving and technology.

In essence, our curriculum implementation matches and supports the overall ethos of our college: Inspiring, Caring and Enriching.

Inspiring

The BVC curriculum aims to inspire students of all attainment profiles, as they follow an academic curriculum that exposes them to the rich cultural heritage of ages past whilst providing them with the skills and knowledge that they need to thrive in a modern, dynamic global society. Knowledge-rich, the curriculum will enable students to think more deeply, to develop a wide range of skills, to apply knowledge, to problem-solve, to analyse and to be self-disciplined as they reflect on their own learning. Inspired students recognise they are making progress. The careers strategy, which is embedded within our curriculum, gives students an acute awareness of the local and wider world, foster skills of enterprise and creativity and prepare them for life. The curriculum will give them the ability to engage in educated conversations and activities, so they can access a breadth of opportunities in their post-16 choices and later lives.

We recognise that inspired students become confident people and enthused students with a lifelong love of learning have greater future opportunities. We will inspire and engage with our community with our adult education programme, remaining true to our village college tradition.

Caring

Whilst we retain academic rigour, we strive for our curriculum to develop students’ potential to be truly accomplished people, instilling values of compassion, tolerance and care for others. The curriculum aims to promote fundamental British values: tolerance, resilience, respect and good citizenship, coupled with social, moral and spiritual understanding. We recognise that we must support our students to make strong choices to promote a healthy-lifestyle, in order to promote physical and mental wellbeing. Compassionate and empathetic, we want our students to add value to society. Our curriculum cares for all of our students, providing a pathway built for them as individuals and helps them to thrive as part of our healthy, happy community. Reflecting our inclusive creed, our curriculum is ambitious for all, allows access for all and supports those who most need our focus. We are clear: literacy, spoken communication and numeracy must be at the very heart of inclusion.

Enriching

The BVC curriculum aims to give students the opportunities to enhance and extend their educational experience through a wealth of extra-curricular provision, our Extended Schools Programme. Here, students can study beyond the GCSE specification, explore and be curious about new topics and develop new skills. Additionally, the proportion of excursions and trips enrich the experience for students at the college, developing their world view and resilience in a range of contexts. Trips, visits and excursions will be central to our students experience and we shall actively ensure that all of our students can partake and enjoy the benefits of them