We have been working in partnership with Skills Builder for almost 10 years. Our main reason for implementing the programme was due to the level of NEETs (Not in Education, Employment or Training) in Islington and to ensure equal opportunities for all, including children with SEND and from disadvantaged backgrounds. Giving children opportunities to develop their skills, learn about careers, and empower them to learn through inspirational experiences was at the heart of developing our Skills Builder curriculum, ensuring all children are equipped with skills for life. A decade on, many young people in the borough are still not equipped with these skills. A high proportion of children leave the borough to go to Secondary School, exacerbating the ongoing inequality in every aspect of life - notably health, education and economic outcomes. This inequality widened as a result of the pandemic so it remains an ongoing challenge. Skills Builder is integral in equipping children with the essential skills that will give them the tools to succeed. We have fully embedded the values of Skills Builder into our school community, reflecting it in our mission statement: REACH for your Future (Respect, Enterprise, Ambition, Confidence and Happiness).
The Accelerator programme has been pivotal in getting our whole school community back to where it was before the pandemic. The framework of the essential skills has guided and supported governors, parents, carers, staff, children and some of our local businesses to move forward. The highlights have been the return to face to face Challenge Days, projects and re-engaging with businesses owners to establish that sense of community.
The essential skills are linked to curriculum plans and policies, such as our Behaviour Policy and School Development Plan. Governors are updated termly during curriculum meetings and at Full Governing Body meetings about progress and events linked to Skills Builder. All staff receive regular training to ensure high quality delivery of the framework. Parents and Carers have opportunities to learn about the framework and how they can support their child/ren during curriculum workshops. They are also invited to lead assemblies and workshops on an aspect of their career and how this links to the essential skills. Notice Boards outside the school display the skills for the wider community while inside, all classrooms display and make reference to the skills during lessons. We also communicate our Skills Builder curriculum via the school newsletter, Twitter and on Google Classroom. Each week is launched with a Thought, generated by the children, which is linked to the Skill of the Month.
Weekly Skills Builder sessions are timetabled so that children are taught the explicit skill step and opportunities to apply the skills are embedded into all subject areas as well as extra curricular activities, for example Playground Leaders where children have opportunities to develop their teamwork and leadership skills. Every year, the whole school takes part in a Challenge Day and an enterprise project, with local business links established so that projects are given a real-life context. For example, Year 1 visit and learn about local art gallery as part of curating their own Gallery and sharing it with parents and carers at the end of the project. In Year 4, children present their confectionary product to business owners of the local ice cream shop and the winning teams make and sell their ice cream in the shop. Other opportunities to apply the essential skills include learning about coding through workshops with EE as part of the Computing curriculum.
Our Subject Leader teams meet fortnightly to work on different aspects of the curriculum. Part of this work includes curriculum monitoring and ensuring that the skills are visible in their curriculum area. We ensure this is in place through curriculum walks, class displays, observing the language of Skills Builder through video recording technology and discussions with the children. All curriculum overviews highlight the Skill of the Month and Right of the Month so that they are embedded into the curriculum and planning. Curriculum workshops for parents and carers make reference to the skills so that all stakeholders in our community are using the language of the skills both in school and at home. Our Skills Builder Ambassadors in Year 4 and 5, support younger children during Challenge Days and during project work, as well as sharing their learning with visitors. This year we have shared our Skills Builder work with delegates from India, Sweden and the Czech Republic.
One of our Skills Builder curriculum strengths are our long standing partnerships with local businesses. These include working with the Little Angel Theatre, skin care company, Malin+Goetz, and our most recent partnership with Bridgeside Lodge, a residential care home. Our curriculum enables children to work with professionals in their field and to have hands-on experiences of these businesses. This takes the form of working with business owners in school and in the workplace. At the theatre, children learn about how technology is used to create a show. Working with Malin+Goetz, the children design and make a new fragrance and packaging. In Year 5, the children work with designers, architects and a visual effects team to reimagine their local area in 2050, using creative problem solving to find solutions to climate change. Finally, in Year 6, the children work with Malin & Goetz to design a new fragrance.
