Skills Curriculum

As well as the traditional curriculum, at YDA we encourage all pupils to develop a range of skills for life and to help in their academic, personal, social and work-related education.

It is a statutory requirement that we develop the literacy, numeracy and digital competence of all our students and we have extensive programmes designed to support learners in developing these skills through their daily lessons as well as promoting these skills in our pastoral programmes.

We are particularly proud of the tutor reading programme which encourages and promotes good habits in reading for fun and is supported by literacy buddying which sees our Year 12 students working closely with younger children to support their reading skills. Our literacy programme is supplemented by reading challenges and events to support World Book Day!

Over the past few years, we have invested in an innovative skills programme called REACH, based on the gold standard principles of Project Based Learning, and encompassing life skills, challenges and additional qualifications, REACH provides all students with a wider programme of learning.

Digital competence and numeracy are developed as applied skills in lessons and put into practice through independent projects such as forms part of the Advanced Skills Baccalaureate.