In our Visual and Performing Arts and Design subjects, we aim to provide a safe space for students to be themselves where they can be as creative and as imaginative as they wish.
Students can work towards qualifications in Art, Design Technology, Music and Drama (Performing Arts), and Hospitality and Catering.
It is incredibly important that students are allowed to express themselves and to be given the chance to do so in a stimulating environment.
Art is a creative and visual subject, teaches students many transferable skills, such as problem solving, organization and planning as well as developing manual dexterity. It is also a subject that has been known to have therapeutic qualities for students to help support their overall general mental health and wellbeing. Students learn to paint, draw, work in ceramics and photography and generate ideas so to ensure a more personal approach to their work. Through the evaluation of past and present arts, they develop a critical understanding of its impact on daily life and the wider world.
Design and Technology is an inspiring, rigorous and practical subject. Using creativity and imagination, pupils design and make products that solve real and relevant problems within a variety of contexts, considering their own and others needs, wants and values. Students require a broad range of subject knowledge and draw on disciplines such as mathematics, science, engineering, computing and art.
In Music, students will be exposed to a variety of rhythmic pieces building their performance skills and knowledge of elements of music. Students will compose and perform in individual sections as well as whole group pieces. This develops students on to using imagery and regular items to remember musical notes, as well as whole class and group singing techniques.
In Drama, we aim to focus on two main points throughout our curriculum:
- The relationship between form and meaning in a piece of drama and the many ways in which drama practitioners create meaning through both acting and technical elements of theatre such as sound, lighting, staging and costume.
- The processes and procedures by which we work creatively and collaboratively to create, shape and develop ideas from stimulus to performance.
The study of Hospitality and Catering enables students to know what constitutes a healthy diet and therefore to be able to make informed choices about what they eat and cook for others. Catering skills are vital as we all need to eat; being able to prepare healthy, nutritious, and affordable meals for oneself and others is a key skill for a happy and healthy life beyond school. Being able to use knife skills and understanding temperature control are the key skills needed for successful cooking. All students, even if they do not continue with the subject beyond Key Stage 3, will be able to plan and make a simple main dish. By the end of Year 11, students will be able to plan, make and evaluate a menu. They will have the skills and knowledge to access further education and begin a career in the industry. They will also understand the main roles, workflows, and structures in hospitality, which is a multi-million-pound industry in the UK economy.
Our Teachers – Art and DT
- Miss Mazzoni – Curriculum Leader
- Mr Bahra
Our Teachers – Performing Arts
- Miss Bowen
- Mrs Siddiqui
Our Teachers – Food Technology
- Miss Brade