Bradley Stoke Community School

Our Programme

 

Character Education and Enrichment Journey

We pride ourselves on the investment we make to Character Education through the wide number of opportunities we provide to enhance the journey learners make through school.

From the very first week students have with us, whether that is Reception or Year 7, we open up as many possibilities as we can; from a Residential Team-Building camps and trips to becoming Peer Mentors/ Tutor or House Captains/ Post 16 Mental Health Ambassadors to representing the school in various teams and clubs. We place a huge emphasis on Outdoor Education and every year group complete a demanding walk each year, to give them the skills and determination to complete the Duke of Edinburgh Awards in Year 10 and 12 that we now have a third of students completing. Bradley Stoke is a hub for local sport and all our PE teams are extremely successful on a local, regional and national level. We have a nationally renowned music department, whose Live Lounge events showcase the exceptional depth of musical talents across the school.

Our Enrichment and Character Education Programme is designed to ensure that all students, regardless of social background, academic ability on entry or special educational need have a coherent programme across their time with us to develop the six pillars or characteristics that our Enrichment Programme is built upon. These characteristics are the skills and traits we would like our students to leave BSCS with, as we believe these will set them apart from other students in the work place and in further education.

 

 

We have built our extracurricular enrichment, enrichment days and enrichment week around these skills, so students have the opportunities to develop them throughout their journey at BSCS

 

Extracurricular Enrichment

Enrichment is an important aspect of our extra curricular provisions at Bradley Stoke Community School. As part of the Bradley Stoke Promise, students will be offered a range of different enrichment activities and clubs to choose from. The enrichment programme is NOT compulsory this year; however we would highly encourage ALL students to engage with as many enrichment activities as they can throughout the year. Enrichment provides an opportunity to engage in exciting and challenging learning opportunities that are not always possible within a student's normal timetabled lessons. It allows students to foster independence, work collaboratively, problem solve and really practise their skills. We hope that there is an enrichment opportunity for every student at BSCS, whether it is training on the BSCS school football team, learning some conversational Spanish before the Barcelona residential in Year 10 or representing BSCS on the debate team. Enrichment clubs and activities will be offered throughout the year, students will be made aware of the termly opportunities via the tutor notices each week as well as the enrichment display outside of the dining room.

Year 10, 11 and Post 16 students are encouraged to volunteer to support and lead activities as part of their DofE or volunteering programme in Post 16.

 

Enrichment Days

These are days when the normal timetable is “collapsed” and students get the opportunity to experience trips and visits outside of BSCS. Currently, each year group have three Enrichment days per year. These visits are designed to bring the curriculum to life and allow students to experience cultural opportunities or events that they would not normal do with their family.

These days allow students to experience team building and outdoor physical education activities. We have carefully planned various types of outdoor walks, which increase in difficulty and complexity each year. Previous examples include challenging walks such as Portishead to Clevedon and independently guiding themselves across the Mendips and Quantocks, utilising map-reading skills they have been taught in their geography lessons. Students also have the opportunity to take part in outdoor education team building activities at Mojo Active where they take the lead and be part of a team; canoeing along the Wye Valley or completing the Duke of Edinburgh Award in Year 10 and Post 16.

We have also built in trips to London to visit significant museums, local religious institutions and local landmarks to teach students curiosity, tolerance and respect. These are linked to their curriculum, such as the Slave Trade, Black Civil Rights Movement and Black Lives Matter in history, or different faiths and religions in RS to help build tolerance and respect.

Ultimately, we want to make our students curious about the world around them so they become inquisitive learners.

 

Enrichment Week

We really value learning outside of the classroom, so every year we “collapse” the final week of the school year and dedicate it solely to enrichment. Enrichment week usually takes place in the last week of the school year and students will participate in two residential trips, one in Year 7 and the other in Year 9. Year 8 students and those who do not attend the residential trip are asked to choose a selection of enriching day trips that are based around building confidence and determination, e.g. climbing, white water rafting, paintballing and go karting.

 

 

Work Experience Week

Our Careers provision is some of the best in the local and regional area, with just one part of it being Work Experience. Year 10 students will take part in a week of Work Experience organised between students and local employers. Students are given a list of employers in the area who are willing to take them and develop important skills by taking responsibility to make contact and are supported in their PSHE/ careers lessons.

Year 12 students are expected to secure at least one week of work experience over their two years in Post 16. We have a dedicated and experienced Careers Advisor who is able to help students secure a placement. Students are encouraged to find work experience placements in the sector that they are thinking of exploring when they leave us. We also encourage students to find ‘weekly work experience placements’ as students find these rewarding.