English is a study of the diverse voices and backgrounds that make up modern Britain. It is an exploration of the ways people use spoken and written language to communicate their ideas and beliefs and implement change in the world around them. English allows young people to see how language can be used to express feelings and emotions and how that language can build positive relationships.

Our key curriculum principle in English is to develop students’ understanding of the world around them and of the society that they live in, in order to develop well-rounded and informed global citizens.

Curriculum Aims

The study of English helps students to understand the diversity of voices and cultures that make up modern Britain, and how the written and spoken word have both been used to make those voices heard. English at The Latimer Arts College allows students the opportunity to present their own viewpoints and ideas, and have those ideas challenged by others.

English provides vital life skills that prepare students for the challenges of adult life.  Our students to develop culturally, emotionally, socially and spiritually and understand the role that literature plays in this.  They will acquire knowledge and vocabulary and will learn to speak, read and write fluently and our course aims to promote high standards of language and literacy by looking at a breadth of seminal texts from both the British literary heritage, including William Shakespeare, and from a mixture of voices who represent diverse modern Britain. 

Our students will understand through both reading and writing how language is constructed and how it is used and adapted for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences and be able to engage in debate and discussion and be taught to understand the conventions of both collaborative and individual speech, developing a habit of independent wide reading of both fiction and nonfiction both for information and for enjoyment. 

Students will learn to understand how to present and communicate their ideas and emotions and be confidently able to do this in any number of contexts using both standard English and figurative language.

Curriculum Design

The Ofsted research review series has informed our department-wide approach to reading, including the strategies that support our students who are the weakest readers.   The structure of our lessons have been influenced by the concepts discussed in Making Every Lesson Count by Andy Tharby and Shaun Allison.  The approach of Stuart Pryke to teaching Shakespeare has also influenced our curriculum design.

Our curriculum is designed to spiral across the years, with students revisiting genres of literature and language text types each year as they progress through their Latimer journey, with increasing complexity at the age or stage appropriate time. 

The English curriculum is designed to expose students to a wide breadth of increasingly challenging texts, including Shakespeare, the English literary heritage, and those that are representative of the many voices and cultures that make up modern Britain. The texts studied encompass more complex themes, ideas and language as students progress throughout the curriculum each year. At the same time, the skills used to read, infer, evaluate and write both creatively and persuasively are developed over time and become increasingly challenging as students move through their learning journey. By the end of Year 11, students will have been exposed to a range of ideas that will equip them to face the modern world, supported by a grasp of language that will help them navigate it.

Please click the link to view our English Language and Literature Curriculum Year Overview

Future Pathways and Next Steps 

Through the study of English we aim to unlock each students' potential and inspire them to achieve excellence by being the best they can be. This can lead to a wide range of future opportunities, some of which include:  

University Degrees: Communication, Creative Writing, English, Journalism, Publishing or Joint Honours studying English alongside another subject including: American Studies, Film and Media, Languages, Politics.

Apprenticeships: Junior Advertising, Chartered Manager.

Careers: Advertising, Copywriting, Editor, Journalism, Legal Secretary, Librarian, Media Researcher, Proof Reader, Social Media Manager.

Students can find out more about the subject and careers above by logging into their Unifrog account at https://www.unifrog.org/sign-in and using the Subject Library and Careers Library tools.