English

The English Department

Mrs S Mulgrew – English Subject Leader
Mrs L Roden- English Lead Practitioner
Mr K Jenkins – KS3 English Leader
Miss G Davenport – KS4 English Leader
Miss L Bowater – English Teacher
Mrs N Lewis - English Teacher
Mrs L Gilbert - English Teacher
Mrs J Quoroll - Vice Principal, English Teacher
Mr J Harrison - Vice Principal, English Teacher
Mrs A Warom – Assistant Principal, English Teacher
Miss K Ironside – Assistant Principal, English Teacher
Mrs S Griffiths - Director of Sixth Form, English Teacher
Mrs E Taintey – SENDCO, English Teacher
Mr S Tallett – Assistant Principal, English Teacher

Our intent is to inspire students with the beauty and power of the English language and great literature through our ambitious and exciting curriculum. We empower our students to read proficiently and communicate their thoughts and feelings confidently. These skills underpin academic success across the curriculum.

Key Stage 3

Our KS3 curriculum is designed to foster confident and fluent reading skills so that students are able to enjoy their reading and read confidently in every subject but also, we want them to love reading and develop a life-long passion for it! We introduce them to a diverse range of challenging literary texts in order to broaden their literary horizons. Concepts such as heroism, morality are introduced through the lens of Oliver Twist and ambition and hierarchy are introduced through the study of Animal Farm . These concepts are revisited in their GCSE and A Level studies. We consider the writer’s purpose when creating characters and teach students how to select effective quotations from a text to support their analysis of character. Writing Mastery teaches students the grammar skills they need to write accurately, fluently and effectively so that they can express themselves clearly and with confidence.

Key Stage 4

Our KS4 curriculum prepares the students for GCSEs in English Language and English Literature. We have chosen texts from the exam specifications that we can teach with enthusiasm and passion. Students study works from the literary canon and will respond thoughtfully to what they read by from their knowledge of historical context and literary themes over time, from the world of Shakespeare and Dickens to more contemporary themes such as love and relationships in the poems. They develop appreciation of the craft of creative writing and the importance of planning and proof-reading. They become critical readers so that they can articulate a writer’s purpose and support their ideas with judicious reference to the text. They revisit concepts they have considered in KS3 such as ambition and morality in Macbeth.

Key Stage 5

At KS5, we teach A Level English Literature. Students deepen their understanding of the writers’ craft and become confident in voicing an independent critical opinion. They examine the genre of Tragedy and consider the downfall of the tragic hero and how the journey of the tragic protagonist affects those around him. They also study a range of texts from the crime writing genre and consider concepts such as morality and justice. They will consider the audience response to these works of literature and how this response can alter over time. They develop their understanding of how the context of production and reception can affect the writing and are able to respond thoughtfully to this.

Exam Boards

GCSE English Language - https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/gcse/english-language-8700

GCSE English Literature - https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/gcse/english-literature-8702

A Level English - https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/as-and-a-level/english-literature-b-7716-7717