By clicking “Accept”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyse site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. View our Privacy Policy for more information.
At Brooklands Farm Primary School, we chose to embed the Skills Builder programme because it aligns closely with our ethos of Open, Grow and Believe and our commitment to developing the whole child. We believe education is about more than academic achievement; it is about equipping children with the skills, confidence and mindset to thrive in an ever-changing world. Skills Builder provides a clear framework through which pupils develop the essential skills needed for learning, relationships, future careers and life beyond school. Our curriculum is designed to weave together academic learning and personal development, helping children understand themselves as individuals and empowering them to become the difference they want to see in the world. At the heart of everything we do is our mission that children will leave Brooklands Farm knowing the difference they can be in the world. Our 5 for Curriculum weaves together Skills Builder, Mental Health and Wellbeing, Oracy, Personal Development and Cognitive Development, ensuring children become confident communicators, resilient learners, critical thinkers and thoughtful citizens. Skills Builder provides a shared language for essential skills such as teamwork, leadership and problem solving, helping children reflect on their growth, recognise their strengths and realise their potential as they prepare for future success.
Overall impact
The Skills Builder Accelerator Programme has been instrumental in helping us develop a consistent, whole-school approach to essential skills at Brooklands Farm Primary School. The programme has provided a clear framework and shared language, enabling us to embed the essential skills across our curriculum through our 5 for Curriculum approach. Rather than being an additional initiative, Skills Builder is now an integral part of daily teaching, learning and wider school life. We have made full use of the Accelerator Programme, particularly through our whole-staff Teachers Are Learners sessions. These dedicated training opportunities have allowed staff to explore the Skills Builder framework together, share best practice, develop a consistent approach to teaching and assessment, and collaboratively plan how essential skills are embedded across subjects and wider school experiences. This has ensured a shared vision and consistent implementation from Nursery to Year 6. The progression framework has enabled us to create bespoke Skills Builder passports and badge pathways, giving pupils ownership of their development while providing staff with a clear way to measure and celebrate progress. The programme has also inspired us to weave Skills Builder into Oracy Marvels, Circle Time, Challenge Days, Enterprise Projects, extra-curricular clubs, SEMH provision and wider enrichment opportunities. The ongoing support, resources and professional development have given staff the confidence to innovate while maintaining consistency, helping us realise our mission that every child leaves Brooklands Farm knowing the difference they can be in the world.
Keep it simple
Essential skills are interwoven into our curriculum intent through our 5 for Curriculum (Skills Builder, Mental Health and Wellbeing, Oracy, Personal Development and Cognitive Development) and are visible across all aspects of school life. They are displayed in every classroom to reinforce a shared language for learning and embedded into daily routines, ensuring pupils regularly apply and develop their skills in meaningful contexts. Oracy is a key focus, supported through Oracy Marvels to develop listening and speaking, alongside structured Circles that build respectful communication. Teamwork is developed through orienteering activities, while leadership is strengthened through Coach Bright and Family Dining roles, where pupils take responsibility and support others. Creativity, planning and adaptability are developed through outdoor play, including flag creating and the school conga, where pupils collaborate and respond to challenges. Skills are further embedded through Challenge Days linked to whole-school events such as Science Week, Sports Week and Culture Day, where pupils apply their learning in real and purposeful contexts. Celebration of skills is central to our culture and is shared through weekly assemblies, social media and Facebook posts, and end-of-year reports, ensuring progress is recognised and valued. Pupils also receive celebration certificates and skill badges for demonstrating essential skills, reinforcing pride and motivation.
Start early, keep going
Each year includes an enterprise project, which culminates in a showcase and a linked Challenge Day, providing meaningful opportunities for pupils at Brooklands Farm to apply their learning in authentic, real-world contexts. These experiences are enriched through our whole-school events, including Anti-Bullying Week, World Culture Day, Lantern Festival, Science Week and Sports Week, reflecting our commitment to wellbeing, inclusion, creativity and celebration of diversity across our community. During these events, pupils apply essential skills in purposeful ways, such as creating their own sports during Sports Week Challenge Days, using teamwork, speaking and listening skills to design, adapt and refine rules collaboratively. During the Lantern Festival, children demonstrate creativity, adaptability and problem solving as they design and make lanterns, refining ideas through reflection and resilience. Across all experiences, pupils are given rich opportunities to apply and strengthen essential skills in meaningful, engaging and memorable contexts that reflect life beyond the classroom.
Measure it
The impact of Skills Builder is carefully measured to ensure progression and meaningful outcomes for all pupils. We use a combination of formative and summative assessment to track the development of essential skills over time. A key feature is our bespoke Skills Builder passports for every child, which track progression step-by-step and provide a personalised record of development. Children take ownership by evidencing their own passports and presenting their progress to a Skills Builder panel, giving them an authentic audience and developing confidence in reflection and communication. Once a skill is achieved, pupils are awarded a Skills Builder badge, proudly displayed on their learning lanyard, providing visible recognition and celebrating success. Teachers assess skills through observation, dialogue and pupil reflection, supported by sentence stems to help children articulate their learning. Impact is also demonstrated through Enterprise Projects, Challenge Days and whole-school events, where pupils apply skills in real contexts, with evidence gathered through work, presentations, photographs and feedback. Progress is shared with parents through reports, assemblies, social media and celebration certificates, ensuring skills development is visible, valued and understood across the school community. The skillsbuilder panel is another way in which children can earn their badges; by presenting to a team of skillsbuilder leaders who provde constructive feedback.
Focus tightly
Skills Builder is embedded throughout daily practice, ensuring essential skills are explicitly taught, modelled and applied across the curriculum. Oracy Marvels lessons take place weekly, providing structured opportunities for pupils to develop listening, speaking and communication skills. Staff development is supported through Skills Builder training days, ensuring a consistent understanding of progression, language and expectations. From Nursery to Year 6, pupils take part in regular Challenge Days, applying skills in meaningful, real-world contexts and building independence over time. Daily Circle Time questions are tailored to each year group, with a weekly focus on different essential skills. Within Circles, Star Listeners are identified to model excellent listening behaviours, demonstrating physical signs of active listening such as eye contact, still bodies and thoughtful responses. Our SEMH out of provision programme further supports pupils who require additional provision, ensuring essential skills are developed through structured, relational and personalised approaches. Together, these elements ensure Skills Builder is not an additional programme, but a fully embedded part of teaching, learning and wider school life at Brooklands Farm.
Keep practising
Every extra-curricular club is strategically planned to support the development of the essential Skills Builder skills. Each club is linked to specific Skills Builder badges, ensuring pupils have clear opportunities to develop and demonstrate targeted skills. Our external providers work closely with the school to ensure children are given meaningful opportunities to achieve these badges through their participation in clubs. For example, PE and sports clubs provide opportunities to develop teamwork and leadership, while art clubs support creativity and adapting, encouraging pupils to experiment with ideas, respond to challenges and refine their work. Evidence gathered through club participation can contribute to pupils’ bespoke Skills Builder passports and badge achievements. By aligning our extra-curricular provision with Skills Builder, we ensure that essential skills development extends beyond the classroom and remains a consistent feature of every child's experience at Brooklands Farm.
Bring it to life
Pupils are provided with a range of wider opportunities that support the development of essential skills beyond the classroom. Through the CoachBright programme, pupils develop confidence, resilience, communication and leadership skills while working with trained mentors and role models. Regular athlete visits inspire children to set ambitious goals and demonstrate the importance of perseverance, teamwork and self-belief in achieving success. Orienteering activities provide opportunities for pupils to develop teamwork, problem solving, leadership and adaptability as they navigate challenges and make decisions collaboratively. Residential experiences further strengthen independence, resilience and teamwork, encouraging children to step outside their comfort zones and apply their skills in unfamiliar situations. Together, these experiences enable pupils to practise and strengthen essential skills in authentic contexts, supporting our mission that every child leaves Brooklands Farm knowing the difference they can be in the world.
What's next
Looking ahead, we want to build on the strong foundations already established by ensuring essential skills become even more visible in every aspect of school life. Our next step is to embed Skills Builder more explicitly within core lessons, making stronger links between the essential skills and learning in English, mathematics and the wider curriculum so that pupils recognise how these skills support academic success as well as life beyond the classroom.
We also plan to increase opportunities for pupils to apply their skills in authentic situations through new community partnerships, careers experiences and pupil-led projects that have a real impact beyond the classroom. Alongside this, we will continue to develop our pupil leadership model, enabling children to mentor younger pupils, lead school initiatives and take greater ownership of evidencing their Skills Builder passports and reflecting on their progress.
