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Ryhope School is a primary setting catering for 159 pupils across Years 3 to 6, with a staff team of 15 educators and support personnel. The school worked to embed the Skills Builder Universal Framework 2.0 to establish a consistent language for essential skills across the entire setting, with the goal of maintaining its Gold Award status. With an emphasis on integrating these core competencies into all areas of school life, leaders planned to engage all 159 pupils in regular, planned skill-building opportunities. A key focus for the school was pairing essential skills with their overall school priority around oracy, starting with the communication skills of Speaking and Listening.
Overall impact
Embedding the Skills Builder Universal Framework 2.0 elevated essential skills across the whole school culture. Pupils regularly used the framework's language during lessons, enrichment activities, and extra-curricular clubs. Visual cues across all learning environments, alongside weekly recognition in "shine" assemblies, reinforced pupil engagement. Engagement with external partners, governors, and local community members, such as the local MP and community police, helped highlight the real-world importance of these skills to pupils, parents, and the broader school community. Pupils confidence in recognising and practising the essential skills has grown hugely and this is evident in they way they communicate with visitors by using the essential skills language.
Keep it simple
The school ensured essential skills were a visible, daily fixture throughout the learning environment. Classrooms and communal spaces, including the main hall and a dedicated careers board were updated with UF2.0 icons and posters, while presentation slides directly featured the framework icons. Staff consistently provided verbal praise and documented progress in floor books using essential skills terminology. To celebrate effort, the school introduced a "Skills Builder reward of the week" certificate and featured essential skills prominently in weekly "shine" assemblies attended by families. Monthly parent newsletters and ongoing governor engagement ensured the profile of essential skills remained high across all stakeholders.
Start early, keep going
All 159 pupils in Years 3 to 6 were fully absorbed into the Skills Builder programme, receiving regular and planned opportunities to build their skills. Every Friday afternoon, dedicated sessions and activities were explicitly linked to essential skills. Skill focus rotations were highlighted during weekly assemblies to allow time for development and reflection. To support long-term progression, strategy leaders regularly reviewed skill pairings across each half-term to maintain continuous coverage.
Measure it
Staff utilised the Skills Builder Hub to complete baseline assessments for all pupils, establishing a clear starting point for tracking progress. Assessment records were updated systematically, particularly following dedicated events such as the Chocolate Challenge Day. Teachers conducted both pre- and post-delivery assessments to evaluate pupil progress across individual skill steps. Additionally, class assessments were integrated into broader subject lessons where applicable, while student "skills builder crews" engaged in 'best fit' group assessment discussions.
Focus tightly
Direct skill instruction was integrated into the timetable every fortnight on Friday afternoons, combining RSE curriculum delivery with dedicated Skills Builder lessons pitched at specific skill steps. Staff utilised lesson resources from the Hub alongside diagnostic tools to deliver targeted instruction. Floor books were used to capture these dual-focus sessions, allowing pupils to explicitly reflect on their skill growth. Direct teaching was further supported through drop-down days, careers focus time, and targeted intervention tracking designed to support pupils needing additional skill development.
Keep practising
The school embedded regular opportunities for pupils to practise essential skills across the wider curriculum and extra-curricular provision. Staff incorporated 5-minute "reflect and review" sessions at the start of afternoons to discuss skills applied in the morning and those required for upcoming lessons. Pupils recorded their skill progress half-termly in RSE floor books and utilised "learner passports" during extra-curricular activities. Ambassador groups (such as Science Ambassadors and Lego League), pupil leadership teams, school council meetings, Black History Month poem presentations, and sports commentaries provided frequent opportunities for applied practice. Extra-curricular staff explicitly reinforced skills before and after activities including football match commentaries, science club, and healthy mind groups.
Bring it to life
Essential skills were brought to life through hands-on challenge days, educational visits, and external community links. The school delivered the "Crime Scene" and "Chocolate" Challenge Days, alongside dedicated careers drop-down days focusing on careers in mathematics and publishing. Pupils engaged with a wide range of external visitors, including authors, community police, Keep Active Sunderland representatives, and local business partners who were provided with essential skills language guides to align their interactions with the framework. Additionally, pupils developed practical skills through residential trips to Derwent Hill, forestry sessions, School Parliament projects, an enterprise initiative with the local Chamber of Trade, and an apprenticeship project with local businesses.
What's next
In the upcoming academic year, Ryhope School plans to continue embedding the Universal Framework 2.0 across all areas of the curriculum to further consolidate skill development. The school aims to expand its enterprise initiatives to support fundraising for future large-scale challenge days, such as the 'Game On' project. Furthermore, leaders intend to fully roll out the digital "learner passport" system to help Year 6 pupils track and evidence their skill step progression in preparation for their transition to secondary school.
