When we started, Skills Builder was embedded into our weekly Form Time Programme, with one session per week, in each year group focusing on an essential skill, we then developed this to ensure the skills were linked to a specific career which each subject area prepared to ensure subject specific expertise. Subject areas have embedded relevant skills into their curriculum planning to ensure students have opportunities to develop these skills across the curriculum as well as in form time. We used the hub to inform our planning and development of inhouse resources for these sessions. Every year group has planned opportunities to identify and develop the essential skills as well as reflect on their progress in each of the skills. For example, our Careers Fair enables students to discuss various careers and required skills with industry experts. Additionally, when Key Stage 4 students have their scheduled meetings with the Careers Adviser development of the essential skills is discussed and steps are planned on bespoke actions plans. We provided staff training at each of the roll out stages of Skillsbuilder - using the hub, assessing on the dashboard, development of skills careers for form time sessions and how to embed the skills across our curriculum.

We have trialled different assessment formats: using the online platform as form tutors, students then individually carried out self-assessment in relation to the different essential skills. We have moved into a practice of class teachers now assessing the group to enable the class teacher to know which stage of the appropriate essential skill to focus on developing. Students complete personal reflections on their development of essential skills and evaluation forms during form time and our annual careers fair as well as during relevant personal reflections across subject areas. Some subject areas also use the universal framework to allow students to self and peer assess relevant skills - e.g. Speaking and Listening in English, Teamwork in PSHE

Initially, we focused on raising the profile and understanding of the essential skills within Form Time and assemblies. Once understanding was established, we introduced Skills Builder into the Pastoral Programme along with targeted activities to ensure students can develop the essential skills at a bespoke level. Form time curriculum was where explicit teaching happened - using in house resources. Departments then adapted their curriculum to explicitly signpost and develop essential skills within their lessons. Our co-curricular provision also aims to develop the essential skills, e.g. gardening club - Teamwork, Problem Solving, Aiming High, Creativity.

Once Skillsbuilder was embedded into the pastoral programme and co-curricular programme, e.g. our Careers Fair we then rolled the skills out to each of the subject areas. We initially trialled specific and targeted development of relevant skills in English, Maths, French and RE to establish any potential challenges before being rolled out across the school. The overwhelming feedback from this trial was how easy it was to embed skillsbuilder into each subject. This ensured the roll out to the rest of the school was met with positivity. As a result, each subject area has mapped the skills that are relevant in their subject on their schemes of learning so that teachers incorporate them into their lessons and resources. Staff fed back that Leadership was the one skill that they struggled to embed in their subject areas therefore Student Council was used to initially drive the development of student leadership, before rolling it out to our wider student leadership structure: Sports Leaders, Prefects, Peer Mentors, Reading Buddies and Well-being Ambassadors. As students became more confident in their understanding of the skills, they were able to develop this skill within their subject areas also - e.g. as part of the Year 8 RE curriculum students need to organise charitable events which require creativity, problem solving and leadership from each of the classes.

Every year group has planned opportunities to identify and develop the essential skills. For example, our Careers Fair and Post-16 events have enabled students to discuss how the essential skills are used within the workplace. Project-based learning - e.g. First Give charity unit of work in Yr 8 RE, our co-curricular days in the summer term We have also restarted Work Experience with our Year 10s during our Skillsbuilder journey to enable meaningful employer encounters and workplace visits. For this programme we used Change in Education to ensure their reflections were linked to the essential skill and to provide students with the opportunity to see how the essential skills are used in wider life.