At St. Joseph’s, we want children to use creativity, problem solving and imagination to design and make products that solve real and relevant problems.

Design and Technology plays an important role in the personal development of the whole child, providing opportunities for creative expression, critical thinking and practical problem solving. Through Design and Technology, pupils develop confidence, resilience and independence as they learn to plan, make, evaluate and improve their ideas.

Children are given regular opportunities to apply and strengthen skills from Mathematics, Science and other curriculum areas, helping them to make meaningful connections in their learning. Design and Technology reflects the world around us, and through studying it, pupils develop a deeper understanding of our culture, society and the rapidly changing technological world.

Our Design and Technology curriculum is progressive, exploratory and inclusive, building securely on prior learning and ensuring that all pupils are supported to succeed.

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Implementation

As a school within the Bishop Hogarth Catholic Education Trust, we deliver a carefully sequenced and progressive Design and Technology curriculum devised by subject specialists with industry knowledge in the field of Design and Technology.

This ensures that:

  • Skills and knowledge are clearly mapped from Early Years to the end of Key Stage 3
  • Learning builds cumulatively across each phase
  • Clear end points for skill development are identified

Design and Technology is interwoven with other curriculum subjects, giving purpose and relevance to learning. In the Early Years, the essential building blocks of Design and Technology are established through practical, play based and exploratory activities across all areas of learning.

Our progression of skills fully covers:

  • The Statutory Framework for the Early Years
  • The National Curriculum for Key Stages 1, 2 and 3

Skills Progression Strands

The curriculum is structured around five key strands, incorporating design, making, evaluation and technical knowledge to ensure depth and progression:

  • Design Process
  • Resistant Materials
  • Food and Nutrition
  • Textiles
  • Products and Designers

Each strand:

  • Builds progressively on prior learning
  • Includes example content and practical application
  • Introduces and revisits Tier 2 and Tier 3 vocabulary, enabling pupils to articulate ideas confidently and accurately

Skills may be taught through:

  • A skills based approach
  • A topic based approach
  • Or a blended approach, ensuring alignment with the wider curriculum while maintaining subject integrity

Designers and Career Links

The study of designers and products is embedded within every Design and Technology unit.

Pupils explore the work of local, British and global designers, past and present, and learn how Design and Technology has shaped the world around them.

Each unit also includes explicit teaching of career links, helping pupils to understand how Design and Technology skills are used in real world contexts. Pupils are introduced to careers such as:

  • Product designers
  • Engineers
  • Architects
  • Textile designers
  • Chefs and food technologists
  • Furniture and industrial designers

This approach builds cultural capital, raises aspirations and helps pupils see how their learning connects to future education, training and employment opportunities.

Impact

By the time pupils leave St. Joseph’s, they will have:

  • Developed a positive attitude to learning and independent working
  • Learned to work collaboratively and productively with others
  • Gained the ability to research, ask questions and identify users’ needs
  • Become responsible designers and makers, working safely, hygienically and ethically
  • Built secure knowledge of tools, equipment and materials and how to use them effectively

Pupils leave with a strong foundation of Design and Technology knowledge and skills, confidence in their creative abilities, and the resilience needed to refine and improve their work. They are well prepared to build on this learning as they progress into Key Stage 3 and beyond.