Design and Technology     Intent Statement Thirsk Community Primary School  

At Thirsk Community Primary School, our Design and Technology curriculum is grounded in our core values of ambition, compassion, and inclusion. We strive to equip all pupils with the creative confidence and technical understanding they need to become resourceful, reflective and forward-thinking designers. Through a carefully structured and engaging curriculum, underpinned by the Kapow Primary scheme, we aim to foster the essential knowledge, skills and mindsets to empower pupils as innovators of the future. 

We believe ambition means encouraging every child to see themselves as a designer and problem solver. Our curriculum provides opportunities for pupils to explore the full product design cycle—from ideation and creation through to testing and evaluation—enabling them to take calculated risks, embrace challenges and develop resilience through the iterative process of design. By tackling real-world problems with purposeful solutions, our pupils grow as critical thinkers and innovators. 

Our teaching is firmly rooted in compassion, encouraging pupils to understand the needs of users and to design with empathy. Through discussions and collaborative learning, pupils consider how design can be used to improve people’s lives, both locally and globally. This promotes an inclusive mindset, allowing pupils to respect diverse perspectives and respond sensitively to real-life contexts and communities—including those within our own Thirsk and North Yorkshire region. 

Inclusion is at the heart of our Design and Technology provision. Through accessible tasks, hands-on experiences and differentiated guidance, we ensure all pupils can participate meaningfully, regardless of ability or background. Our curriculum actively removes barriers to learning, making space for every child to succeed and feel valued as a creator. 

As part of our whole-school focus on vocabulary and oracy, pupils are explicitly taught subject-specific language and are regularly encouraged to articulate their thinking. Whether describing their processes, critiquing existing products, or presenting final outcomes, children develop confidence as articulate, reflective designers. This emphasis on talk supports our wider commitment to high-quality reading and communication across the curriculum. 

To help pupils manage the complexity of design tasks, we make use of visible learning techniques—including visual knowledge organisers, step-by-step modelling, and success criteria. These strategies reduce cognitive overload and help children organise and connect both substantive knowledge – know (Cooking and Nutrition, Mechanisms and Mechanical Systems, Electrical Systems, Digital World, Structures, Textiles + technical knowledge) and disciplinary knowledge – do (Design, Make, Evaluate).  Pupils are taught not only what to design but how to think like a designer. 

Through high-quality, sequenced units from EYFS to Year 6, children progress in their skills, creativity and technical understanding, preparing them not just to meet the National Curriculum outcomes but to thrive as ambitious, compassionate and inclusive learners—ready to shape a better future through design. 

Design and Technology Implementation  Thirsk Community Primary School 

At Thirsk Community Primary School, we implement the Design and Technology curriculum through an inclusive, ambitious and compassionate approach that empowers all learners to think critically, create with purpose, and develop a practical understanding of the world around them. Using the Kapow Primary scheme, we ensure full coverage of the National Curriculum, with clear progression across the four key strands—Design, Make, Evaluate, and Technical Knowledge.  

We bring our value of ambition to life by exposing pupils to a wide range of real-world design contexts and encouraging them to respond to design briefs that promote curiosity, creativity, and independence. Lessons are structured to enable children to apply increasingly complex knowledge and skills through hands-on, engaging experiences in each of the six key areas: Cooking and nutrition, Mechanisms, Structures, Textiles, Electrical systems, and the Digital world. Our spiral curriculum design enables pupils to revisit and refine their learning as they move through school, building confidence and mastery over time. 

Through our value of compassion, we nurture empathetic designers who consider the needs of users, communities, and the wider world. Pupils work collaboratively, learning how to listen, compromise and support each other’s thinking. Opportunities to explore themes such as healthy eating, sustainability, and local traditions—particularly those rooted in Thirsk and North Yorkshire’s agricultural and industrial heritage—allow children to connect with their community and celebrate local geography in a meaningful, purposeful way. 

Inclusion is built into every element of delivery. Differentiated support ensures all learners, including those with SEND, have access to practical experiences that are relevant and challenging.  

We prioritise vocabulary and oracy in every unit. Pupils are explicitly taught technical and subject-specific language, and lessons are structured to include regular opportunities for discussion, explanation, and evaluation Oral presentations, group discussions, and peer critique are built into the design cycle, strengthening communication skills and deepening understanding This focus directly supports our whole-school commitment to high-quality reading and language development across the curriculum.   

Our use of visible learning techniques supports children in managing complex design processes. Visual knowledge organisers, worked examples, dual coding, success criteria, and metacognitive prompts all help to reduce cognitive overload, making it easier for pupils to connect new learning with prior knowledge. 

Teachers are supported through high-quality professional development materials embedded in each Kapow unit. Video content, teacher guidance and ongoing CPD ensure that staff, regardless of their prior experience, feel confident in delivering a robust and progressive curriculum. Subject leaders also receive regular release time to monitor and evaluate their subject’s provision. This strong foundation of subject knowledge enables staff to model processes clearly and to inspire our pupils as future designers, engineers, and problem-solvers. 

By embedding our school’s values of ambition, compassion and inclusion, celebrating local context and purposeful learning, and weaving in vocabulary, visible learning strategies and reading-rich experiences, our Design and Technology curriculum prepares pupils to become thoughtful, skilled and creative contributors to an ever-changing world. 

Design and Technology     Impact Statement Thirsk Community Primary School 

At Thirsk Community Primary School, we measure the impact of our Design and Technology curriculum not only through pupils’ outcomes against the National Curriculum, but through how well our children grow as ambitious, compassionate, and inclusive learners—ready to thrive in the wider world with the confidence to innovate and the empathy to design with purpose. 

Through formative and summative assessments embedded in the Kapow Primary scheme—including lesson-based success criteria, unit quizzes, and knowledge catchers—teachers continuously monitor pupil progress. This ongoing assessment allows for responsive teaching and ensures that all children, regardless of starting point, can achieve meaningful progress and meet or exceed age-related expectations. 

Our value of ambition is reflected in how our pupils develop a deep, progressive understanding of design processes. They learn to tackle real-world problems with increasing independence and sophistication—confidently selecting, combining, and evaluating materials, tools, and digital resources. Whether designing a structure inspired by local North Yorkshire architecture or applying their understanding of mechanisms to solve a community-based challenge, our children are empowered to think big, take creative risks, and aspire to excellence. 

Compassion is embedded in our curriculum through thoughtful design challenges that ask children to consider the needs of users, communities, and the environment. Pupils reflect on how design choices can impact others, developing a social conscience alongside their practical skills. This is further supported by units that explore healthy living, sustainability, and ethical design. By studying key inventors, engineers and designers—both global and local—children develop a sense of respect and gratitude for those whose innovations shape our world. 

Inclusion underpins our assessment and teaching practices. Differentiated tasks and scaffolded materials ensure every pupil, including those with SEND or additional needs, can access and succeed in D&T lessons.  

By the time children leave Thirsk Community Primary School, they are: 

• Confident in applying a wide range of D&T skills with fluency and originality. 
• Able to reflect on and improve their own work with independence and pride. 
• Equipped with the language and literacy skills to communicate as designers. 
• Respectful of others’ needs, mindful of sustainability, and aware of their role as responsible citizens. 
• Prepared to make meaningful contributions to secondary education and to the wider world as creative problem-solvers and compassionate changemakers.