The Design Technology department at Keswick School aims to prepare students to become active members of thier local community and make positive changes to their quality of life through creative thinking.  

Students will become safe and confident in working with a range of materials and tools and equipment, and they will strive to become autonomous and creative problem-solvers.

Through the study of design and technology, pupils will combine practical skills with an understanding of aesthetic, social and environmental issues, as well as industrial processes. This will enable them to identify needs and opportunities, respond through design iteration to modelling solutions and systems.

In Key Stage 3, the overarching theme for Year 7 is Nature and students will experience a range of subjects and projects. We concentrate on the design process, reinforcing the skills of annotation and iteration throughout each module.

Year 8 has a common theme of Heroes throughout all subjects and the key skills that are reinforced are specification and evaluation. We continue to embed the Year 7 skills to ensure that it becomes part of the design process.

Year 9 focuses on the skills of analysis and research under the common theme of World. This should allow all students to undertake each project having a full understanding of what is required to research, specify, design, iterate, prototype and evaluate their work building on experiences in Years 7 and 8.

In Key Stage 4 and 5 students should have a good grounding in Design Technology and the broad curriculum that is offered at Key Stage 3. They should be able to apply understanding and skills to a number of scenarios and follow the design process in depth and independently. We undertake a number of focused practical tasks to allow students to work on their non-examined assessment with confidence and autonomy.

Key Stage 3 Design & Technology

Key Stage 3 Design & Technology Curriculum Map

GCSE Design & Technology Materials

GCSE Design & Technology Materials Curriculum Map

GCSE Fashion & Textiles

GCSE Hospitality & Catering

A Level Product Design

A Level Product Design Curriculum Map

A Level Fashion & Textiles

Advice for Parents

Enrichment & Extra-curricular Opportunities