The Curriculum and Assessment Review has recently published its final report and recommendations which can be found here alongside the government’s response.
This report explains that new Programmes of study will be drafted based on the recommendations and will be published in spring 2027.
No. The Government response to the Curriculum and Assessment Review states ‘we will refresh the programmes of study for each curriculum subject in line with the Review’s recommendations and publish a revised national curriculum in 2027 for first teaching in 2028.’
The Curriculum and Assessment Review Panel has recommended the following changes to the foundation subjects in primary schools:
Citizenship to become a statutory subject at Key Stages 1 and 2 (currently statutory only from Key Stage 3), covering Financial literacy, Democracy and government, Laws and rights, Climate education, and Media literacy.
Religious Education (RE) to be added to the National curriculum, subject to sector consultation and agreement.
Programmes of study for all National curriculum subjects to be refined and made more specific, clarifying progression between key stages and identifying the core concepts to be mastered at each stage.
Programmes of study across the curriculum to include reference to representation, digital literacy, and oracy.
Climate and sustainability education to be strengthened in Design and Technology, Science, Geography, and Citizenship.
Media literacy to be strengthened in English, History, Science, and Citizenship.
The new National curriculum to be published in a fully digital, online format, showing links within and between subjects.For further information about the changes, please read our blog post on the subject.
Standardised assessment in primary schools will continue to focus on English and Maths at Key Stages 1 and 2. The current arrangements — the Phonics Screening Check, optional Key Stage 1 tests, Year 4 Multiplication Tables Check, and Key Stage 2 SATs in Reading and Maths — will remain in place.
The Year 6 Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar (SPaG) test is expected to be refined to place greater emphasis on assessing pupils’ ability to apply grammar and punctuation accurately in context.
While there are no new statutory assessments planned for the foundation subjects, the government response highlights the importance of schools identifying and addressing gaps in knowledge and understanding across the wider curriculum. This aligns with the new Ofsted inspection framework and subject toolkits, which emphasise the use of formative assessment within subjects to monitor progression and ensure curriculum coherence.
Yes. The Government has said that all state schools, including academies, will be required to teach the new National curriculum from September 2028.
It has been more than a decade since the last review (2011–2013). The recent Curriculum and Assessment Review has been undertaken to ensure that the National curriculum remains cutting-edge, knowledge-rich, broad and balanced, and that it prepares young people for life and work in a rapidly changing world.
The Review also recommends that the National curriculum should be reviewed holistically around every ten years, with updates made as and when necessary to keep it relevant and evidence-based. Moving to a fully digital online curriculum will make future updates more responsive and accessible, ensuring teachers always have the most up-to-date version.
Yes. We will ensure that content is available in preparation for teaching the new National curriculum from 2028. Until then, the current National curriculum remains in place, and Kapow Primary will continue to provide full coverage across all subjects.
We will continue to ensure that our lessons clearly show links to the National curriculum, and that whole-school coverage maps are available for subject leads who need an overview across the curriculum.
For RSE and PSHE, our existing content provides full coverage of the current statutory guidance. We are also developing a new curriculum to reflect the updated statutory guidance, which is to be taught from September 2026.
This commitment ensures that your subscription will always provide comprehensive coverage of the National curriculum, allowing you to plan with confidence.
The new National curriculum will not be finalised until Spring 2027, so we will begin publishing updated content after that point. Until then, schools will continue to teach the current National curriculum, and our existing resources will continue to provide full coverage and support for all subjects.
Many of the themes highlighted in the Review, such as sustainability and climate education, fieldwork, financial literacy, representation, and citizenship, are already embedded across our curriculums. This means we do not expect significant changes in content to be required in many subjects. We will be working behind the scenes to ensure that these wider themes continue to be woven through our content and that our approach remains aligned with the direction of the new curriculum.
For some subjects, such as Science, Music, and Religious Education, there may be more substantial updates. We will keep schools informed about what is changing and why. We will adapt our resources as quickly as possible once the final curriculum is published, starting with updating our knowledge and skills progression documents, followed by our long-term plans, and then implementing the updates across individual units and lessons.
We aim to ensure schools have ample time to familiarise themselves with the updates before teaching begins in September 2028.
Yes. We will provide clear guidance on what the changes are in each subject and explain how we plan to address them. This may include:
This approach provides schools with clarity and reassurance on how Kapow Primary’s resources will continue to provide full curriculum coverage.
