Art and Design

At Bridgewater School Art, Craft and Design is taught across all age ranges at Key Stage 3 for one period a week, where all students are introduced to a range of materials under the Art & Design specification.

Key Stage 3

In Year 7 pupils learn key skills and concepts covering topics such as The Colour Theory, The Human Form’ and ‘Cultures From Around the World’. Tone and colour feature strongly in class and each pupil completes a follow-up homework each week to extend their understanding and develop their artistic knowledge of the processes learnt.

Artist references feature throughout the course and help to develop pupil’s knowledge of a range of modern and contextual artists to inspire their own interpretations. As students progress into Year 8 and then respectively into Year 9, their allocation of Art lessons remains the same at one lesson per week. The work, however, becomes more topic based. Topics covered include The Pop Art Movement, Architecture and Cubism, alongside many of the associated artists. Homework activities and extension work allow pupils to develop their own creative responses centred around a universal theme.

Art and Design at Bridgewater School

Key Stage 4 – GCSE Art & Design

At the end of Year 9, students can opt to follow a GCSE course where they are allocated five lessons over a two-week period in Year 10 and 11. Students follow the AQA specification for Art, Craft & Design and start to develop their own personal investigations centred on topical issues and subjects of interest, working to individual strengths. Students work in a range of media throughout the course and develop a range of skills such as print-making, fashion, painting and mixed media to explore a wide and diverse range of approaches.

GCSE Art is a popular subject at Bridgewater School, working within small groups and allowing for personal development and exploration throughout the course, alongside teacher specialist knowledge. The GCSE course consists of:

  • 60% coursework (component 1: the portfolio)
  • 40% examination (component 2: the externally set assignment).

At Bridgewater we continue to achieve 100% pass rate at both GCSE and A-level, with many students exceeding their predictions by up to 2 grades.

Download GCSE Art and Design Overview>

Our highly experienced teaching team is committed to bringing hidden talent and undiscovered potential out into the light.


Celebrating Year 11 GCSE results 2025

We are delighted to share the fantastic achievements of our Year 11 students in this year’s GCSE examinations. As a year group they have excelled themselves, with every student contributing

Read more

Maxwell Prize recognises holistic endeavours

We are incredibly proud to announce that our nominee for the ISA Maxwell Prize 2025, Olly, has been awarded Second Prize. The annual award recognises the achievements of Year 6

Read more

Outstanding A Level results for 2025

Bridgewater School is delighted to celebrate the exceptional achievements of our 2025 Year 13 cohort, whose dedication and commitment to their studies have been rewarded with a host of truly

Read more

Inspiring young minds at Imagine That

To round off the summer term of 2025, our youngest learners set off on an adventure to Imagine That! Science and Discovery Centre in Liverpool – a day brimming with curiosity,

Read more