We believe that oracy has the power to change a child’s life and create a fairer society.

We purposefully build oracy into the curriculum, teaching and learning, and wider school life. Oracy is articulating ideas, developing understanding and engaging with others through speaking, listening and communication. Oracy skills set children up for success in school and life. It is at the heart of our curriculum, and we are committed to building and embedding a culture of oracy across the school. Purposeful talk is used to drive forward learning, through talk in the classroom, which has been planned, designed, modelled, scaffolded and structured to enable all learners to develop the skills needed to talk effectively and with confidence.

The teaching of oracy, the ability to listen actively, speak clearly and communicate articulately is seen as a fundamental part of the learning process and is a vital aspect of our foundational knowledge, enabling relationships to blossom and all children to reach their full potential. Critically, oracy underpins the development of reading and writing and is key to progress in all areas of the curriculum and beyond.

Spoken Language is a crucial component of the English National Curriculum, which states: “All the skills of language are essential to participating fully as a member of society; pupils, therefore, who do not learn to speak, read and write fluently and confidently are effectively disenfranchised”.

We want every child at St Faith’s Infant and Nursery School to find their voice. Oracy develops pupils' confidence, articulacy and capacity to learn. Providing a high-quality oracy education empowers children, regardless of their background, to find their voice for success in school and in life. We believe that effective communication skills are needed for children to succeed in later life.