The foundation has 3 components:

1.  An intense drawing course, exploring and challenging what drawing is and what it can do.
2. An Issues based project, which supports students in exploring alternative media, such as sculpture and film.
3. 3. A personal project using a theme decided upon by the group. Students are expected to develop the projects in personal ways and extend their projects based on an idea, issue, concept or theme which will eventually lead to a finished piece or pieces.

   The emphasis of this year is experimenting with ideas, skills and techniques to support and scaffold their assessed work in year. 13.

   Students are also supported in developing the critical and contextual skills and will complete various reading and written tasks throughout the year. Again this is to support students in developing skills to be able to complete the 1000 - 3000 word essay as part of their submission in year. 13.

Component 1: Personal Investigation

Component 1 incorporates two linked elements, Part 1: practical work and Part 2: personal study, a submission of a piece of continuous prose of a between 1000 – 3000 words.

The investigation and development for both the practical work and personal study will be shown through supporting studies.

In this component, students will have opportunities to generate practical work, ideas and research from primary, secondary and contextual sources. They will experiment with media and processes and develop and refine their ideas, presenting their outcomes.

Component 2: Externally Set Assignment

The paper consists of one broad-based thematic starting point set by the exam board.  Students will develop preparation over a period of time and sit a fifteen hour examination under controlled conditions.


Students should produce practical and critical/contextual work in one or more creative areas including painting, drawing, mixed-media, sculpture, land art, installation, printmaking, film, animation and photography.

The practical elements should be linked with some aspect of contemporary or past practice of artists, designers or craftspeople.

Students sit examinations in their A Level courses at the end of Year 13. All students will take internal end of year examinations at the end of year 12 to determine suitability to continue with the subject in Year 13. Students who do not meet the required pass grade in the Year 12 end of year examinations will not be permitted to progress into Year 13.

60% of marks come from the Personal Investigation component; 40% of marks come from the Externally Set Assignment component.  Both components are assessed at the centre and then externally moderated.