Cultural Capital

What is Cultural Capital?

Cultural capital is the accumulation of knowledge, behaviours, and skills that a child can draw upon to demonstrate their cultural awareness, knowledge and competence; it is one of the key ingredients a pupil will draw upon to be successful in society, their career and the world of work.

Cultural capital gives power. It helps children achieve goals, become successful, and rise up the social ladder without necessarily having wealth or financial capital. Cultural capital is having assets that give children the desire to aspire and achieve social mobility whatever their starting point.

Examples of Cultural Capital at St James:

Find more images of St James’ Cultural Capital at our Instagram handle - @st-jamesschool. 

What does it look like at St James?

At St James, our curriculum is designed to be creative and to build upon what children already know. We believe that exposure, not only to culture, but also to situations in which the children might not have previous experiences, is of paramount importance to their ongoing success. Our curriculum is deliberately planned to instil high aspirations for all children and to encourage them to become resilient, life-long learners, who embrace challenges and continue to grow and develop their cultural capital. We understand the importance of celebrating the culture and heritage of our own pupils and families, ensuring they feel valued within our school community. We continue to improve and adapt our learning and experiences to ensure all children benefit and increase their cultural capital.