Business Studies

The aims of the Business Studies Department are to encourage students to develop an interest in and enthusiasm for the study of business and the economy. We are constantly surrounded with stories about the economy, the fallout from credit crunch, the environment and climate, oil prices, the housing market, supermarket dominance, the impact of new technologies and Brexit to name but a few!! This reminds us how important business is to all of us.

Business is one of the more varied and diverse subjects and complements all other subject combinations. A business qualification can open many doors, and even help budding entrepreneurs to find their way!

Teaching Staff

Mrs C Gillespie

Head of Department

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Mr S Moyes

Head of Year

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Mrs C McGonagle

Teacher

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Mrs A McGurk

Teacher

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Business Studies pupils on trip to local business

Business Studies pupils on trip to Progressive Building Society

Course Curriculum

KEY STAGE 4

KEY STAGE 5

Course Outline

UNIT 1: Starting a Business

Creating a business: Pupils study how a business starts up and the importance of the role of the entrepreneur.

Marketing: Pupils learn about customers’ needs and wants. They will study: methods of market research and sampling; competition that a business may face; and the marketing mix (the four Ps – Price, Product, Promotion and Place). They will also study international business and E-Business.

Business operations: They will study the types and methods of production; quality assurance models and health and safety.

UNIT 2: Developing a Business

Human resources: Pupils will learn about recruitment and selection; and developing people through training, and motivation.

Business Growth: They will study why a business succeeds or fails; and why it may grow.

Finance: They will learn about the sources of finance available to business, financial decision making models such as Cashflow and Breakeven. They will have the opportunity to use ratio analysis to interpret final accounts.

Business Plan: They will learn about the content of business plans and the reasons for developing them. They will also have the opportunity to construct and to evaluate a business plan.

UNIT 3: Planning a Business

This is a controlled assessment unit where students will engage in a research task, followed by a report writing task.

Assessment

External Exams

UNIT 1: Starting a Business, 1hr 30mins, 40% of total GCSE

UNIT 2: Developing a Business, 1hr 30mins, 40% of total GCSE

Coursework

Planning a Business

20% of total GCSE

Course Outline

AS Unit 1: Introduction to Business

Entrepreneurship, business ownership structures, key stakeholder groups, importance of quality, productivity and investment, recruitment, selection, training, motivation and leadership styles

AS Unit 2: Growing the Business

The impact of competition, a critical understanding of marketing and an appreciation of the role of accounting and financial information in business decision making.

A2 Unit 1: Strategic Decision Making

Business objectives, culture, stakeholder objectives, an insight into business planning and the need to manage risk (decision trees and contingency plans), company accounts, ratio analysis and investment appraisal.

A2 Unit 1: The Competitive Business Environment

Macroeconomic framework and government policies, impact of globalisation, ethics and sustainability and change.

Assessment

AS 1: External written examination, 1 hour 30 mins. Two compulsory structured data responses (80 marks) 20% of A level

AS 2: External written examination, 1 hour 30 mins. Two compulsory structured data responses (80 marks) 20% of A level

A2 1: External written examination, 2 hours. Five compulsory structured data responses (90 marks) 30% of A level

A2 2: External written examination, 2 hours. Six compulsory structured data responses (90 marks) 30% of A level

AS1 and AS2 are assessed externally in May of Year 1

A2 1 and A2 2 are tested in June of Year 2.