Business Studies

WHO’S WHO?

Progress Leader: Mrs M Anderson

Teaching Staff: Mr R Birchall

COURSE INFORMATION

The subject content enables students to apply their knowledge and understanding to different business contexts, including businesses ranging from small enterprises to large multinationals and businesses operating in local, national and global contexts. Learners are required to develop an understanding of how these contexts impact on business behaviour.

COURSE SPECIFICATION

Business activity – The nature of business activity and how it is concerned with meeting the needs of customers by providing a product or service. Influences on business - understand that all businesses operate in an external environment and there are a number of external influences that impact on business activity. Business operations - business operations are concerned with the efficient management of the key functions and resources within a business to maximise profit. Finance - finance function manages the financial activities of a business. It will have a number of roles including start-up finance, the preparation and creation of financial accounts, maintaining financial records, paying bills and analysing financial performance. Marketing - involves identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer needs in a profitable way. Marketing affects all functions of a business and includes a wide range of activities including researching the market, analysing the market and developing a marketing strategy through the implementation of the marketing mix. Human resources - Focus on the human function within a business. It involves the recruitment, training, organisation, retention, development and motivation of employees.

COURSE ASSESSMENT

Component 1 : Business Dynamics – written examination (2 hours) Component 2: Business considerations – written examination (1 Hour 30 minutes) Both components assess content from all six topic areas, so learners will be required to draw together knowledge, skills and understanding from across the subject content in each assessment.

Year 10

Term	Unit of study	Key skills/learning
Autumn	Business activity	Students learn about business basics, financial literacy, entrepreneurial thinking, and decision-making. It promotes application of knowledge, stakeholder awareness, and strategic planning, while encouraging communication, collaboration, and ethical responsibility. Main concepts include: the nature of business activity, business enterprise, business planning, revenue costs and profit, providing goods and services, business ownership, business aims and objectives, stakeholders and business activity, business location and site, business growth
Spring	Influences on business and marketing	Students learn about : marketing, customer engagement, and globalisation. It builds skills in market research, product development, and pricing, while applying the marketing mix to real-world contexts. It fosters analytical thinking, decision-making, and awareness of how businesses meet customer needs in competitive markets. Main concepts : the impact of globalisation on businesses, marketing, identifying and understanding customers, market research, product, place, promotion, marketing mx – place.
Summer	Marketing and business operations	Students learn ethical and legal influences on business. It builds knowledge of marketing, sales processes, and social responsibility, highlighting the need to balance profit with compliance. Students analyse how external factors shape decisions, strengthening their awareness of responsible business management in a regulated environment. Main concepts : marketing, ethics, legislation, sales process, the impact of legislation on businesses

Term

Unit of study

Key skills/learning

Autumn

Business activity

Students learn about business basics, financial literacy, entrepreneurial thinking, and decision-making. It promotes application of knowledge, stakeholder awareness, and strategic planning, while encouraging communication, collaboration, and ethical responsibility.

Main concepts include: the nature of business activity, business enterprise, business planning, revenue costs and profit, providing goods and services, business ownership, business aims and objectives, stakeholders and business activity, business location and site, business growth

Spring

Influences on business and marketing

Students learn about : marketing, customer engagement, and globalisation. It builds skills in market research, product development, and pricing, while applying the marketing mix to real-world contexts. It fosters analytical thinking, decision-making, and awareness of how businesses meet customer needs in competitive markets.

Main concepts : the impact of globalisation on businesses, marketing, identifying and understanding customers, market research, product, place, promotion, marketing mx – place.

Summer

Marketing and business operations

Students learn ethical and legal influences on business. It builds knowledge of marketing, sales processes, and social responsibility, highlighting the need to balance profit with compliance. Students analyse how external factors shape decisions, strengthening their awareness of responsible business management in a regulated environment.

Main concepts : marketing, ethics, legislation, sales process, the impact of legislation on businesses

Year 11

Term	Unit of study	Key skills/learning
Autumn	Human resources and business operations	Students learn business operations, including structure, recruitment, motivation, production, quality control, and supply chains. It builds skills in analysing efficiency, resource management, and technological impacts, linking theory to real-world practices and preparing students to evaluate and improve business performance effectively. Main concepts: organizational structures, recruitment, training, motivation, methods of production, quality, technological influence on business activity, supply chain.
Spring	Finance	Students learn to manage and analyse business finances, understand interdependent functions, assess performance, and evaluate external ethical, environmental, and economic influences to make informed strategic decisions. Main concepts : sources of finance, revenue and costs, cash flow, profit and loss accounts, financial performance, the interdependent nature of business, ethical influences on business activity, environmental influences on business activity, economic influences on business activity

Term

Unit of study

Key skills/learning

Autumn

Human resources and business operations

Students learn business operations, including structure, recruitment, motivation, production, quality control, and supply chains. It builds skills in analysing efficiency, resource management, and technological impacts, linking theory to real-world practices and preparing students to evaluate and improve business performance effectively.

Main concepts: organizational structures, recruitment, training, motivation, methods of production, quality, technological influence on business activity, supply chain.

Spring

Finance

Students learn to manage and analyse business finances, understand interdependent functions, assess performance, and evaluate external ethical, environmental, and economic influences to make informed strategic decisions.

Main concepts : sources of finance, revenue and costs, cash flow, profit and loss accounts, financial performance, the interdependent nature of business, ethical influences on business activity, environmental influences on business activity, economic influences on business activity