The focus of education and development of the whole child is essential to ensuring pupils are prepared for life and enabled to learn, grow and become the best they can be. We want our children to flourish and to gain every opportunity to live fulfilled lives.

As a Church of England school, we will teach within a framework of Christian values and the Christian understanding that sex is a gift of God as part of creation. Whilst we use relationships and sex education to inform children about sexual issues, we do this with regard to matters of morality and individual responsibility, and in a way that allows children to ask and explore moral questions. 

Sensitivity and respect will be shown to all children when teaching about personal relationships and sex education, with RSE being taught in a way that ensures there is no stigmatisation of children based on their home / personal circumstances.  

Our RSE teaching and learning is set within a context that is consistent with the school’s Christian ethos and values:  

• It is based on inclusive Christian principles and values emphasising respect, compassion, loving care and forgiveness.  
• It is taught in the light of the belief in the absolute worth of all people and the unconditional infinite love of God.  
• It reflects that sex is a gift from God: a human longing for an intimate union.  
• It is sensitive to the circumstances of all children and is mindful of the expressions of family life in our culture, yet it should also uphold the Christian values regarding relationships and marriage.  
• The exploration of reproduction and sexual behaviour within the science curriculum should stand alongside the exploration of relationships, values and morals and Christian belief.  

Intent

Our PSHE / RSE curriculum aims to give children the knowledge, skills and attitudes that they need to effectively navigate the complexities of life in the 21st Century. Our focus is on building healthy attitudes and positive relationships in an environment where difference is celebrated and everyone is included and valued for who they are. We are educating our children to live in the real world with all its contradictions. 

Our curriculum covers key areas which will support children to make informed choices now and in the future around their health, safety, wellbeing, relationships, and financial matters and will support them in becoming confident individuals and active members of society.

Our RSE/PSHE scheme of work covers the Relationships and Health Education statutory guidance (as set out by the Department for Education) in line with the requirement of the National curriculum (2014) that schools ‘should make provision for personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE).’ The scheme contributes to their personal development and promotes the four fundamental British values which reflect life in modern Britain: democracy; rule of law; respect and tolerance and individual liberty. In response to the child-on-child abuse updates to Section 5 of Keeping Children Safe in Education (DfE, 2022), our curriculum introduces and revisits ideas of personal boundaries, consent and communicating our boundaries with others. This prepares our pupils for the challenges and responsibilities they will face in the future.

Implementation

Our whole school approach consists of three areas of learning in Reception (to match the EYFS Personal, social and emotional development prime area) and five areas of learning across Key stages 1 and 2.

EYFS:

• Self-regulation
• Building relationships
• Managing self

Key stage 1 and 2:

• Families and relationships
• Health and wellbeing
• Safety and the changing body
• Citizenship
• Economic wellbeing

Each area is revisited to allow children to build on prior learning. The lessons also provide a progressive programme. Our lessons are based upon the statutory requirements for Relationships and Health education, but some lessons go beyond these requirements and refer to the PSHE Association Programme of Study which is recommended by the DfE.

A range of teaching and learning activities are used to ensure that all children can access learning and make progress in PSHE/ RSE. In key stage 1 and 2, there is an introductory lesson at the start of each year group which provides the opportunity for children and teachers to negotiate ground rules for the lessons. These introductory lessons can then be referred to throughout the year to help create a safe environment. Many lessons, stories, scenarios, and video clips provide the opportunity for children to engage in real life and current topics in a safe and structured way. Role-play activities are also included to help children play out scenarios that they may find themselves in.

Impact

Every PSHE / RSE lesson features assessment guidance, helping teachers to identify whether pupils have met, exceeded, or failed to meet the desired learning intentions for that lesson. Each unit of lessons comes with an Assessment quiz and Knowledge catcher. The quiz contains 10 questions, nine of which are multiple-choice and can be used either at the end of the unit or at both the start and the end to help measure progress and identify any gaps in learning. The Knowledge catchers list some of the lesson titles in mind-map or table format and can be used at the start of a unit to see what the children already know and to inform planning, and then pupils can revisit the same version of the Knowledge catcher at the end of the unit to add what else they now know, further demonstrating their progression in learning. Once taught the full scheme, children will have met the objectives set out within the Relationships and Health Education statutory guidance and can utilise their learning within their daily lives, from dealing with friendship issues to resilience to making healthy choices and knowing where and how to get help when needed.