PSHE
Personal, Social, Health and EconomicCurriculum
Intent:
At the Orchard Lea Federation, we believe personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education is a vital and important part of our children’s education. The staff work collaboratively and as role models to help our children develop into confident, caring, happy, successful and resilient young people. We aim to equip our children with a sound understanding of risk and with the knowledge and skills to make safe and informed decisions as they move through the federation. We want to inspire our children to develop knowledge and understanding of the world around them in order to help them develop as young citizens. In an ever-changing world, it is important that the children are aware, to an appropriate level, of different elements that will affect their world and the people in it. They need to learn how to deal with these so that they aspire to have good physical and mental health. It is our aim to help our pupils to learn to respect themselves and others and move with confidence from childhood through adolescence into adulthood and become responsible members of society.
PSHE plays an important role in promoting Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural (SMSC) Education and incorporating British Values, which is implicit in the school ethos and is planned into all aspects of the curriculum.
Throughout Primary, by the end of KS2:
Pupils should know
• that families are important for children growing up because they can give love, security and stability.
• the characteristics of healthy family life, commitment to each other, including in times of difficulty, protection and care for children and other family members, the importance of spending time together and sharing each other’s lives.
• that others’ families, either in school or in the wider world, sometimes look different from their family, but that they should respect those differences and know that other children’s families are also characterised by love and care.
• that stable, caring relationships, which may be of different types, are at the heart of happy families, and are important for children’s security as they grow up.
• that marriage represents a formal and legally recognised commitment of two people to each other which is intended to be lifelong.
• how to recognise if family relationships are making them feel unhappy or unsafe, and how to seek help or advice from others if needed.
• how important friendships are in making us feel happy and secure, and how people choose and make friends.
• the characteristics of friendships, including mutual respect, truthfulness, trustworthiness, loyalty, kindness, generosity, trust, sharing interests and experiences and support with problems and difficulties.
• that healthy friendships are positive and welcoming towards others, and do not make others feel lonely or excluded.
• that most friendships have ups and downs, and that these can often be worked through so that the friendship is repaired or even strengthened, and that resorting to violence is never right.
• how to recognise who to trust and who not to trust, how to judge when a friendship is making them feel unhappy or uncomfortable, managing conflict, how to manage these situations and how to seek help or advice from others, if needed.
• the importance of respecting others, even when they are very different from them (for example, physically, in character, personality or backgrounds), or make different choices or have different preferences or beliefs.
• practical steps they can take in a range of different contexts to improve or support respectful relationships.
• the conventions of courtesy and manners.
• the importance of self-respect and how this links to their own happiness.
• that in school and in wider society they can expect to be treated with respect by others, and that in turn they should show due respect to others, including those in positions of authority. Marriage in England and Wales is available to both opposite sex and same sex couples. The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 extended marriage to same sex couples in England and Wales. The ceremony through which a couple get married may be civil or religious.
• about different types of bullying (including cyberbullying), the impact of bullying, responsibilities of bystanders (primarily reporting bullying to an adult) and how to get help.
• what a stereotype is, and how stereotypes can be unfair, negative or destructive.
• the importance of permission-seeking and giving in relationships with friends, peers and adults.
• that people sometimes behave differently online, including by pretending to be someone they are not.
• that the same principles apply to online relationships as to face-to face relationships, including the importance of respect for others online including when we are anonymous.
• the rules and principles for keeping safe online, how to recognise risks, harmful content and contact, and how to report them.
• how to critically consider their online friendships and sources of information including awareness of the risks associated with people they have never met.
• how information and data is shared and used online.
• what sorts of boundaries are appropriate in friendships with peers and others (including in a digital context).
• about the concept of privacy and the implications of it for both children and adults; including that it is not always right to keep secrets if they relate to being safe.
• that each person’s body belongs to them, and the differences between appropriate and inappropriate or unsafe physical, and other, contact.
• how to respond safely and appropriately to adults they may encounter (in all contexts, including online) whom they do not know.
• how to recognise and report feelings of being unsafe or feeling bad about any adult.
• how to ask for advice or help for themselves or others, and to keep trying until they are heard.
• how to report concerns or abuse, and the vocabulary and confidence needed to do so.
• where to get advice e.g. family, school and/or other sources.
Implementation:
At the Orchard Lea Federation, PSHE objectives are taught using the Coram Life Education SCARF Programme of Study. It is also covered across the curriculum especially in our RE, Science and PE curriculum. PSHE is taught in discreet lessons, during circle times and in assemblies. Many opportunities arise during the school week for our children to work effectively in groups, take on roles of responsibility and to come together as a whole school community to celebrate and reflect on our journey together.
Each half term the children study a PSHE theme: Me and my relationships, Valuing difference, Keeping safe, Rights and respect, Being my best, Growing and changing. The units of work are set out half-termly and link closely with safeguarding, the school ethos, British values, rights and responsibilities, and growth mind-sets so that the children have depth and breadth within this area of the curriculum.
From September 2020, Relationship and Sex Education (RSE) has been a compulsory subject in all primary schools. At the Orchard Lea Federation, we are using the SCARF scheme to ensure the statutory coverage is taught consistently to all.
SCARF’s Growing and Changing Unit covers the DfE statutory RSHE requirements listed within the Changing Adolescent Body topic under statutory Health Education. As schools are expected to deliver a spiral curriculum, content is introduced in the early years; for example, the difference between girls' and boys' bodies and the correct words for external body parts is covered before later content about how and why bodies change.
Lesson content grows in complexity and maturity, in line with children's development, supporting them every step of the way.
SCARF assessment tools enable us to implement best practice in assessment, as set out by the PSHE Association's guidance: that:
"Assessment in PSHE education should not be about levels or grades, passing or failing. The model of assessment that is most meaningful is ipsative assessment. This compares the pupil’s results against his or her previous results in a similar way to an athlete measuring today’s performance against their previous performance. So the benchmark against which progress is measured is the pupil’s own starting point; not the performance of others or the requirements of an exam syllabus. "
PSHE Association's Guidance to Assessment for Learning and Progression.
Personal, Social, Health and Economic - Progression of knowledge and skills
