Intent
Every child at Whitehouse Primary is recognised as a unique individual: we celebrate individuality and welcome difference within our unique school community.
It is our aim to provide our children with a curriculum that is aspirational for all with every child’s ability to learn underpinned by the good teaching of basic skills, knowledge, personal wellbeing, individual challenge and values that will prepare our children for life beyond primary school.
At Whitehouse Primary School, our PSHRE curriculum is designed to enable our children to become healthy, independent and responsible people. We aim to equip children with the knowledge, understanding and emotions to play an active role in today’s society. The intent of our PSHRE curriculum is to deliver a curriculum which is accessible to all and that will maximise the outcomes for every child so that they know more, remember more and understand more. We provide our children with opportunities to learn about rights and responsibilities and appreciate what it means to be a member of our diverse society. The children are encouraged to develop their sense of self-worth by playing a positive role in contributing to school life and the wider community.
Children will be taught to develop a confidence in sharing their own thoughts and opinions with others, develop skills and attributes to keep themselves healthy and safe, form and recognise positive relationships and develop an attitude of a responsible global citizen. Our PSHRE curriculum will teach them the skills to show tolerance of others beliefs, religions and life choices and to build positive, respectful relationships with other people.
At Whitehouse we deliver the PSHRE curriculum by utilising first-hand experience and sharing good practice. However, we are aware that the delivered curriculum must reflect the needs of our pupils. We expect teachers to use a PSHRE programme to equip pupils with a sound understanding of risk and with the knowledge and skills necessary to make safe and informed decisions.
Under the new guidance issues by the DfE, as of September 2020, Relationships and Health education at Primary school is compulsory. We believe that the PSHRE curriculum should also include Sex Education as part of a broader, planned PSHRE curriculum. This element of the curriculum is referred to as RSE.
At Whitehouse, our PSHRE curriculum both supports and challenges our most vulnerable learners through a flexible curriculum that is able to be adapted to the needs of the class. Teachers are able to make informed planning decisions that lead to more personalised learning so that all children can access the curriculum and learn about areas that are most important to them. The PSHE association planning framework for SEND pupils is used to support differentiation for our most vulnerable learners.
Implementation
At Whitehouse Primary School, we have built our inclusive PSHRE curriculum around a progressive framework that ensures that children’s individual needs are met alongside the teaching of key knowledge and skills.
- Planning has been developed by PSHRE leads in guidance with The PSHE Association to meet the needs of our pupils.
- Staff have access to a range of online resources to support lesson delivery.
- Whole school and key stage assemblies make a link to PSHRE and British values continuously reinforcing our PSHRE curriculum.
- Distribution of lessons compliment key campaigns throughout the year such as ‘anti-bullying week’ and ‘relationships day’.
- Teachers respond to their children’s needs by delivering PSHRE lessons, carrying out circle times and having important class discussions as and when they are needed.
- Ensuring pupil voice is maximised during discussions to involve all children in the teaching and learning of PSHRE.
- SRE learning is enhanced through work with the NSPCC.
- PSHRE learning is evidenced within year group floor books.
- Floor book spidergrams and personal progress journals (Y1 – Y6) are used to measure progression of skills, knowledge and vocabulary
PSHRE education should be taught in discrete lessons, supported by other learning opportunities across the curriculum, including the use of enhancement days where possible. RSE is taught within the PSHRE curriculum with some biological aspects of sex education being taught within the science curriculum.
At Whitehouse Primary, we have developed our PSHRE schemes of work from Years 1-6 based on the PSHE association scheme of work. Our PSHRE scheme follows a thematic model, where all pupils in Year 1-6 are working on a common, whole-school theme during each unit of work. We have adapted the PSHE association curriculum to suit our learning journey with the RSE strand being taught in the Summer term. This allows for whole school assemblies, displays and discussions to enhance the learning taking place.
Within the Early Years and Foundation stage, each cohort uses their floor books to record the learning that has been explored through the Personal, Social and Emotional strand of the Early Learning Goals.
Impact
As our children progress throughout Whitehouse, we firmly believe that a meaningful PSHRE curriculum is the key to them becoming confident, tolerant and well-rounded adults. Children can approach a range of real life situations and apply their skills and attributes to help navigate themselves through modern life. From exposure to a range of global issues and problems, children can build up tolerance and a sense of responsibility of being a global citizen. They will recognise and apply the British Values of Democracy, Tolerance and Mutual respect allowing them to develop positive and healthy relationships with their peers both now and in the future. Children will understand the physical aspects involved in RSE at an age appropriate level and will have respect for themselves and others.