PSHE
Intent
At Roundhay St John’s it is our intent to provide all children with a broad and balanced curriculum which will enable them to ‘live life in all its fullness’ now and in the future. Our curriculum will support them through their physical, emotional, moral and spiritual development, helping them to understand themselves, have respect for others and form healthy relationships.
PSHE enables our children to become healthy, independent members of society and addresses many of the moral, social and cultural issues that are part of growing up. Children learn about rights and responsibilities and understand what it means to be a member of a diverse, inclusive society. They are encouraged to develop their sense of self-worth by playing a positive role in contributing to school life and the wider community.
Implementation
Through the use of Islington’s ‘You, Me, PSHE’ scheme of work, children are taught about topics which include physical health and wellbeing; identity, society and equality; keeping safe and managing risk; mental health and emotional wellbeing; drugs, alcohol and tobacco; careers and financial responsibility. As a Mindmate Friendly school, our Mindmate lessons focus on mental health and explore themes such as feeling good and being me; life changes; being the same and being different; friends and family; strong emotions and solving problems.
Relationship and Sex Education develops the practice of resilience and perseverance, self-respect and self-worth. Our school values support pupils in developing personal attributes including kindness, generosity, honesty, humility, respect and trustworthiness. Children are taught about positive relationships, including friendships, family relationships and relationships with other children and adults. Children are taught about families in a sensitive way, reflecting that some children have different family structures and relationships. They explore online safety and learn about appropriate behaviour online, including sharing data and ways in which information provided by users may be used negatively. Pupils are taught about positive emotional and mental wellbeing, including how friendships can support mental wellbeing, and they also learn about safe relationships, focusing on boundaries and privacy and ensuring that they understand that they have rights over their own bodies. This also includes understanding boundaries in friendships with peers, in families and with others in all contexts, including online. They learn about their bodies, including how to understand and respect differences and similarities between people, physical changes that occur through puberty and how babies are made. Through PSHE, pupils are taught how to report concerns and seek advice when they suspect or know that something is wrong.
Impact
PSHE education helps pupils to develop the knowledge, skills and attributes they need as individuals, family members and members of society and helps them to manage many of the most important opportunities, challenges and responsibilities they will face growing up. Children develop the vocabulary and confidence needed to articulate their thoughts and feelings in a climate of openness, trust and respect, and they know when and how they can seek the support of others. They apply their understanding of society to their everyday interactions, from the classroom to the wider community of which they are a part of. Physical and mental health and wellbeing are at the top of our school agenda. PSHE provides children with the skills to understand their own wellbeing needs, practise self-care and contribute positively to the wellbeing of those around them.
‘There is a strong sense of community and good relationships are built between pupils and staff…. There is a whole school approach to health and wellbeing and it is at the heart of everything the school does’ Healthy Schools Assessor
Read our Drugs Education Policy
Relationships and Sex Education
From Summer 2021, all primary schools will be required by law to teach Relationships Education and Health Education. At Roundhay St John’s this is something we already do. We will also continue to teach sex education beyond the National Curriculum Science, which is strongly recommended by the Department for Education.
Our teaching of these subjects is based on the belief that it is essential to give our children a shared language so everyone understands, and everyone is understood. It is so essential that, in the diverse world in which we live, children have the language and understating to build respectful relationships with those around them both now and in the future. This is important for keeping our children safe, so they can be easily understood when talking about their bodies and feelings. It will also enable them to have informed discussions about their own health and wellbeing. We know that addressing these subjects as part of the curriculum in primary school stands children in good stead before starting at secondary school.
Parents have the right to request that their child is excused from sex education and we will continue to give you advance notice of when the non statutory elements of this are taught. We’ll also continue to let you know exactly what we will be teaching and give you opportunity to view the materials we use. We do this as we find that where parents have concerns these can usually always be allayed when they fully understand what we teach and why.
Thank you for the comments we had about the draft RSE policy which were very supportive of the school's work in this important area. Our policy can be read here.
