PSHE (Including Relationships Education and Health Education)
The national curriculum states that ‘all schools should make provision for personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE), drawing on good practice'. PSHE education contributes to schools' statutory duties outlined in the Education Act 2002 and the Academies Act 2010 to provide a balanced and broadly-based curriculum and is essential to Ofsted judgements in relation to personal development, behaviour, welfare and safeguarding.
‘PSHE education is a school subject through which pupils develop the knowledge, skills and attributes they need to keep themselves healthy and safe, and prepared for life and work. Well-delivered PSHE programmes have an impact on both academic and non-academic outcomes for pupils, particularly the most vulnerable and disadvantaged.’ PSHE Association
From 2020, most of the PSHE education will be compulsory
Under the 2017 Children and Social Work Act, the government has committed to compulsory ‘Relationships Education’ in all primary schools; and compulsory ‘Health Education’ from key stage 1–4.
PSHE education makes a major contribution to schools fulfilling this duty.
Schools also have duties in relation to promoting pupil wellbeing and pupil safeguarding (Children Act 2004) and community cohesion (Education Act 2006). Paragraph 41 of statutory guidance on Keeping Children Safe in Education, the Department for Education states that 'schools should consider how children may be taught about safeguarding, including online, through teaching and learning opportunities. This may include covering relevant issues through PSHE…'
The Equality Act 2010 also places duties on schools not just to address prejudice-based bullying but also to help to prevent it happening, and in doing so to keep protected characteristic groups safe. PSHE education, with its focus on identity and equality, can help schools to fulfil this duty.
Maintained schools have further statutory duties to:
Consultation Process
In preparation for statutory changes to the curriculum of Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) in September 2020, we have drafted a new policy and put together a new scheme of work
We have taken a long time to put these plans together and we haven’t taken the decisions to introduce certain things at particular year groups lightly. We have put together a scheme of work that not only meets the legal requirements but is also one that we as professional educators are happy with and we hope that we can work with you, the parents and carers, to make it great.
Your views on the policy and schemes of work matter and we would like you to be involved in the consultation process.
Once you have had the opportunity to read the policy, schemes of work and other useful documents, that you can find on the PSHE pages of our website. You can take part in our feedback process by completing a short survey.
Parents will receive a link to the survey separately.
We will review your feedback and use it to help plan our way forward. We will continue to keep parents and carers informed.
RSHE parent consultation survey
Thank you to all of the parents who contributed and shared their views by completing the survey. The results have now been analysed and we have, in consultation with governors, used those findings to make a few amendments to our PSHE programme.
Click link below for survey results.
Changes made to the PSHE/RSHE curriculum as a result of the parent consultation
Most of the concerns raised by parents were regarding the teaching of puberty, it is now law that we teach puberty, it is not something that you can withdraw your child from but we have made some changes that delay teaching some aspects of puberty to older year groups.
Y4 menstruation - Will move to the summer term, just before the girls move to Y5. With parents, we will talk through the lesson content and share resources prior to the lessons with the girls, ideally, this would be a parent meeting but this year it may have to be electronically.
Y5 puberty - Wet dreams was the biggest concern from parents regarding puberty in Y5 so we will move it from Y5 to Y6 RSE (Sex Education programme) lessons.
Y6 puberty - Masturbation, the major concern from parents regarding Y6 puberty lessons, will move from Y6 puberty to the Y6 RSE (Sex Education programme) lessons . Parents will still have the right to withdraw their child from Sex education.
We will offer meetings to parents (possibly electronically) prior to teaching puberty in order to discuss the lesson content and resources being used.
Areas we won’t be changing
For other parts of the RSHE programme the majority of responses were positive so we will not be making any further changes to the PSHE programme, as outlined on the PSHE page of the school website.
We were particularly pleased to note that parents have recognised how important it is for our children to be learning about discrimination and the protected characteristics (90% were ok, happy or very happy)
Y2 - We still intend to introduce the terms penis and vulva in Y2 science and health education lessons because it is important for all children to know and be comfortable using the correct scientific words for parts of the body, including external genitalia for child protection and medical reasons.
Y6- We will continue to offer Sex Education lessons to our Y6 pupils in the summer term. We will offer a meeting to parents prior to the sessions to discuss the lessons and resources being used. Parents will still be able to withdraw their child from the sessions.
Faith and RSE
We live in a very diverse and vibrant community and within that community there will be diverse views. We aware that some of the Relationships and Health Education expectations that we have to teach may not be the views of everyone.
The new guidance states that ‘in all schools, when teaching these subjects (Relationships, health and Sex Education) the religious background of all pupils must be taken into account when planning teaching, so that topics are appropriately handled’ DFE RSHE Guidance
However, the guidance is also very clear that in all schools the teaching ‘should reflect the law as it applies to relationships, so that young people clearly understand what the law allows and does not allow, and the wider legal implications of decisions that they may make.’
As a school we have to comply with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010. Under this act schools must not unlawfully discriminate against pupils because of any protected characteristic (age, gender, race, disability, religion, gender assignment or sexual orientation)
As a school, we will be using the ‘Faith and relationships documentation- a guide to support faith-inclusive Relationships, Sex and health Education in Nottingham schools.’ This document was produced by representatives of Nottingham’s Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education (SACRE) and other local faith leaders who worked together to explore how to meet the requirements of the new guidance and engage positively with the diverse community in Nottingham.
“Children should be made aware of the importance of human relationships and how people will live differently, so we can embrace diversity and respect each other despite our differences.”
Dr Musharraf Hussain, CEO and Chief Imam Karimia Institute
Staff will read through the key faith perspectives on the topics relevant to their lessons- this will not only support them in representing different views but also in understanding how pupils in their class may understand or respond to the lessons being delivered.
Click below to read Faith and Relationships document.
PSHE at Berridge Primary School
Our PSHE program has been designed to develop skills and attributes such as resilience, self-esteem, risk-management, teamworking and critical thinking largely around three core themes: Health and Wellbeing, Relationships and Living in the wider world.
Health and Wellbeing: Keeping safe and managing risk, Drug, alcohol and tobacco education (DATE), Physical health and wellbeing, Health part of Relationships and Health education
This area of PSHE teaches children:
Pupils will learn things like the importance of personal hygiene; the physical differences between boys and girls; road safety, cycle safety and online safety; people who help us; how to talk about their feelings; and the benefits of physical activity.
Relationships: Mental Health and Wellbeing, Relationships part of Relationships and Health Education
This theme includes:
Among other things, children will learn to recognise that their behaviour can affect other people; to listen to other people and work and play cooperatively; to identify special people in their lives (parents, siblings, friends) and how they should care for each other; what physical contact is acceptable; and what to do if they’re being bullied.
Living in the Wider World: Identity, society and equality and Careers, financial capability and economic wellbeing.
Through this theme, children learn:
Some of the things your child will learn include- how to make and follow group, class and school rules; what protects and harms the environment; how to make choices about spending or saving money; ways in which we are all unique and the things we have in common; about basic human rights; and to respect national, regional, religious and ethnic identities.
PSHE will sometimes be taught in discrete lessons but where possible is linked to Science, Computing, RE, PE and English.
Sex Education :
We teach Sex Education to pupils in Y6. Parents have the right to withdraw their child from sex education lessons, except for areas that are statutory under the National Curriculum as part of science, Health Education or Relationships Education (for example, learning about puberty).
This is because the DfE recognises parents’ rights to teach their own children about sex in a way that fits with their own values and principles.