PSHE and RSE

Jesus said: “love your neighbour as yourself” ~ Mark 12:31

PSHE lessons strive to fulfil our school mission by providing a knowledge rich PSHE curriculum which has Catholic education at its heart. Our curriculum has been designed to allow our students to flourish into best version of themselves. Lessons allow students to demonstrate our key values of love, hope, faith, respect and community as these naturally intertwine when discussing themes that can affect both ourselves and our whole school community during our lives.

Curriculum Intent

Our Personal, Social and Health and Economic Education (PSHE) curriculum aims to equip children with essential skills for life; it intends to develop the whole child through carefully planned and resourced lessons that develop the knowledge, skills and attributes children need to protect and enhance their wellbeing. Through these lessons, children will learn how to stay safe and healthy, build and maintain successful relationships and become active citizens, responsibly participating in society around them. Successful PSHE curriculum coverage is a vital tool in preparing children for life in society now and in the future. The themes and topics support social, moral, spiritual and cultural development and provide children with protective teaching on essential safeguarding issues, developing their knowledge of when and how they can ask for help.

PSHE resources are fully in line with the Learning Outcomes and Core Themes provided by the PSHE Association Programme of Study which is widely used by schools in England and is recommended and referred to by the DfE in all key documentation relating to PSHE provision in schools. This curriculum covers all of the required objectives and follows the three core areas of Health and Wellbeing, Relationships and Living in the Wider World. The curriculum fulfils the requirements of 2020 Statutory Relationships and Health Education, setting these learning intentions in the context of a broad and balanced PSHE curriculum.

Relationships and Sex Education(RSE) at St John Bosco Arts College aims to provide young people with the knowledge and skills they need to deliver caring and positive relationships of all types, not only intimate relationships within the context of the Catholic faith and the wider world. Students will develop an understanding of what constitutes a healthy relationship, considering the qualities of a good friend, classmate or co-worker, and life partner whether in a successful marriage or any other form of stable relationship and exploring what constitutes acceptable and unacceptable behaviour in relationships.

RSE content builds on the foundation of what is taught in primary school. Although teaching is extended to include intimate relationships, students also continue to learn about family life, friendships and other relationships that form part of fulfilling and positive adult life. We aim to develop personal attributes through RSE such as honesty, integrity, trustworthiness and kindness, underpinned by an understanding of self-respect and self-worth. This allows students to make decisions for themselves about how to live their own lives, whilst respecting the right of others to make their own decisions and hold their own beliefs including around sexuality and gender orientation.

RSE also plays an essential role in the safeguarding of our students by supporting students to recognise when different types of relationships are unhealthy or abusive and strategies to manage this or access support for oneself or others at risk. Students are taught that unhealthy relationships can have a lasting, negative impact on mental wellbeing as well as the rules and principles for keeping safe, both in real-world interactions and online.

RSE is explicitly delivered through discrete PSHE lessons, with themes consolidated across different curriculum areas in school. All staff have a part to play in the holistic development of our young people, and the attributes of kindness, generosity and tolerance are modelled on a daily basis.

We encourage students to become involved in our many extra-curricular activities that are run through PSHE, such as Diversity club, mentoring, creativity projects with outside agencies, and finance workshops. We are open to listening to student voice, therefore if students would like additional clubs and workshops, we are happy to run them on a theme relating to PSHE where there is demand for this in school. Please speak to Mrs Barclay to discuss this.