PSHEE
'The glory of God is a human being fully alive' St Irenaeus
Why Learn PSHEE?
You are growing up in a rapidly changing world, full of opportunities.
Personal Social Health Economic Education (PSHEE) is a compulsory, non-examined subject.
PSHEE equips you with trustworthy and reliable values, knowledge and skills to enable you to flourish and 'live life to the full'. The subject is taught through three intertwining themes:
- Health and Wellbeing
- Living in the Wider World
- Forming Positive Relationships
How PSHEE supports our school's Mission
Our school’s mission commits our community to ‘a rounded education that develops knowledgeable, morally informed and compassionate your leaders’.
Our school’s curriculum sets out this mission by giving our students a sense of moral purpose with the example of Christ at the centre of their lives.
St. Julie Billiart, the foundress of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur had a clear vision for what her students should learn. For Julie, education should provide young people with ‘what they need to know for life’ and to develop ‘hearts as wide as the world’.
The PSHEE curriculum is enhanced by inviting students to explore relevant issues through the lens of 6 key Catholic Social Teachings. This empowers them to:
- SEE a topic that is important to me, us, our world
- JUDGE sources of wisdom that help us to understand more clearly
- ACT on this learning to transform me, my community, our world
Our PSHEE curriculum is also informed by the 5 key British Values
Careers Education also forms a vital aspect of the PSHEE Curriculum. We enable each student to identify their unique personality, gifts and talents to inspire their career pathway and life vocation.
Student Voice: Why is PSHEE relevant to your life?
Our students are regularly consulted on the content and delivery of PSHEE. When asked why PSHEE is an important subject to them they have provided the following statements:
- PSHEE is one of the most important subjects as it teaches you how to be happy and lead a good life
- It includes topics that are actually relevant to our lives now and how to navigate life after leaving school
- Sometimes we have struggles and are uncomfortable to talk about them
- PSHEE provides a safe environment for people to talk about issues and learn from each other
- People should respect each other in life and online
- It is important to feel confident and secure in life
- You need to know how to take care of yourself and avoid situations that can hurt you
- We need to learn how to manage our mental and physical health
- Our bodies are a vital part of who we are. We should learn about accepting our bodies as they are and not have to change them.
- The internet and social media are very influential on our lives. They don’t give a realistic perspective on life
- It is important to learn about how to form positive relationships.
- I want to learn how to become a good partner and parent
Hot Topics
Lessons that include the ‘hot topic’ logo indicate that it has been made in response to student feedback.
How do we learn PSHEE?
PSHEE is taught in Form Groups to encourage relationships and discussion in a safe and and non-judgemental space.
Our lessons provide opportunities to reflect on and develop your personal beliefs, values and opinions through individual written work.
We also show how to access additional student welfare support in school and from outside agencies.
Our lessons are delivered using a consistent structure.
What themes do we learn?
Our PSHE Curriculum is devised from the PSHE Association’s recommended categories which we have divided into sub topics.
If at any time you and/or your parent(s)/carer(s) wish to discuss the contents of the PSHEE curriculum, or any issues raised in the lessons, please contact Mr Savage our Head of PSHEE.
What do we study?
Our PSHEE curriculum is delivered as a series of lessons that incorporate specific skills and knowledge from the PSHEE Association’s Program of Study. To view what topics are taught each term, click on the menus below.
If at any time you and/or your parent(s)/carer(s) wish to discuss the contents of the PSHEE curriculum, or any issues raised in the lessons, please contact Mr Savage our Head of PSHEE.
Y7 Topics
| AUTUMN | SPRING | SUMMER |
|---|---|---|
|
Intro to PSHEE |
Healthy Lifestyle (food and exercise) |
My Mental Wellbeing |
|
Our Community's values |
Risks and Safety (Positive risks. How to stay safe including road safety) |
Positive Relationships (including families) |
|
Being an Inclusive Community |
Healthy Lifestyle (the effects of cigarette smoking) |
Our Bodies (the correct names for the sexual parts of the body) |
|
Positive friendships |
Social Media (how to keep accounts safe and private, cyberbullying) |
Puberty |
|
Who can I talk to for help? |
Social Media 2 (false friends, reporting incidents) |
FGM (why we need to be aware of this issue) |
|
Anti-Bullying |
My Skills (links to transferable skills for careers) |
Ask It Basket Answers |
|
Our Values (including British Values) |
Y8 Topics
| AUTUMN | SPRING | SUMMER |
|---|---|---|
|
My Targets (including student survey results) |
Optimism (setting smart targets for health, social and study) |
Happy being Me (being body confident) |
|
Actions for Happiness (understanding a range of emotions) |
E-Safety (managing risk online and grooming) |
Romantic Relationships (intro to consent) |
|
Racial Diversity (We are an inclusive community that celebrates diversity) |
Report & Remove (why not to send and share intimate images) |
First Aid (Sprains, cuts and burns) |
|
Have your say (Democracy and listening to different perspectives) |
Drugs Awareness (effects of energy drinks) |
Personal Finance (how to save and spend wisely) |
|
Safeguarding (Discrimination and Radicalisation) |
Drugs Awareness (effects of smoking and vaping) |
Careers: My Interests (links between interests and transferable skills) |
|
My Rights (Key rights and laws that affect your life) |
Young Carers (what is it like to be a young carer. Support available) |
Survey and ask it basket |
|
Sexual Health (different forms of contraception and avoiding STIs) |
Y9 Topics
| AUTUMN | SPRING | SUMMER |
|---|---|---|
|
Interpersonal Skills (how your strengths can help you succeed) |
My Preferences (understanding the preferences process and making informed choices) |
Body image (the real me and the influence of social media) |
|
My Targets and the year ahead |
My Skills (identifying and finding ways to develop employability skills) |
What is Sexual Harassment? (including online) |
|
Diversity Matters (celebrating Black History Month) |
Gender Equality (how inclusive is our society, awareness of sexual harassment) |
Sexting (laws and how to avoid) |
|
First Aid (initial survey DR ABC) |
Avoiding risks (County Lines and Knife Crime) |
Is Porn a Problem? |
|
My Mind (how to deal with strong emotions) |
My Money (bank accounts, how to budget) |
Working out Relationships (awareness of abusive relationships) |
|
Alcohol (its affects and resisting peer pressure) |
Eating orders and self-harm (how to access support) |
Contraception and Consent |
|
Illegal Drugs (definitions, affects and resisting peer pressure) |
To view what topics are taught in Years 10-11 click on our KS4 PSHEE page.
Relationships and Sex Education
As a Catholic community, PSHEE develops an understanding of the following principles:
We are uniquely created and loved by God
- Valuing and understanding ourselves is the basis for personal relationships.
We are created to love others
- We are created out of love and for love.
- The command to love is the basis of all Christian morality.
We are created to live in community
- Through our exchange with others and mutual respect we learn about ourselves and develop our society.
Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) is taught as part of PSHEE. Our course uses carefully chosen age- appropriate resources in keeping with our school's Catholic ethos. We use reliable and trustworthy sources accredited by the Catholic Education Service, and the national PSHE Association.
For more detailed information about what is covered each year visit our webpage Parent/Carer Intro to RSE.
Policies
PSHEE is taught in line with the following school policies which can be accessed on the Policies page of our website:
- Acceptable Use and E-Safety Policy
- Behaviour
- Anti-Bullying
- Careers Education Information Advice and Guidance
- Drugs Education
- Equality and Diversity
- Relationships and Sex Education
- Safeguarding
- Special Needs