Also recognised as PSHE (Personal, Social Health and Economic Education)
Statement of Intent
At St Oswald’s, good relationships are fundamental to our ethos and our success in being a happy, caring and safe school. Relationships, Health and Sex Education (RHE) is a subject that promotes lifelong learning. It aims to provide pupils with the knowledge and skills to keep themselves safe, make healthy choices, develop respect for themselves and others, and form positive and healthy relationships. RHE is ambitious for the children, preparing them as citizens for modern day Britain. We endeavour to ensure that RHE is faith sensitive, inclusive and inspiring.
Implementation
RHE is taught as an explicit weekly lesson but is also embedded in other areas of the curriculum and is part of our day-to-day life at St Oswald’s. Our RHE curriculum is based on the Discovery Education programme which is a multimedia platform offering high-quality and comprehensive resources. This follows the National Curriculum for RHE and is ambitious for all of the children in our multi-faith, multi-cultural and diverse school community. Children are taught by familiar adults which they have a good rapport with, in order to facilitate constructive, supportive discussions around sensitive topics.
All staff have received appropriate RHE training and have the knowledge and understanding to deliver purposeful, engaging and high-quality lessons. This will develop skills and attributes such as resilience, self-esteem, risk-management, team working and critical thinking in the context of six core themes:
● Healthy and happy relationships – Getting along and understanding changing friendships
● Similarities and differences – What makes each of us special and unique
● Caring and responsibility – Looking after each other in school, at home and in the community
● Families and committed relationships – Different types of families and healthy relationships
● Healthy body, healthy minds – Looking after your physical and mental health
● Coping with change – How we change as we grow older and set goals for ourselves
Impact
As a result of a progressive, well-sequenced and purposeful RHE curriculum, the children of St Oswald’s will have a strong understanding of the school’s six Christian values: respect; compassion; friendship; service; trust and justice. This will lead to them being well-prepared for a successful future and promote life skills that support learning and will help them to lead a positive life.
As a result of the RHE curriculum, children at St Oswald’s will understand the following:
● The importance of healthy and happy relationships
● The correct vocabulary to describe themselves and their bodies
● The importance of valuing and respecting diversity
Additionally, the RHE curriculum at St Oswald’s will guide children to:
● Show respect for people’s similarities and differences
● Take positive risks
● Help others to develop feelings of self-respect, confidence and empathy
Finally, children at St Oswald’s will:
● Increase their own confidence to make the most of their abilities and to make informed life choices
● Develop confidence in talking about feelings and relationships
● Have the confidence and self-esteem to value themselves and others
We measure impact by the triangulation of lesson observations, work scrutiny and pupil voice. Everything we do at St Oswald’s Primary School contributes to children’s personal, spiritual, moral and cultural development, and our RHE curriculum encourages children to flourish and achieve.