This policy covers our school’s approach to Personal, Social and Health education (PSHE). The subject will be taught as part of the planned PSHE curriculum programme during tutor time. The lessons will be taught in tutor groups by form tutors. The policy is available to parents and carers online.

Aims and Objectives of PSHE

Our school’s overarching aims and objectives for our students are to develop their personal, social and health education. The them, as individuals, each valued in his or her own right and promoted for each student a positive self-image. PSHE should support students to acquire the skills and knowledge that will assist them to make informed choices.

To help students care about other people, to be capable of forming constructive healthy relationships and to accept responsibility for the welfare of others.
To help students to understand that there are morally, ethically and legally acceptable forms of behaviour.
To deliver factual information relating to safer sex, healthy relationships and contraception advice for life.

Rationale

PSHE is an important aspect of school life and is essential in the development of young people’s lives. PSHE education helps students to develop the knowledge, skills and attributes they need to manage

many of the critical opportunities, challenges and responsibilities they will face as they grow up and in adulthood.

By teaching students to stay safe and healthy, and by building self esteem, resilience and empathy, an effective PSHE programme can tackle barriers to learning, raise aspirations, and improve the life chances of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged students. The skills and attributes developed through PSHE education support student academic attainment and attendance, particularly among students eligible for free school meals, as well as improve employability and boost social mobility.

The PSHE programme has been developed to address the needs, concerns and anxieties that face young people in their daily lives. It looks to provide a clear understanding for students within a positive and caring environment. It is positive in promoting responsibility for students’ own behaviour and the consequences of their actions.

Co-op Academy Manchester will ensure the best interests of children and young people will be maintained during PSHE lessons and will encourage young students and young people to talk to their parents and carers about any issues they discuss.

Key Themes covered in PSHE

Half-term 1 -

Mental & Emotional Health

Self identity
The academy’s family system
Coping with change (building on from last year’s session of ‘Dealing with loss’
Dealing with unhelpful thoughts
Rosh Hashanah
The importance of Charity
Rights Respecting Schools
Managing conflict
Black History Month
Positive mental wellbeing
Restart a Heart Day
Modern day slavery
Signs of worry

Each half term we also have 20 mins of reading 3x a week, Mindset Monday activities, Feel Good Friday Activities and each Wednesday we alternate careers and Rights Respecting Schools information and tasks.

Half-term 2 -

Keeping Safe

Spotting signs of worry and how to deal with it
Firework safety
Remembrance Day
Disability awareness
White Ribbon Day (Violence against women)
World news and current affairs.
Anti-Bullying Week
First aid
International Day of Persons with Disabilities
International Human Rights Day
Christmas and Hanukkah celebrations

Half-term 3 -

Living in the Wider World (Diversity & British Values)

World Braille Say
World Religions Day
Martin Luther King Day
National Obesity Awareness Week
Holocaust Memorial Day
LGBTQ+ History Month
Pronouns
Time to Talk Day
Children's Mental Health Week
British Values - The Monarchy
British Values - Parliament
British Values - Law and democracy
Diversity
Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday
Year 8 to cover forced marriage and honour-based violence

All years cover children’s rights (with specific discussion of police powers to stop & search and the rights of children to be respected and protected by an Appropriate Adult, where requested.

Half-term 4 -

Careers and Finances

Fair Trade Fortnight
International Women’s day
National Careers Week
British Science Week
Holi
Global Money Week
Managing Finances (e.g reading a payslip, what is tax? etc.)

Half-term 5 -

Healthy Lifestyles

Year 10 have covered healthy lifestyles within PE and therefore this half-term focuses on topics such as extremism, radicalisation etc.)
Laylat Al Qadr and Eid.
Allergy Awareness Week
Health and safety at work
World Asthma Day
International Firefighters Day and Nurses Day
The importance of a balanced diet
Sugar and our bodies
Hydration
IDAHOBIT (International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia)
World Day for Cultural Diversity
Menstrual Hygiene

Half-term 6 -

Relationships and Sex Education

World Blood Donor Day
Pride Month
School Diversity Week

KS3:

FGM
Menstruation
Relationships (Family and friends)
Conflict and boundaries

KS4:

Consent and the law
Pregnancy and choices
Miscarriage
Contraception and STIs
Pornography

Teaching Method

The academy seeks to provide a safe, secure learning environment for PSHE that enables students and young people to gain accurate knowledge, develop their own values and attitudes, and develop skills to grow into happy confident successful adults. The school seeks to ensure members of staff are good role models for positive healthy relationships.

Students need to feel secure and valued. In order to support this, group agreements are negotiated and established during the first lessons with form tutors. The teaching style will support the needs of the students taking into consideration school, home life and friends. This will allow the form teacher to provide understanding and support for students. Due to the sensitive nature of some of the issues discussed, students will be given an opportunity to leave the room if they need to.

Teaching will take into account the ability, age, readiness and cultural backgrounds of our young people and those with English as a second language to ensure that all can fully access the PSHE programme. Where agreed (with the SENCo) students with special educational needs will be supported working in small groups in a supportive environment.

The school will support members of staff delivering PSHE to access appropriate CPD.

Support and Safeguarding

The school recognises the importance for students, young people, families and the workforce having access to confidential services, including health services to support their physical and emotional needs. The following issues may occur as part of PSHE lessons and staff must follow the school’s safeguarding policy if any disclosures are made. If staff have any reason to believe a student is at risk, they are required to report this to the Safeguarding Officer.

Students should be made aware that some information cannot be kept confidential and if disclosures are made then the school safeguarding procedure must be followed including putting in a note of concern and following up by referring to the Safeguarding Officer/Head of Year/SENCO/Headteacher. At the same time students will be offered sensitive and appropriate support.

How we will support students who are withdrawn from PSHE lessons

If a parent requests that their son or daughter are to be removed from the ‘sex education’ (SE) lessons of PSHE, the school will provide support by ensuring they have an alternative appropriate activity to complete in the library during the lessons. If a child is withdrawn from SE lessons the school would be unable to prevent the student from asking their peers what they had learnt in the lesson.

Monitoring and evaluation

The evaluation and monitoring of PSHE takes place continually through learning walks during PSHE, booklet checks and student voice questionnaires. Students’ learning will be assessed during the PSHE lessons using a variety of techniques including: baseline tasks in lessons, student questionnaires and online quizzes. In addition to this, students are asked a range of evaluation questions about PSHE and are given the opportunity to review the benefits of each of the topics within the programme.

Dissemination of the Policy

This policy and the programme of learning are available on the academy website and on request to parents, carers and the Local Authority (LA)