Personal Development & PSHE

Our Personal Development Curriculum

The personal and social development of students is a fundamental pillar of our curriculum here at Newstead Wood School. Personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education promotes students' personal, social and emotional development, as well as their health and wellbeing. Personal development permeates all that we do at Newstead through events such as Public Speaking, charity fundraising, Duke of Edinburgh and First Give (to name but a few) to the more formal aspects of the PSHE curriculum which are covered are during form time each week.  

The PSHE curriculum aims to: 

• Help students to deal with difficult moral and social questions that arise in their lives and in society. 
• Help students to develop the knowledge, skills and understanding they need to live confident, healthy, independent lives, as individuals, parents, workers and members of society. 
• Give students the knowledge, skills and understanding to play an effective role in society at local, national and international levels. 
• Provide education in citizenship and democracy, which will provide coherence in the way in which all students are helped to develop a full understanding of their roles and responsibilities as citizens. 
• Equip students with the knowledge, skills and attributes to make the most of changing opportunities in learning and work. Through their learning and experiences inside and outside school, students begin to understand the nature of the world of work, the diversity and function of business, and its contribution to national prosperity. They develop as questioning and informed consumers and learn to manage their money and finances effectively. 
• Give students an understanding of the positive and negative elements of risk and how to manage it effectively in a variety of situations. 

Personal Development occurs in the curriculum through: 

• Subject schemes of work 
• Planned tutorial programmes 
• Visiting speakers 
• The school's arrangements for pastoral care and student guidance 
• Assemblies 
• School Councils 
• Planned learning opportunities in contexts outside school e.g. residential visits, work experience 
• Extra-curricular activities 
• Encouraging all students to play a helpful part in the life of the school. neighbourhood, community and the wider world. 

PSHE lessons - Unifrog resources

At Newstead we make use of Unifrog resources for the PSHE lessons delivered by form tutors on a Thursday afternoon during registration.  This nationally recognised platform aligns with the PSHE Association learning objectives and uses a spiral curriculum model. This means that, year-on-year, students build knowledge and skills in each topic area. The lessons are arranged into key topic areas and sequenced across year groups to build students' knowledge and skills, but with the flexibility to be taught as standalone sessions.

The core PSHE content delivered during weekly afternoon registration form time reviews the following topic areas:

Health and Wellbeing	Self-concept
	Mental health and emotional wellbeing
	Healthy lifestyles (ages 11-14) / Health-related decisions (ages 14-18)
	Drugs, alcohol and tobacco
	Managing risk and personal safety
Relationships	Positive relationships
	Relationship values
	Forming and maintaining respectful relationships
	Consent
	Bullying, abuse and discrimination
	Social influences
Living in the wider world	Employment rights and responsibilities
	Financial choices
	Media literacy and digital resilience

The PSHE tasks vary depending on lesson content, but typical activity types include:

• Discussions
• Multiple choice questions
• Videos
• Simplified case studies with visual prompts

We assess the impact of our PSHE lessons in four main ways:

• Starter tasks: Assess students’ prior knowledge of topics.
   
• Plenary tasks: Allow students to synthesise, evaluate or reflect upon what they have learned.
   
• Editable mind map templates: Allow teachers to assess students’ knowledge, attitudes and beliefs at the beginning of a topic. This mindmap can then be revisited at the end of the topic, with students adding new information, ideas or attitudes in a second colour to demonstrate progress.
   
• Reflection slides: Help teachers to check understanding of key concepts, and evidence how PSHE education has affected students’ attitudes and behaviours. These can be completed after each lesson, or series of lessons. You may wish to ask students to complete these reflections in a different coloured pen to highlight where assessment is taking place.

Workshops and external providers

For Relationships and Sexual Education (RSE) we make use of visiting speakers, such as the NHS or TalkConsent, who provide nationally recognised workshops which cater to small groups to encourage participation and interaction.  We also use outside providers for much of our PSHE on Drugs, Alcohol and Tobacco. These workshops are provided as part of our statutory obligations to students and are delivered during lesson time.  Parents are at liberty to withdraw students  in Year 11 and below. Students in the Sixth Form are able to withdraw themselves. 

How can I support my child? 

Taking an interest in what she/he is doing and showing that you value what she/he is learning makes a tremendous difference. Please talk to them about the subject that they are covering in school and encourage them to ask you questions. 

What kind of independent work should my child be completing? 

It is good practice to remain up to date with current affairs and to take an active interest in the news and world around them. 

Being proactive with keeping fit and healthy and looking after ourselves is important and will help to develop good habits for the future. 

All students are encouraged to be active members of our clubs and societies. Whether this be sports, culture, arts, debate, current affairs, there is something for everyone at Newstead Wood School.  

Who can I contact for further advice and information? 

Please email Miss A Norris, Director of Safeguarding and Wellbeing, at anorris@newsteadwood.co.uk.