PSHE Education (Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education) is a planned programme of learning through which children and young people acquire the knowledge, understanding and skills they need to successfully manage their lives – now and in the future. As part of a whole-school approach, PSHE Education develops the qualities and attributes pupils need to thrive as individuals, family members and members of society.
According to the National Curriculum, every school needs to have a broad and balanced curriculum that:
From September 2020, primary schools in England also need to teach Relationships and Health Education as compulsory subjects and the Department for Education strongly recommends this should also include age-appropriate Sex Education.
Schools also have statutory responsibilities to safeguard their pupils (Keeping Children Safe in Education, DfE, 2019) and to uphold the Equality Act (2010).
At Houghton Regis Primary School, we follow a whole school PSHE scheme called Jigsaw. Jigsaw supports all of the above statements.
Jigsaw is a whole-school approach and embodies a positive philosophy and creative teaching and learning activities to nurture children’s development as compassionate and well-rounded human beings as well as building their capacity to learn.
Jigsaw is a comprehensive and completely original PSHE Education programme (lesson plans and teaching resources) for the whole primary school from ages 3-11 (12 in Scotland). Written by teachers and grounded in sound psychology, it also includes all the statutory requirements for Relationships and Health Education, and Sex Education is also included in the Changing Me Puzzle (unit).
Jigsaw has two main aims for all children:
Jigsaw brings together PSHE Education, compulsory Relationships and Health Education, emotional literacy, mindfulness, social skills and spiritual development. It is designed as a whole school approach, with all year groups working on the same theme (Puzzle) at the same time at their own level. There are six Puzzles (half-term units of work) and each year group is taught one lesson per week. All lessons are delivered in an age- and stage-appropriate way so that they meet children’s needs.
Each Puzzle starts with an introductory assembly, interwoven within the schools core value of the month generating a whole school focus for adults and children alike. There is also a Weekly class assembly that highlights a theme from that week’s lesson across the school encouraging children to live that learning in their behaviour and attitudes.
At Houghton Regis Primary School, PSHE is at the core of all we do and enables our children to become independent, confident, healthy and responsible members of society, as well as developing the ‘whole child’ intellectually, morally, socially and spiritually.
PSHE is taught across the school from nursery to Year 6 on a weekly basis and the whole school follows and adapts the Jigsaw PSHE scheme. Our PSHE curriculum equips children with relevant and meaningful content, which is supported through a strong emphasis on emotional literacy, building resilience and nurturing mental and physical health. At the heart of our PSHE teaching we have a commitment to promoting and enhancing our core British values:
Democracy, Individual liberty, Rule of law, Mutual respect & Tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.
British-Values-by-Puzzles-and-Year-Groups
With an ever changing society, we are able to provide our children with a strong understanding of the diverse world around them and support them in playing a positive role in contributing to the school and the wider community. We want our children to view themselves as global citizens and aspire for them to leave Houghton Regis Primary as considerate, respectful and resilient individuals. It is important that they are aware, at an appropriate level, of different factors which may affect their world and that they learn how best to deal with these so that they have good mental health and well-being.
A key part of our curriculum is Relationships and Sex Education and our delivery of RSE enables our children to learn how to be safe, and empowers them to have healthy fulfilling relationships, both now and in their future lives.
Through our whole-school approach to PSHE, it is our belief that excellence in these areas will lead to high aspirations across the curriculum and beyond in later life. We aspire for the children to view themselves as lifelong learners who can always aim for the stars.
Here at Houghton Regis, we take great pride in our holistic approach, so we have adopted the Jigsaw scheme of work which aims to develop the ‘whole child’ through a spiral curriculum. We implement the Jigsaw approach from Nursery to Year Six and teachers adapt the scheme in order to reflect the needs of their pupils. PSHE is taught through Jigsaw’s six half termly units with each year group studying the same unit at the same time to develop their knowledge, skills and understanding in:
Term 1: Being Me in My World
Term 2: Celebrating Difference (including anti-bullying)
Term 3: Dreams and Goals
Term 4: Healthy Me
Term 5: Relationships
Term 6: Changing Me (including Relationships, Sex & Health Education)
Learning in each topic then takes place during weekly whole class Jigsaw lessons which explore the different themes. Progression in skills and knowledge in PSHE are outlined in the progression grid below:
Its cohesive vision helps children understand and value how they fit into and contribute to the world. With a strong emphasis on emotional literacy, building resilience and nurturing mental and physical health, Jigsaw equips us to deliver engaging and relevant PSHE education. This encourages building resilience and nurturing mental and physical health. Jigsaw lessons also include mindfulness which allows children to advance their emotional awareness, self-regulation and concentration.
We believe that PSHE education plays a vital part in primary education so as well as discrete lessons, it is embedded throughout the curriculum. Key concepts are explored across our broad and balanced curriculum. PSHE is also an important part of school assemblies where children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural curiosity is stimulated, challenged and nurtured. In addition we hold special events such as themed days/weeks, we invite in visitors and have regular links with our community.
Our PSHE delivery ensures the children explore the diverse beliefs, values and attitudes that individuals and societies hold. It helps pupils to develop themselves, their understanding of the world, and their ability to communicate their feelings. Children at Houghton Regis also acquire an understanding of British values that are necessary if they are to make sense of their experiences, value themselves, respect others, appreciate differences and feel confident and informed as a British and global citizen.
By the time children leave us they will:
At Houghton Regis Primary, we prioritise physical and mental health and wellbeing, providing children with skills to evaluate and understand their own wellbeing needs, practice self-care and contribute positively to the wellbeing of those around them. We are committed to creating a positive, safe and nurturing environment, where all members of the school and wider community will be respected and valued. Children are enabled to develop the vocabulary and confidence needed to clearly articulate their thoughts and feelings openly and know when and how they can seek the support of others whom they trust and respect. They will apply their understanding of society to their everyday interactions, from the classroom to the wider community.
We continuously assess the implementation and impact of our PSHE curriculum in order to achieve the highest outcomes possible across all year groups and ensure we provide the support that is necessary for all children to achieve.
Our PSHE approach has a positive impact on the whole child intellectually, morally, socially and spiritually. Through our PSHE curriculum, we believe we can enhance children’s education and help them to become caring, respectful, responsible and confident individuals and citizens.
From September 2020, Relationships and Health Education are compulsory in all primary schools in England. For primary aged children this includes curriculum content under two headings:
Relationships Education is designed to help children to have positive and safe relationships with family, friends and online. All primary schools are required by the government to teach Relationships Education and parents cannot withdraw children from this section of the curriculum. The areas this section of the curriculum cover are:
Health Education will help children to make good decisions about their health and wellbeing and enable them to know how to seek support if any health issues arise for themselves or others. The areas it will cover are:
This DfE guidance clearly states the statutory requirements, i.e. what children MUST be taught by the end of primary school. Health Education includes learning about ‘the changing adolescent body’ to equip children to understand and cope with puberty. The National Curriculum for Science (also a compulsory subject), includes learning the correct names for the main external body parts, learning about the human body as it grows from birth to old age and reproduction in some plants and animals (which could include human beings). So, Relationships Education, Health Education and Science are compulsory subjects and parents/carers do NOT have the right to withdraw their children from these subjects.
Sex Education is designed to help children to:
Parents do have the right to request their child is withdrawn from these specific lessons. If you wish to withdraw your child, please contact your child’s class teacher who will be happy to discuss this.
At Houghton Regis Primary School, we have been delivering RSE within our Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) curriculum for many years. We have reviewed our PSHE curriculum to make sure that our lessons meet the requirements that the government has set out for the content of Relationships and Health Education.
The DfE recommends, ‘that all primary schools should have a Sex Education programme tailored to the age and the physical and emotional maturity of the pupils.’ At Houghton Regis Primary, this is taught through our Jigsaw PSHE programme, which is delivered through the ‘Relationships’ and ‘Changing Me’ puzzle pieces which are covered in the summer term.
There are four main aims of teaching RSE:
Each year group will be taught appropriate to their age and developmental stage. At no point will a child be taught something that is inappropriate; and if a question from a child arises and the teacher feels it would be inappropriate to answer, (for example, because of its mature or explicit nature), this information with be shared with you by your child’s class teacher. The question will not be answered to the child or class if it is outside the remit of that year group’s programme.
Below is a summary of RSE coverage within the Jigsaw scheme for each year group:
• Foundation Stage – Growing up: how we have changed since we were babies
• Year 1 – Boys’ and girls’ bodies; naming body parts
• Year 2 – Boys’ and girls’ bodies; body parts and respecting privacy (which parts of the body are private and why this is)
• Year 3 – How babies grow and how boys’ and girls’ bodies change as they grow older
• Year 4 – Internal and external reproductive body parts, body changes in girls and menstruation
• Year 5 – Puberty for boys and girls, and conception
• Year 6 – Puberty for boys and girls and understanding conception to birth of a baby.
If you would like more information about statutory Relationships and Health Education, please click below to read a parent and carer guide. Further information about how the school approaches the teaching of Relationships and Sex Education through the Jigsaw programme can also be found within the documents listed below:
RSE-A-Guide-for-Parents-and-Carers
