PSHE
PSHE Curriculum Intent
The role of PSHE at Ormskirk school is to equip students with the knowledge and skills needed to flourish within the wider world. The aim of the curriculum is to develop our students into healthy, independent and responsible citizens of Great Britain and the wider world. The Curriculum is rooted in the belief that everyone has the right to inclusive, pupil-centred learning that allows students to celebrate their differences and fosters a sense of being ‘proud to belong’ to our immediate, local and wider community.
As pupils transition through KS3 to KS4, content is revisited, upscaled and applied to different scenarios. The curriculum is structured into four termly units which focus on the following themes:
- Health and wellbeing
- Relationships
- Living in the wider world
- Citizenship.
While studying at KS3, students will have the opportunity to explore topics such as self-confidence, learn about the law on consent, the impact of puberty and different career pathways. At KS4, we will explore strategies to promote our emotional wellbeing, the dangers to our personal, physical and online safety, while also having a deeper focus on topics such as vocational and higher education, career pathways and employability. All year groups will be taught the statutory Citizenship curriculum, with topics such as what it means to live in a democracy, the impact of Brexit and the dangers of religious and political extremism. These themes are in line with the national curriculum and allow for the social, spiritual, moral and cultural development of our young people by covering important and engaging topics such as being safe, online and the media, families, British rule and law. Each unit of study is linked to a variety of careers, promoting a variety of vocational and academic progression routes for our young people.
Addressing local and national safeguarding and crime statistics, students will also cover statutory RSE content such as consent, respectful, intimate and sexual relationships. The lessons delivered will promote resilience, challenge stereotypes and allow our students to feel like valued members of our school community regardless of their race, gender, religion or sexual identity. RSE content will be taught with the support of West Lancashire Police and Lancashire Sexual Health service to ensure accurate and informative lessons with clear signposting for our young people.
Our curriculum prides itself on promoting a love of reading and literacy, with lessons planned to allow students to explore a variety of stories, real life case studies, poems and primary data. This will allow students to strengthen their vocabulary and develop skills such as analysis, team work and critical thinking.
Our sixth form PSHE programme is delivered by Personal Tutors twice weekly in Tutor Time as well as via assemblies and the enrichment programme that runs for an hour each week. The curriculum has been designed to enable students to access a range of talks, presentations, workshops, discussions and enrichment opportunities which help guide them through sixth form life and prepare them for life beyond. As well as being delivered by our experienced team of personal tutors we access a wide range of external organisations such as the NHS, Lancashire Mind and First Aid providers so that students are receiving up-to-date and accurate information from the appropriate experts. At the heart of our programme is the objective to nurture our students’ personal, social, moral and cultural awareness so that they leave us culturally aware and prepared to contribute positively to society.
Coming together regularly as a tutor group, a year group or a whole sixth form also engenders a team spirit, a sense of community and belonging, where we can share ideas and opinions in a safe space and celebrate achievement in the spirit of our Trust’s values.
The topics that we deliver have to be relevant and this can change rapidly, we ensure that we are responsive. With that in mind our curriculum is flexible and will be updated to keep in touch with local events and current affairs, our students quite often driving the content that is delivered, depending on their needs at that time. Our aim is always to develop in students the skills, knowledge and qualities that help equip them to confidently face and embrace modern Britain.
