The PSHE/RSE leader is Mrs Dawson
Your PSHE/RSE Leader is Mrs Dawson
At Pirehill First School, PSHE/RSE is a vital part of our curriculum. Through carefully planned lessons, children develop the knowledge, skills and values they need to keep themselves safe, build positive relationships and make healthy, informed choices.
Our PSHE curriculum is built around a spiral approach, following the PSHE Association’s scheme of work. This means key themes are revisited and developed each year in an age-appropriate way, allowing children to deepen their understanding and apply their learning at every stage. We use accredited resources and high-quality lessons to ensure our pupils receive the very best in PSHE education. We have worked closely with our school community to ensure our curriculum is right for our pupils, resulting in additional themes being included. For further information on our PSHE Curriculum please see our policy and long term plan below.
We are also preparing for the forthcoming statutory changes to PSHE from 2026, and have already adapted our long term plan to meet these changes, we will continue to adapt our curriculum in line with national guidance as these changes become statutory.
Our aim is to prepare children not just for the next stage of school, but for life – supporting them to become confident, safe and respectful individuals who are ready to achieve more, together.
National Curriculum guidance
Personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education is an important and necessary part of all pupils’ education. All schools should teach PSHE, drawing on good practice, and this expectation is outlined in the introduction to the proposed new national curriculum.
PSHE is a non-statutory subject. To allow teachers the flexibility to deliver high-quality PSHE we consider it unnecessary to provide new standardised frameworks or programmes of study. PSHE can encompass many areas of study. Teachers are best placed to understand the needs of their pupils and do not need additional central prescription.
However, while we believe that it is for schools to tailor their local PSHE programme to reflect the needs of their pupils, we expect schools to use their PSHE education programme to equip pupils with a sound understanding of risk and with the knowledge and skills necessary to make safe and informed decisions.
Schools should seek to use PSHE education to build, where appropriate, on the statutory content already outlined in the national curriculum, the basic school curriculum and in statutory guidance on: drug education, financial education, sex and relationship education (SRE) and the importance of physical activity and diet for a healthy lifestyle.
Relationship and Sex education (RSE) is an important part of PSHE education and is statutory in maintained secondary schools.
When any school provides SRE they must have regard to the Secretary of State’s guidance ; this is a statutory duty. Academies do not have to provide SRE but must also have regard to Secretary of State’s guidance when they do.
As a First school we will not teach sex education but will ensure the elements of relationships education are taught.