RSE/PSHE/British Values

SMSC / SRE

Our Relationships and Sexual Health Education Curriculum (RSHE) is lifelong learning about physical, moral and mental development. It is about the understanding of the importance of family life, as well as other stable and loving relationships, based on respect, love and care. It is also about the age appropriate teaching of aspects of sex, sexuality, and sexual health. It involves acquiring information, developing skills, and forming positive beliefs, values and attitudes.

We feel it is important that our RSHE caters for all pupils and is respectful of how pupils choose to identify themselves, understanding that depending on their age and maturity, their sexual orientation and gender identity may be 'emerging'. This means that relationship and sex education must be sensitive to the different needs of individual pupils and my need to evolve over time.

Our high quality RSHE curriculum helps create a safe Academy community in which pupils can grow, learn, and develop positive, healthy behaviour for life. It is essential for the following reasons:

• Children and young people have a right to good quality education, as set out in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Our aim is to contribute to promoting the spiritual, moral, cultural, emotional and physical development of pupils at the Academy and to prepare pupils for opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of adult life.

Our RSHE curriculum focuses on the following areas:

• To develop confidence in talking, listening and thinking about feelings and relationships
• To develop the ability to name parts of the body correctly and understand how bodies work
• To prepare pupils for puberty
• To develop positive attitudes and explore and clarify values
• To understand how babies are conceived and born
• To build self-esteem and self confidence
• To teach about relationships, love and care and the responsibilities of parenthood
• To help children develop skills to enable them to understand difference, respect themselves and others
• To help children move with confidence from childhood to adolescence
• To help students develop the skills and understanding they need to live confident, healthy and independent lives
• To raise awareness of how to keep E-safe (See separate policy)
• To develop positive attitudes around British values and living within a multicultural British society
• To raise awareness and understanding of the LGBTQ community
• To raise awareness of health and well being
• To teach children to develop financial responsibility

We define relationships and sex education as-

• the building blocks needed for positive and safe relationships, including with family, friends and online, and at the appropriate time to sexual health and developing intimate relationships.  This includes the importance of treating ourselves and others with kindness, consideration and respect.
• emotional, social and physical aspects of growing up, relationships, sex, human sexuality and sexual health.
• lifelong learning about physical, moral and emotional development. It is about the understanding of the importance of friendships and family life, stable and loving relationships, respect, love and care. It is also about the teaching of sex, sexuality and sexual health. RSE is not about the promotion of sexual orientation or activity.

This applies to all areas of pupils' development and learning. We believe relationships and sex education plays a key part in providing children and young people with the knowledge that enables them to make informed decisions about their wellbeing, health and relationships and to build their self-efficacy. Everyone faces difficult situations in their lives. These subjects can support young people to develop resilience, to know how and when to ask for help, and to know where to access support.  Ultimately, helping our young people to be happy, healthy and safe now and in the future.

Our Relationships and Sexual Health Education at Richmond Hill is firmly embedded in the SMSC framework and taught alongside and in conjunction with our PSHE curriculum which will help children learn to respect themselves and others, and move with confidence from childhood, through puberty and into adolescence.

The academy believes that the responsibility for planning and delivering this curriculum lies firmly with the teaching staff based on the needs of all pupils. RSHE is taught by classroom teachers, sometimes supported by classroom assistants / support staff.

It is recognised that there may be occasions when it is felt more appropriate to deliver aspects of the work in single gender groups and this is in line with Government guidance Sex and Relationships Education Guidance DfEE (0116/2000) and the supplementary advice Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) for the 21st Century 2014. The same curricular content will be delivered to both boys and girls when this occurs.

A variety of teaching strategies are used in this area of the curriculum. This includes, group work, discussion, pair work, role-play, individual work, reflection, circle time, film clips, use of children's fiction books, etc.

Lyndsey Bickerstaffe

Phase Leader LKS2 and Class Teacher 

RSE/PSHE/British Values Lead