PSHE
The PSHE Curriculum, including RSHE
All students at St Mary’s Catholic High School follow a programme of Personal, Social, Health and Economic education (PSHE), with weekly lessons delivered by their Form Tutors. The PSHE curriculum complements the programmes of study for all other subjects and aims to help our students develop key skills and acquire the knowledge, understanding and attributes they need to manage their lives now and in the future. It aims to introduce our students to the concept that they are part of a wider community as global citizens now and in their future roles within a global community.
Through our PSHE curriculum we aim to help build confident individuals who are able to live safe, healthy and fulfilling lives and enjoy learning. We want our students to become responsible citizens who make positive contributions to society.
Our PSHE curriculum, while underpinned by our Catholic ethos, includes opportunities to link to British Values as well as Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural (SMSC) developments.
Our PSHE curriculum aims to help students:
- develop positive personal attributes such as resilience, self-confidence, self-esteem, and empathy
- develop skills and strategies to live healthy, safe, fulfilling, responsible and balanced lives
- form positive relationships
- explore, clarify and if necessary challenge, their own and others’ values, attitudes, beliefs, rights and responsibilities
- respond to challenge, making and acting upon informed decisions
- communicate effectively
- be an active partner in their own learning
- be active citizens within the local and wider community.
RSHE
In the area of Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE), the Catholic character of the school requires it to remain faithful to the Church's beliefs and teaching on matters of faith, morality, human dignity and relationships. In particular, the school encourages an understanding of, and respect for, the sanctity of human life, the virtue of chastity, and the sacrament of marriage.
The RSHE element of the school’s PSHE programme makes use of ‘Ten Ten: Life to the Full’ resources. These are approved for use by both the Catholic Education Service as well as Catholic Dioceses in England & Wales, including the Archdiocese of Southwark. All parents are provided with unique access to ‘Ten Ten: Life to the Full’ resources in order that they are aware of the content and structure of the RSHE programme. In delivering the PSHE programme, including RSHE, the school is sensitive to the cultural, personal and family circumstances of our students, while maintaining the integrity of Catholic belief and teaching.
RSHE at St Mary’s aims to:
- be faithful to the Church's vision of human wholeness whilst recognising the contemporary context in which we live today
- involve parents as they are primary educators of their child
- provide a positive view of human sexuality and dignity of the human person
- equip young people with the ability to make practical judgments about the right thing to do in particular circumstances
- explore and promote virtues which are essential to promoting respect and dignity
- be delivered in an age appropriate way which reflects the development of the child
- be part of the cross-curricular work in both primary and secondary schools
- be sensitive to the needs of the individual pupil and recognise the mix of pupils with different sexual orientations, genders and family backgrounds in each class
- be taken seriously by governors and teachers as an integrated part of the broad and balanced curriculum that Catholic schools offer
- be delivered by competent professionals who understand the Church's teaching.