Maidwell Primary School

Relationships and Health Education

Intent

At Maidwell Primary, we value RHE as one way to support children’s development as human beings, to enable them to understand and respect who they are, to empower them with a voice and to equip them for life and learning. We teach RHE as a whole-school approach to underpin children’s development as people and because we believe that this also supports their learning capacity.

The Discovery Education Programme forms the foundation of our RHE curriculum. This offers us a comprehensive, carefully thought-through Scheme of Work which brings consistency and progression to our children’s learning in this vital curriculum area.

Relationships Education at Maidwell covers:

  • Healthy and Happy Friendships;
  • Similarities and Differences;
  • Caring and Responsibility;
  • Families and committed relationships;
  • Healthy bodies, healthy minds;
  • Coping with change.

Sex education at Maidwell Primary ensures that both boys and girls are prepared for the changes that adolescence brings and – drawing on knowledge of the human life cycle set out in the national curriculum for science - how a baby is conceived and born.

RHE also supports the “Personal Development” and “Behaviour and Attitude” aspects required under the Ofsted Inspection Framework, as well as significantly contributing to the school’s Safeguarding and Equality Duties, the Government’s British Values agenda and the SMSC (Spiritual, Moral, Social, Cultural) development opportunities provided for our children.

Additional information regarding Sex Education is also available on our supplementary page.

Maidwell Primary’s RHE curriculum is further developed to consider the needs of the local community – the school works closely with pupils, parents, local specialist support services, health professionals and others with local community knowledge to ensure our RHE curriculum is relevant and holistic in its content. This gives children relevant learning experiences to help them navigate their world and to develop positive relationships with themselves and others. Emotional literacy, building resilience and nurturing mental and physical well-being, are prioritised.

Implementation

Discovery Education covers all areas of RHE for Year 1 to Year 6 including statutory Relationships and Health Education. The same topic is taught across the whole school each term.

At Maidwell Primary we allocate 45 minutes to RHE each week in order to teach the knowledge and skills in a developmental and age-appropriate way.

These explicit lessons are reinforced and enhanced in many ways: Assemblies, praise and reward system, ground rules, through relationships child to child, adult to child and adult to adult across the school. We aim to ‘live’ what is learnt and apply it to everyday situations in the school community.

Lessons are delivered in a safe, sensitive manner.  Teachers are mindful of the lesson content and take steps to ensure individuals are prepared in advance should it be necessary. Resources are checked for stereotyping and/or bias and are inclusive.  Teachers ensure pupils feel able to discuss and explore issues without judgement on them, their families or lifestyles. 

Ground rules are established and frequently revisited.  A clear code of conduct is negotiated and agreed (as appropriate to age and lesson content). Teachers are mindful of educating without glamorising unhealthy behaviours or images.   ‘Distancing’ techniques are used in lessons to enable pupils to disassociate with issues and scenarios – this is done through use of picture books, scenarios, case studies, ‘agony aunt’ advice situations, cartoons, puppets, film clips etc.  Pupils are provided with support information (as appropriate given their age).

All activities or experiences delivered by external visitors are vetted in line with the school’s strict safeguarding protocols and learning content is checked for political bias, extremism and suitability.  Resources used in school are carefully vetted.

Cross Curricular

Wherever possible, the RHE Curriculum is enhanced by interleaving content through other subjects. Specifically, links with the RHE Curriculum enable pupils to gain a deeper understanding of health and wellbeing, relationships and living in the wider world (including economic wellbeing and aspects of careers education). Stories are used to support the understanding of key issues and concepts.

Impact

  • Children demonstrate and apply the British values of democracy, tolerance, mutual respect, Rule of law and liberty. They are able to discuss why these values are important.
  • Children have a healthy outlook towards school.
  • Children display positive and healthy relationships with their peers and other members of the school community, both now and in the future.
  • Children understand the physical aspects involved in RSE at an age appropriate level.
  • Children have respect for themselves and others.
  • Children have positive body images.
  • Children know how to stay safe in the physical and digital worlds.
  • Children make positive choices and decisions; develop their own positive values and attitudes and challenge discrimination in all its forms.
  • Children have an awareness and understanding about their own mental health and well-being.

Children are given regular opportunities to reflect on and identify what they have learned.

The personal nature of RHE education means that it cannot be assessed in the same way as most other subjects and it would be inappropriate for assessment in RHE education to imply passing or failing ‘as a person’. It is however possible to recognise and evidence progress and attainment in the knowledge, understanding, skills and attributes RHE strives to develop.

Leaders will monitor the quality and impact of the RHE Curriculum through regular pupil voice and assess the extent to which pupils know more and remember more.

SEND/Disadvantaged

RHE lessons are accessible for all our pupils. Maidwell Primary is aware that vulnerable children or those with special educational needs may be more at risk of adverse experiences.  As such, all resources and materials are used flexibly in the classroom and lessons are adapted so all pupils learn key knowledge and skills to equip them for a safer life. Care is taken to ensure all groups of learners feel represented regardless of age, disability, gender assignment, race, religion/belief or sexual orientation.