PSHE

Please go to the bottom of the page to download and read the latest PSHE Newsletter

At The Castle School, our PSHE curriculum allows our students to develop the skills, knowledge and understanding to empower them to achieve their personal aspirations. Through PSHE, we aim to equip students with the skills they need to live their lives safely, fully, and as independently as possible. At The Castle School, PSHE is embedded in everything we do. From Key Stage 2 onwards, students have a discrete weekly PSHE lesson to teach them the skills they need, and throughout the school day, staff support students to use these skills in real life situations. Students EHCP’s (Education Health Care plans) provide bespoke PSHE targets which are worked on throughout the day and are an integral part of our learning.

Pupil voice

We value our pupils’ contributions to our curriculum planning and how safe they feel in school. We ensure we gain pupil voice through our annual sense of safety surveys, PSHE curriculum surveys, and our School Council.

 

Whole School Resources

At The Castle School, we have invested in physical and electronic resources and training, to ensure our pupils are safe and equipped with the skills and knowledge they need for life.

We are a National Online Safety Certified School, and all teachers, TA’S and safeguarding leads, have annual online safety training. Please see the National Online Safety letter on the school website for information about how to obtain a parent login.

  • We have purchased an online subscription to Life Support Productions guides, which gives teachers lesson plans, resources and videos to teach effective RSE and RSHE for our pupils with moderate learning difficulties. https://lifesupportproductions.co.uk/

             We have the following packages:

You, your body, growing up, relationships and sex – for SEND

The New Guide to relationships and sex – Secondary

The Primary guide to Relationships and sex – Primary

  • We use the Chailey Heritage programme for teaching RSHE to our pupils with more complex needs. Teaching staff have received training on how to use the programme. We use anatomically correct dolls and sensory stories, to help our pupils understand their own bodies and their relationships with others.
  • We also have a subscription to Tasted https://www.tasteeducation.com/ to support our pupils learning about healthy eating.
We have boxes of physical resources for all topic areas in our resources room. Resources are photographed and labelled, so staff can access them when needed.

 

Our Curriculum

Early Years (Adventure Pathway) Personal, Social and Emotional Skills Curriculum

Those students who join us in Early Years and Key Stage 1 are some of our most complex.  They follow an Early Years developmental curriculum which starts them on their successful journey as a learner (Our Adventure pathway.  It develops their communication and their social skills to provide them with the best possible start to their school career.  Through the Personal, Social and Emotional skills curriculum, students work on making relationships, developing self-confidence and self-awareness, and how to manage their feelings and behaviour. The curriculum provides a solid foundation for their PSHE learning throughout their school career.

 

Primary PSHE and RHE (Relationships and Heath Education)

At Castle School, we use the PSHE Association planning framework for pupils with SEND, Key stage 1 and 2, to ensure that our pupils in Primary 2 receive a broad, balanced curriculum that covers all statutory areas of the DFE’s statutory guidance for Primary Relationships education 2019. We also go beyond the statutory guidance and cover the ‘Living in the Wider World’ themes from the PSHE association framework, as these are essential for our pupils to thrive. We will be updating the planning this year to include the new elements of the 2025 guidance, ready to be implemented in September 2026.

N.B Internet Safety and Relationships health education are interwoven throughout the topic areas.

The PSHE Lead provides planning that covers all statutory and non-statutory areas of PSHE, is based on the PSHE association SEND planning framework, and is differentiated for all Castle Pathways. We trust our teachers to differentiate and personalise this planning, so that it meets all of our learners' needs. We ensure that all classes cover all areas of PSHE across the year but allow teachers the flexibility to teach topics at the most appropriate time of year for their pupils.

Self Awareness

1. Things we are good at

 2. Kind and unkind behaviours

3. Playing and working together

4. People who are special to us

 5. Getting on with others

 

 

 

Self-Care, Support and Safety

1.Taking care of ourselves

 2. Keeping safe

3. Trust

4. Keeping safe online

5. Public and Private

 

 

 

Managing Feelings

1. Identifying and expressing feelings

2. Managing strong feelings

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Changing and Growing

1. Baby to adult

2. Changes at puberty

3. Dealing with touch

4. Different types of relationship

 

 

 

 

Heathy lifestyles

1. Healthy Eating

2. Taking care of physical health

3. Keeping well

 

 

 

 

 

The World I live in.

1.Respecting differences between people

2. Jobs people do

3. Rules and laws

4. Taking care of the environment

5. Belonging to a community

6. Money

 

Secondary PSHE and RSHE (Relationships, Health and Sex Education.)

At Castle School, we use the PSHE Association planning framework, for pupils with SEND, Key stage 3 and 4, and Post 16 pupils on the Explore Pathway, to ensure that our pupils receive a broad, balanced curriculum that covers all statutory areas of the DFE’s statutory guidance for Secondary Relationships Health and Sex education, 2019. We also go beyond the statutory guidance and cover the ‘Living in the Wider World’ themes from the PSHE Association Framework, as these are essential for our pupils to thrive.

N.B. Internet Safety and Relationships Health and Sex education are interwoven throughout the topic areas.

The PSHE Lead provides planning that covers all statutory and non-statutory areas of PSHE, and is based on the PSHE association SEND planning framework, and is differentiated for all Castle Pathways. We trust our teachers to differentiate and personalise this planning, so that it meets all of our learners' needs. We ensure that all classes cover all areas of PSHE across the year but allow teachers the flexibility to teach topics at the most appropriate time of year for their pupils.

Self Awareness

1. Personal strengths

2. Skills for learning

3. Prejudice and discrimination

 4. Managing pressure

Self-Care, Support and Safety

1. Feeling unwell

2. Feeling frightened/worried

3. Accidents and risk

4. Keeping safe online

5. Emergency situations

 6. Public and private 7. Gambling

Managing Feelings

1. Self-esteem and unkind comments

2. Strong feelings

3. Romantic feelings and sexual attraction

4. Expectations of relationships

/abuse

Changing and Growing

1. Puberty

2. Positive/ unhealthy relationships

3. Friendships

4. Intimate relationships, consent and contraception

5. Long-term relationships/

parenthood

Heathy lifestyles

1. Elements of a healthy lifestyle

2. Mental wellbeing

3. Physical activity

4. Healthy eating

5. Body image

6. Medicinal drugs

 7. Drugs, alcohol & tobacco

The World I live in

1. Human diversity

2. Rights and responsibilities

3. Managing online information

4. Taking care of the environment

5. Preparing for adulthood

6. Managing finances

 

Post 16 PSHE and RSHE

At Castle School, we use the PSHE Association Programme of study for Key Stage 5 pupils to ensure that our pupils in Post 16 receive a broad, balanced curriculum. At the end of Key Stage 5, students will continue their journey into further education, supported living and employment. As the PSHE association says:  “There is a balance throughout this Programme of Study between preparing students to manage their current lives and laying the foundations for managing future experiences.”

The PSHE Lead provides planning that covers all statutory and non-statutory areas of PSHE, is based on the PSHE association SEND planning framework and is differentiated for all Castle Pathways. We trust our teachers to differentiate and personalise this planning, so that it meets all of our learners' needs. We ensure that all classes cover all areas of PSHE across the year, but allow teachers the flexibility to teach topics at the most appropriate time of year for their pupils.

Health and wellbeing

  • Self concept
  • Mental health and emotional wellbeing
  • Healthy lifestyles
  • Managing risk and personal safety
  • Sexual health
  • Drugs, Alcohol and Tobacco

Relationships

  • Relationship Values
  • Forming and maintaining successful relationships.
  • Consent
  • Contraception and parenthood
  • Bullying, abuse and discrimination.

Living in the wider world.

  • Choices and pathways
  • Work and Career
  • Employment rights and Responsibilities
  • Financial choices
  • Media Literacy and Digital Resilience.