Tower Hill Primary School
CPSHE Policy

Introduction

At Tower Hill Primary School we believe that Citizenship and PSHE (CPSHE) form a vital part of children’s Personal development Learning (PDL).

At Tower Hill we aim to provide a healthy, caring community in which children can learn to respect themselves and others and also to take responsibility for their own actions. Positive approaches to personal, social and health issues are promoted throughout the curriculum and general life of the school. Children are encouraged to learn and acquire new skills that will enable them to show respect and concern for themselves, others and the environment. They will also be encouraged to see themselves as valued members of both the school community and society at large. They should feel that they have an active part to play in these communities and should be aware of the associated rights and responsibilities that go with that. This will also help to engender values and attitudes which stay with them into adult life allowing them to make informed life choices and to develop a personal moral code.

Our Main Aims:

•   To promote a holistic approach to CPSHE which pervades all aspects of a child’s life at school.
•   To plan, create and make use of opportunities, which consider achievement and promote positive experiences to develop self esteem.
•   To introduce children to a knowledge and understanding of healthy attitudes and lifestyles, which will help them to maintain a sense of well-being.
•   To help the children to develop a range of personal and social skills, which will then help them to develop self-awareness, to relate well to others and form stable relationships in their future lives.
•   To enable children to have respect for others and have knowledge about other people in terms of gender, race, religious beliefs and other differences.
•   To enable the children to make decisions based on accurate knowledge and a sense of right and wrong.
•   To promote in the children a sense of personal worth, so that they are able to assert their own rights and respect those of others
•   To encourage children to see themselves as active, valued members of the community, knowing their rights and responsibilities and with the ability to express these appropriately.
•   To teach the children the practical skills to keep them safe in the different, potentially dangerous situations in which they might find themselves.
•   To teach the children that people have to take responsibility for their own actions, decisions and choices in life and the resulting consequences.

Teaching and Learning and Curriculum:

At Tower Hill Primary School, delivery of the PSHE curriculum is taught using the Jigsaw scheme of work which provides even coverage and progression of the syllabus across all year groups.  Jigsaw brings together PSHE education, emotional literacy, social skills and spiritual development in a comprehensive scheme of learning. Teachers use a wide range of teaching strategies, including role play, discussion, group work and Circle Time as a vehicle for delivering, discussing and reflecting on life skills.

Jigsaw is designed as a whole school approach, with all year groups working on the same theme (Puzzle) at the same time. This enables each Puzzle to start with an introductory assembly, generating a whole school focus for adults and children alike. There are six Puzzles in Jigsaw that are designed to progress in sequence from September to July. Each Puzzle has six Pieces (lessons) which work towards an ‘end product’, for example, The School Learning Charter or The Garden of Dreams and Goals. Each Piece has two Learning Intentions: one is based on specific PSHE learning (covering the non-statutory national framework for PSHE Education but enhanced to address children’s needs today); and one is based on emotional literacy and social skills.  Jigsaw is relevant to children living in today’s world as it helps them understand and be equipped to cope with issues like body image, cyber and homophobic bullying, and internet safety.

As a school we believe the role of PSHE is significant to individual pupil motivation and achievement; it teaches children to make independent, healthy, confident and respectful choices in order to develop into an active citizen with a strong, positive disposition and self-worth.

Assessment and Recording

Teachers use Assessment for Learning (AfL) assessment techniques to promote pupil self assessment and clarify future learning objectives. All teachers, Learning Support Assistants, midday staff and administrative staff are responsible for informing the teachers about notable points of personal and social development in individual pupils. It is the responsibility of individual teachers and the SENCo to identify pupils’ progress which is well above or below that which is expected.

Progress will be monitored through:

ü  Pupil conferencing

ü  Annotated planning

ü  Questionnaires including:  Hampshire Pupil Satisfaction Surveys, Parental Questionnaires, Staff Well Being survey

ü  Unit assessments in Jigsaw

Inclusion

CPSHE positively supports Tower Hill’s policy of inclusion. All pupils, staff and adult helpers participate. CPSHE activities provide opportunities for all pupils to excel. They also provide opportunities for individuals and the whole group to consider who, how and why people are excluded.

Confidentiality

Class Teachers and Learning Support Assistants conduct CPSHE lessons in a sensitive manner and in confidence. Class Charters are established during CPSHE activities to ensure children feel safe & are willing to explore sensitive issues. Teachers are available to discuss issues with any parents. Children’s questions are answered as honestly and fully as appropriate. However, if a child makes reference to anything which gives cause for concern (e.g. sexual abuse, illegal substance use) then clearly such matters cannot remain confidential. Staff will report such incidents to one of the six Designated Safeguarding Leaders (DSL) who will decide whether the matter should be dealt with as a child protection issue (see Child Protection Policy.)

Visitors & Volunteer Helpers

The school uses several outside agencies to contribute to the CPSHE programme. e.g. School Nurse, Firefighters, the Police and the Safer Neighbourhood Team. These visitors and regular voluntary helpers in school have been DBS checked. Preparation and planning of visits is carefully undertaken in order to maximize the benefits of the visit. Visitors and helpers are made aware of the school’s CPSHE Policy and expectations with regard to confidentiality. A Volunteer’s Safeguarding  Pack is given to regular volunteer helpers. Visitors do not take sole responsibility for classes and class teachers or Learning Support Assistants are always present i.e. they do not operate in Regulated Activity.

School Council

The School Council is a key element in the development of Citizenship with the school. The main aim of the School Council is to give a voice to the ‘silent majority’ of children within the school who are committed to the school and want to see it improve, but whose ideas and opinions might otherwise go unnoticed. It is recognised that these views and opinions are an essential part of the continued progress and development of the school.

The School Council encourages all children to take an active role in the life of the school by allowing them the chance to raise their concerns and ideas for formal discussion. It also allows children to be involved in the school’s decision-making process and whenever reasonable, new ideas and initiatives should be put to the School Council for their input. To ensure that the pupils’ ideas are listened to and are properly considered a ‘link teacher’ works with the school council. The link teacher ensures that the council is running effectively and fairly and also ensures staff are aware of the issues currently being debated by the Council and can put forward ideas or concerns raised by staff. To ensure the School Council runs smoothly all staff should:

• support and promote the elections each year
• allow class time for the class representatives to feed back to the pupils as soon after each meeting as possible
• allow class representatives to attend all meetings.

Peer Mentors

Peer Mentors are available to members of the school community as a point of contact for children experiencing personal or social difficulties. They are also trained to support delivery of Circle Time in any class. Peer Mentors are not expected to deal with issues that they feel uncomfortable with and have a link with the school’s Pastoral Care Manager.

Special Educational Needs Pupils

CPSHE forms part of a broad and balanced education and is available to all children. At Tower Hill, our CPSHE teaching provides learning opportunities that enable all pupils to make progress. This is achieved through suitable learning challenges and responding to each child’s different needs.

When progress falls significantly outside the expected range, the child may have Special Educational Needs. Our assessment process looks at a range of factors – classroom organisation, teaching materials, teaching style, differentiation – so that we can take some additional or different action to enable the child to learn more effectively. This ensures that our teaching is matched to the child’s needs.

Resources

All class teachers have access to the Jigsaw planning and resources. These can be found on the school’s shared server.

Staff Development and Training Opportunities

Many of the issues raised in CPSHE activities are sensitive. It is important that all staff are aware of the different dynamics in the class when adult/parent helpers are present during activities and discussions. However, the presence of trusted adults other that the teacher can enrich CPSHE.

Leadership and Management Roles

The PDL leader has the responsibility to take a lead in developing CPSHE across the school and supporting staff confidence through:

• attending appropriate conferences
• disseminating relevant advice and information from courses and, where appropriate include this in improvement planning
• identifying training needs through induction programmes and performance management
• having an overview of CPSHE across the school
• where necessary, leading or arranging school-based training.

N.B. “Parents” should be taken to include all those with parental responsibility as defined in the Children’s Act.

Linked Policies

CPSHE is a part of the Personal Development Learning (PDL) umbrella and so this policy should be read alongside:

• Behaviour Policy
• PDL Policy
• Relationships and Sex Education Policy
• Drug Education Policy

This policy also operates in conjunction with the following policies:

• Teaching for Learning Policy
• Assessment Policy
• Accessibility Plan
• Special Educational Needs & Disabilities Policy
• Child Protection Policy
• Confidentiality Policy
• Curriculum Policy
• Health and Safety Policy

Review and Evaluation of Policy

The evaluation process will serve the basis for planning programmes of action and targeting time, support and resources.

This policy will be reviewed the Pastoral Care Manager with all stakeholders on a three year basis or sooner dependent on statutory guidance.