RSHE

Relationships, Social, Health and Economic Education/Relationships, Sex and Health Education

Intent

At St Margaret’s at Troy Town CE Primary School, our RSHE curriculum is designed to equip pupils with the essential knowledge, understanding and skills they need to stay safe, healthy and prepared for life in modern Britain. Rooted in our Christian vision — “Let your light shine” (Matthew 5:16) — we aim to develop confident, respectful and responsible individuals who understand how to care for themselves and others.

Our curriculum is carefully sequenced from Year 1 to Year 6 and is built around the three statutory PSHE themes:

Health and Wellbeing
Relationships
Living in the Wider World

Through this progressive curriculum, pupils systematically build their knowledge of:

physical and mental health
healthy and respectful relationships
personal safety, including online safety
economic wellbeing and life skills
the changes associated with growing up and puberty

We have selected and adapted the Kapow Primary scheme to ensure full coverage of statutory RSHE requirements while meeting the specific needs of our pupils and community.

By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils will:

use accurate vocabulary to describe body parts, relationships and emotions
explain how to keep themselves safe in a range of real-life and online situations
understand the physical and emotional changes of puberty
recognise healthy and unhealthy relationships
demonstrate increasing independence in managing risk and seeking help
understand basic concepts of economic wellbeing and responsibility

Implementation

RSHE is taught weekly as a discrete subject and is reinforced through our wider school culture, collective worship and safeguarding practice.

Our curriculum is coherently planned using Kapow Primary as a foundation, but leaders have carefully adapted, sequenced and enriched the content to reflect the needs, context and values of our pupils.

Teaching approach

High-quality RSHE teaching at St Margaret’s includes:

explicit teaching of key vocabulary
structured discussion and oracy opportunities
retrieval of prior learning to strengthen memory
use of scenarios and role play to apply knowledge
carefully managed handling of sensitive questions
clear routines that create a safe, respectful classroom climate

Teachers receive guidance and support to ensure sensitive content is delivered confidently and appropriately.

Impact

The impact of our RSHE curriculum is seen in pupils’ secure knowledge, confident use of vocabulary and their ability to apply learning to real-life situations.

As pupils move through the school, they increasingly demonstrate that they can:

explain how to keep themselves physically and emotionally safe
use correct anatomical and emotional vocabulary
identify healthy and unhealthy relationships
manage risk in age-appropriate scenarios
discuss how to seek help from trusted adults
show respect, empathy and responsibility in their interactions

Evidence of impact includes:

pupil voice demonstrating strong understanding
work scrutiny showing progression in knowledge
assessment information indicating most pupils achieve age-related expectations
positive behaviour and safeguarding awareness across the school

Leaders closely monitor the progress of all groups, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND, to ensure equity of access and strong outcomes for every child.

Assessment

Assessment in RSHE is purposeful and proportionate. Teachers use:

baseline assessments to identify starting points
ongoing formative assessment through discussion and pupil work
end-of-unit assessments to check knowledge and understanding
pupil voice to evaluate confidence and application

Assessment information is used to identify gaps, adapt teaching and ensure all pupils, including disadvantaged and SEND learners, make strong progress from their starting points.

Personal, Social and Emotional Development in the EYFS

In the Early Years Foundation Stage, RSHE foundations are established primarily through the Personal, Social and Emotional Development (PSED) area of learning.

Children begin to:

recognise and name feelings
build positive relationships
develop independence in self-care
understand simple rules for staying safe
begin to use vocabulary linked to emotions and relationships

These early experiences provide the essential building blocks for the more formal RSHE curriculum taught in Key Stage 1 and beyond.

Subject in Action

Adaptive Teaching Toolkit

adaptive teaching strategies rshe.pdf

Our RSHE curriculum is fully inclusive. Teaching is adapted to ensure pupils with SEND access the full curriculum and achieve well.

Adaptations include:

simplified and pre-taught vocabulary
visual supports and social stories
structured routines and emotion regulation tools
small-group or 1:1 support where appropriate
alternative methods for pupils to demonstrate understanding

Adaptations are planned in partnership with families and external professionals to ensure individual needs are met with care and precision.

Adaptive Teaching in Practice

Pupil Voice

"I love the RSHE learning". Year 4 pupil

"Everything is so cool and interesting in RSHE". Year 5 pupil

"I like in RSHE we get to work together on tasks". Year 6 pupil

"I like the groupwork". Year 6 pupil

"I like that we get to learn about relationships". Year 5 pupil

"I like RSHE because it teaches us things we need to know about when we get older". Year 4 pupil

"I like learning about our bodies in RSHE". Year 6 pupil

Enrichment Opportunities

We are fortunate to offer a rich programme of enrichment opportunities that bring learning to life and support children’s personal development. Our pupils benefit from regular visits by key community services and organisations, including...

- Kent Police

- Kent Fire and Rescue

- Medway’s Tooth Fairy

- The Dogs Trust

- Medway’s Road Safety Team

- Restart a Heart

- Seymour Safety for Carbon Monoxide Awareness

These engaging sessions help children build important life skills, understand how to stay safe and healthy, and develop a sense of responsibility and care for themselves and others.