PHSE

At Highcliffe Primary School, Personal, Social, Health, and Economic (PSHE) education is a vital subject through which pupils develop the knowledge, skills, and attributes necessary to manage their lives now and in the future. It helps children stay healthy and safe while preparing them to make the most of their lives and futures careers. Additionally, it focusses on helping pupils achieve their academic potential.

We embed respect, resilience, and responsibility throughout our curriculum, particularly within PSHE and Relationships Education. Our teaching focuses on building healthy relationships with family and friends, including in the online world.  We use the NSPCC PANTS initiative to help children understand that their body belongs to them, and they should tell a safe adult they trust if anything makes them feel upset or worried.  The children understand that they have a right to say no and if they need to speak out about something, someone will listen.

Throughout Key Stages 1 and 2, PSHE education provides both explicit and implicit learning opportunities that reflect pupils’ growing independence and social awareness as they progress through school. It builds on the skills developed in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), fostering effective relationships, greater responsibility, and personal safety management, including online safety. PSHE education also assists pupils in navigating the physical and emotional changes of puberty, introduces them to a broader world, and enables them to contribute actively to their diverse communities.

Throughout school, our teaching follows under eight themes:

Mind and Body – Physical health and fitness, healthy eating, mental well being

Playing Safe – Being safe, mental wellbeing, internet safety and harms, drugs, alcohol and tobacco, respectful relationships, health and prevention, healthy relationships

Recognise; Respond; Risk – Drugs, alcohol and tobacco, respectful relationships, health and prevention of harm 

Me, Myself and You – Families and people who care for me, caring friendships, respectful relationships, online relationships

Sex Education – Changing adolescent body 

Life Skills – Financial wellbeing, health and prevention of harm

Changing Bodies – How bodies changing throughout life  

Online Safety – Internet safety and harms, online relationships

School Council 

At Highcliffe, we proudly participate in The Smart School Council Community. Our class debates play a crucial role in enhancing debate, oracy, and leadership skills for every student. These discussions not only support British Values and Pupil Voice but also enrich our School Council and PSHE curriculum.

Our Communication Team actively select debate topics and engaging discussions. When children wish to take their ideas further, these debates evolve into real-world initiatives. Children learn to identify important issues and develop solutions, moving beyond mere conversation to meaningful action. We empower our children to create positive change in their community, fostering a sense of responsibility and leadership.

Eco and Sustainability 

At Highcliffe we understand that in an increasingly interconnected world, teaching eco and sustainability concepts in primary schools is more important than ever. Our curriculum empowers our children to understand the environment, encouraging them to become mindful stewards of our planet. Through hands-on activities, interactive lessons, and collaborative projects, students explore topics such as renewable energy, biodiversity, and waste reduction. By fostering a sense of responsibility and community awareness, we equip the next generation with the knowledge and skills to tackle global challenges, inspiring them to create a sustainable future for all. Our Eco Warriors work to lead the way toward a healthier, greener world!

We are an Eco Green Flag School. The Eco-Schools programme provides a simple, seven-step framework that empowers our children to make a difference in our school, local community and beyond. We link climate change to different areas of curriculum learning during the year.  We connect activities to three or more of the Ten Eco-Schools Topics. These topics break large, global issues like climate change into more manageable and directed themes that prompt young people to consider environmental changes that they can make in their school and everyday lives

Ten topics

  • Biodiversity
  • Energy
  • Global Citizenship
  • Healthy Living
  • Litter
  • Marine
  • School Grounds
  • Transport
  • Waste
  • Water