Personal Development

“I have come that you may have life and have it to the full.” John 10:10 

Personal Development at St Benedict’s is part of everything we do. Our aim is to provide students with the knowledge, skills, dispositions and habits to promote and support them in leading healthy, happy and fulfilling adult lives. We are ensuring they are understanding of their safety, beyond the school gate. 

This is experienced through our gospel values which define the schools ethos. Promoting dignity and self-worth, recognising achievement, promoting stewardship, sharing in the life of the community, encouraging truthfulness, humility, forgiveness and diligence, while ensuring a genuine concern for empathy, cooperation and understanding. 

Through the teachings of Jesus Christ, we will as a school provide opportunities to learn more than before and engage in the challenges of a 21st century world with positivity, character and resilience. 

The entire PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economics) curriculum, which includes Careers and Citizenship develops pupils’ knowledge, understanding, skills, relationships, and resilience to enable them to be successful, happy, and confident members of our society with ambition and belief that achievement is for all. 

Our curriculum is well sequenced, following the PSHE Association guidance which is endorsed by the Government. Each session links to one of our school virtues and The British values. For HRSE we meet all of the statutory guidance via the Ten:Ten programme and supplement this with our PSHE tutor time sessions and drop-down days which occur five times a year for Year 7 – 10 and four times a year for Year 11.

We build on the three key themes; Relationships, Living in the Wider World, Healthy Living throughout each. The content and activities challenge pupils thinking and understanding whilst also developing essential knowledge and skills for the modern world. 

Our Careers Programme meets all the Gatsby Benchmarks and is delivered through PSHE tutor time sessions and KS£ Personal Development is included in our drop-down days, as well calendared events, and the extended curriculum for Sixth Form. Click on the link below for an outline of our PSHE Drop Down Days:

Drop Down Days Map – PDF

Through our PSHE Drop Down Days we deliver key knowledge and raise awareness on themes surrounding Diversity and Equality, Antibullying, Personal Safety, Online Safety, Child Exploitation, Mental Health, and Citizenship. We understand that these topics need to be adaptable. Our curriculum is constantly being updated in response to key local and global current affairs. Click links below for details of what has been covered for the Autumn term: 

Secondary Picture News Autumn 1
Secondary Picture News Autumn 2

Teaching methods and approaches 

We recognise there are different teaching and learning styles which enable effective PSHE. We acknowledge, as educators, the core education skills, which include practical skills, communication skills, decision-making skills, inter-personal skills, problem-solving skills and leadership skills. We will develop them with our pupils by: 

• Setting up ground rules 
• Sharing lesson objectives with pupils 
• Scaffolding learning 
• Using active learning methods, such as stories, mind mapping/thought showers, quizzes and questionnaires
• Debate 
• Individual/paired/group work 
• Role play 
• Using distancing and de-personalising techniques 

Assessment is central to effective teaching and learning in PSHE education. 

We monitor where a student is at the end of a lesson or series of lessons against where they were before the lesson(s). 

This can demonstrate clear progress while also identifying what the students still need to know.  

The entire PSHE curriculum develops pupils’ knowledge, understanding, skills, relationships, and resilience to enable them to be successful, happy, confident, and virtuous members of our society with ambition and belief that achievement is for all.