PSHE Curriculum
Across Ace, PSHE is delivered covering three broad themes: Health and Wellbeing, Living in the Wider World and Relationships.  We aim to teach using a spiral curriculum and topics that are taught in Key Stage 3 are revisited up until Year 11.  Since September 2020, Relationships and Sex Education has been statutory and is taught throughout Ace.  Parents have the right to remove pupils from Sex Education up until three terms before a pupil’s 16th birthday but they will still learn about relationships (eg healthy and respectful relationships). 
 
Key Stage 3
Currently we do not have a Year 7 class and so our Year 8 content is prioritised from Year 7/ 8 topics and what are the most useful to learn at that time.  Pupils are taught about the effects drugs and alcohol on physical and emotional wellbeing.  We also learn about puberty and consider the physical and emotional changes at this time and managing our own body image. For the wider world units we learn about how to set goals, types of work and online safety.  When considering relationships we look at discrimination, gender identity and healthy relationships for all types of relationships.  Part of these lessons will also include bullying, online and in person and how to try to support yourself or others if this were happening.
 
Key Stage 4
In Key Stage 4 pupils revisit mental health understanding and comparing strategies to support our mental wellbeing.  We also consider peer influence in a number of contexts including with gangs, knife crime and drugs and alcohol and the impact of that.  In terms of the wider world we look at financial decision making and consider the impact of debt, gambling and fraud (including how to protect ourselves against it).  Pupils in Year 11 spend time exploring their Post-16 options and preparing themselves to apply for their next steps.  During our relationships topic, we consider again what a healthy relationship looks like and our expectations within a relationship.  This will also be explored during a unit on families while we deepen our understanding of different types of families and routes to parenthood.  We also revisit how to be clear of our expectations and consent as well as how to access contraception or further support if needed.  

 
Useful websites

www.bbc.com/education/subjects/ztvg9j6