Personal Development
Our school’s vision for pupils is that we “Learn together for life in all its fullness.”
This is taken and adapted from scripture (John10:10) and reflects the importance we put on providing and developing a full range of opportunities and experiences which enhance all aspects of every child’s life- socially, morally, spiritually and emotionally.
Personal Development (PD) is at the heart of our school learning journey. Our curriculum promotes, adopts and embeds a range of experiences that support children to become life-long learners and give them the knowledge, skills and understanding that they need to be happy and healthy. It supports them in leading active independent lives and becoming informed, responsible citizens. We encourage our pupils to play a positive role in contributing to the life of the school and the wider community. In so doing we help them to develop their sense of self-worth. We teach them about rights and responsibilities. They learn to appreciate what it means to be a positive member of a diverse multicultural society. PD reaches across every curricular area as well as into every strand of school life forming an important and intrinsic part of our school ethos.
This aspect of our curriculum provides a context for the school to fulfil our responsibilities to:
• Promote the physical, social and emotional well-being of pupils.(PSHE)
• Provide sex and relationships education (RSE)
• Promotes Christian values which support British Values
• Provide a safe place for discussion of current, relevant social issues
Our PSHE Curriculum
A robust and well-sequenced PSHE and RSE curriculum is taught in discreet lessons and supported with cross-curricular links in other lessons, such as English, Science, physical education, computing and R.E.
Please click on the documents below to see how our PSHE and RSE curriculum are well sequenced and ensure that each year group explore the same theme each year to support continuity and spiral learning.
Our key themes are:
- Family and relationships
- Citizenship – wider world
- Health and wellbeing
- Economic well being
- Safety including online and the changing body (includes Sex education)
- Identity (Year 6)
- Transition – moving on
Our RSE Curriculum
RSE teaching at guestling Bradshaw teaches children to develop values, attitudes, personal and social skills, and increase their knowledge and understanding to make informed decisions and choices when they are adults. Each year group will be taught appropriate to their age and developmental stage.
Why do we teach Relationships and Sex Education (RSE)?
There are four main aims of teaching RSE:
• To empower children to be safe and safeguarded.
• To enable children to understand and respect their bodies
• To help children develop positive and healthy relationships appropriate to their age and development
• To support children to have positive self-esteem and body image
We teach Sex Education and Section 405 of the Education Act 1996 which provides the right of parental withdrawal from the RSE provided at school except for those parts included in the National Curriculum.The Science curriculum in all maintained schools also includes content on human development, including reproduction, which there is no right to withdraw from.
How does Guestling Bradshaw provide for pupils’ broader development and support pupils to be confident, resilient and independent, and to develop strength of character?
We provide many opportunities for all pupils to develop talents and interests and encourage pupils to step out of their comfort zone and try new things. We teach children the importance of developing and nurturing a growth mindset and how they can become great learners in all aspects of life. Our staff are always looking for ways to provide children with new and exciting experiences and opportunities. Pupils are encouraged to take on lead roles and support one another as well as the local and global community.
Building a Growth Mindset Culture
All children are explicitly taught about growth mindset. This supports our pupils to be resilient and independent, and to develop strength of character. We think carefully about the language we use and the effect it can have on our pupils' attitudes to learning. By teaching children how they can be successful in all their learning and developing new interests and talents, we are supporting them to become resilient and ambitious individual who understand that making mistakes is an essential component to learning.
Our Smart School Council
This year we are changing our approach to our school council and have become a ‘smart school council’ which has a focus on inclusion and involves the whole of the school in making decisions. It supports the teaching of democracy to our young people and is very much pupil-led. We use an online tool that supports teachers’ work load and broadens pupil engagement.
After School and Lunchtime clubs
A wide choice of after school and lunchtime clubs. These are fully inclusive and all pupils are encouraged to participate.
These include badminton, football, netball, dancing, running, gardening and Karate.
Recently we have begun a curling club, inviting children who do not already participate in active clubs either outside of school, or inside school.
There are child-initiated clubs run at lunchtime. A very successful one is a reading club run by some of our year 5 pupils who read with younger pupils.
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A variety of Educational Visits and school workshops
We want our pupils to enjoy and be inspired by exciting hands-on experiences which enhance their learning and also ignite high aspirations and ambition. Since March 2020 they have included:
- Natural History Museum- Evolution workshop (Online Year 6)
- Houses of Parliament- (Y6 online)
- Space Dome Workshop (year 1 and year 5)
- Druscillas Zoo (KS1 and Reception )
- Visits to Mallydams Wildlife Centre - RSPCA
Residential Trips
Our Year 6 pupils have a residential trip. This is usually a PGL trip to the Isle of Wight but this year they will be attending Blacklands Farm.
Regular visitors and specialist workshops which include:
- Local Fire Service
- A parent who is a serving NHS Paramedic
- Theatre company- West End in schools
- Local Secondary school dancers: Chinese New Year Dragon dancers
- Poet and Song writer working with pupils to compose Christmas songs
- Local MP- visiting school to present an award to a pupil
- RSPCA representative from Mallydams to work alongside pupils and teachers.
Charitable Events
We support a wide number of both local, national and international charities. Some of our events are child-initiated too.
These include:
- ‘Yellow Day’ to raise money for our locale hospice- St Winifreds
- Red Nose Day
- Cake sales to raise money for a school defibrillator
- A KS1 Toy service where children doante a new toy to local families in need
- The Ukranian Humanitarian Appeal- a concert and also children have made friendship bracelets to sell and donated back packs for children
- Beach Clean
Sport Events
We believe that school sport is an integral part of a pupil’s physical journey and is a crucial tool in ensuring pupils’ development of the School Games Values: Honesty, Teamwork, Passion, Respect, Determination and Self-Belief.
We operate three different levels of school sport allowing all pupils to access its benefits. These are:
Personal Challenge: pupils compete against themselves in challenges either at home or at school to try to achieve a personal best score.
Intra-school competition: pupils compete against other pupils in the school in challenges and games. Pupils can compete for their school house (Ashburnham, Bradshaw, Fairlight, Guestling, and Pett). These competitions normally take place during playtimes, during clubs or within PE lessons.
Inter-school sport: pupils compete against other schools. We sign up to The Hastings and Rother School Games Partnership and have access to inter-school competitions each academic year. This include football tournaments, badminton, athletics and cross-country running.
We are the proud recipients of the School Games Gold award for the last 5 years. This recognises our commitment to sports and competitive games. We endeavour to ensure that all children across the school has the opportunity to take part in these sporting activities and represent our school.
Musical Events
We have a strong singing tradition and have won a number of awards for composing songs and performing in local festivals.
Pupils are given opportunities to perform in all year groups at Christmas and other annual events. Even during lockdown and covid-related restrictions, we managed to put on virtual concerts and outdoor events envolving all pupils.
Recently, the whole school performed an outdoor Easter Service to parents, family and governors.
Opportunities for pupils to lead and support other pupils:
We give pupils opportunities to lead and take responsibility such as sports leaders, lunchtime buddies and leading pupil-initiated lunchtime clubs. These clubs include a lunchtime reading club and ‘loose parts’ play.
Our Year 5 and 6 pupils play a vital role in supporting pupils in Reception and Year 1 at collective worship and lunchtimes.
Our year Star Badge Awards System encourages and supports our year 6 pupils to take on added responsibility which includes being involved in, or organising a charitable event and taking part in an activity which benefits the wider community.
Year Take-over Day
This is a popular annual event in which year 6 pupils take on the roles of all the adults in school. They lead, teach and, -with the support of our wonderful staff- take charge of every aspect of the working of our school. The pupils have to apply for the various roles which include Head teacher, site manager, cooks, school admin staff and even Ofsted inspectors!
