Our PSHE curriculum is underpinned by our school’s core values and supports the development of the whole child, ensuring that students are well-prepared not just for academic success, but for life beyond the classroom.
Curriculum intent, implementation, and impact
Our PSHE curriculum is underpinned by our school’s core values and supports the development of the whole child, ensuring that students are well-prepared not just for academic success, but for life beyond the classroom.
At Key Stage 3, our PSHE curriculum is designed to equip students with the knowledge, skills, and understanding they need to lead healthy, safe, responsible, and fulfilling lives. We aim to support students’ personal development, while preparing them to become confident, resilient, and informed individuals who can make positive contributions to their communities and wider society.
Through a carefully sequenced and age-appropriate programme, we intend to:
Our PSHE curriculum is underpinned by our school’s core values and supports the development of the whole child, ensuring that students are well-prepared not just for academic success, but for life beyond the classroom.
At Key Stage 3, PSHE is delivered through a well-planned, spiral curriculum that builds knowledge, skills, and understanding over time. Our implementation ensures that learning is age-appropriate, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of our students and the wider world they live in.
Curriculum Structure:
Teaching and Learning:
The impact of our Key Stage 3 PSHE curriculum is evident in the holistic development of our students as confident, informed, and responsible young people. Through a well-sequenced and inclusive programme, students gain essential knowledge, skills, and attitudes that support their wellbeing and prepare them for life in a diverse and ever-changing world.
As a result of our PSHE provision, students:
Our ongoing monitoring, student feedback, and observations confirm that PSHE positively influences students’ attitudes and behaviours, fostering personal growth and a strong sense of social responsibility.
Performances from Loudmouth and The Prime agency
he intent of the Key Stage 4 PSHE curriculum at Burton Borough School is to ensure that all pupils develop the knowledge, skills and personal attributes they need to thrive as healthy, safe and responsible young adults. Our curriculum is designed to prepare pupils for the challenges and opportunities of life beyond school, supporting their wellbeing, safeguarding, and readiness for further education, training and employment.
Our KS4 PSHE curriculum is built on a spiral model, following the PSHE Association Programme of Study, ensuring that pupils revisit and deepen their understanding of key themes such as relationships, mental and physical health, financial decision‑making, digital literacy, and living in the wider world. This structure enables pupils to consolidate prior learning while engaging with more complex, age‑appropriate content as they mature.
We aim to equip pupils with the ability to make informed, safe and ethical choices, particularly in areas such as sexual health, consent, online behaviour, risk management, and emotional wellbeing. Through high‑quality resources, expert external agency input, and opportunities for discussion, pupils learn to critically evaluate information, challenge harmful attitudes, and develop respectful, inclusive values.
Our curriculum is intentionally responsive. Alongside planned learning, we address emerging issues relevant to our pupils’ lives and the wider community. This includes reactive sessions on topics such as domestic violence, misogyny, bullying, family pressures, and the experiences of refugees. This ensures PSHE remains meaningful, timely and rooted in real‑world contexts.
At KS4, we also focus on preparing pupils for adulthood by developing their understanding of financial capability, employability skills, rights and responsibilities, and active citizenship. Pupils learn how to navigate the world of work, manage money, understand the law, and contribute positively to society.
Above all, our intent is to ensure that every pupil leaves Burton Borough School with the confidence, resilience and knowledge to lead safe, healthy and fulfilling lives. PSHE at KS4 empowers pupils to understand themselves, respect others, and make positive choices that support their long‑term wellbeing and success.
At Key Stage 4, PSHE is delivered through a well-planned, spiral curriculum that builds knowledge, skills, and understanding over time. Our implementation ensures that learning is age-appropriate, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of our students and the wider world they live in.
Curriculum Structure:
Teaching and Learning:
By the end of Key Stage 4, pupils at Burton Borough School develop secure, detailed and confidently applied knowledge across all areas of PSHE, including RSE, health and wellbeing, financial literacy and citizenship. They show a mature understanding of key safeguarding themes such as consent, healthy relationships, mental health, misogyny, online safety and discrimination, and can explain how to keep themselves and others safe.
The spiral curriculum, based on the PSHE Association framework, ensures pupils build on prior learning and retain key knowledge. They apply this confidently to real‑life situations, demonstrating strong decision‑making and critical thinking skills.
Pupils engage positively with external agency input, including Loudmouth and The Prime Agency, which deepens their understanding of complex issues and strengthens their ability to challenge harmful attitudes. Responsive sessions on topics such as domestic violence, bullying and family pressures further enhance their empathy, awareness and readiness for adulthood.
By the end of KS4, pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their lives. They understand their rights and responsibilities, can manage risk, and demonstrate the confidence, resilience and personal skills needed to succeed in further education, employment and wider society.
Performances from Loudmouth and The Prime agency