PSHE and Citizenship

Year 7 begin with their induction into Paddington Academy, building a shared sense of values, purpose and community. Through their relationships unit, students are supported in their transition from primary to secondary school and the forming of positive friendships and an inclusive culture within the year group. Students explore topics of respect, privacy, empathy and celebrating differences. In their careers and aspirations unit students are introduced to what university is like and why it is a part of the Paddington Academy mission. Students learn how to use Unifrog to explore different careers linked to their hobbies and interests. Through the global citizenship unit, students learn what a democracy is, what the political parties of the UK are, and how governments work together to help solve global issues. In their health and wellbeing unit, students learn about the relationship between mental and physical health and how we can release emotions in a healthy way. Finally, students learn what money is through their financial education unit, exploring key foundational knowledge such as taxes, budgeting and debt.

Year 8 begin learning about how to be respectful in their friendships, how to resolve conflict and how to build emotional maturity. They learn what consent is and how to stand up to peer pressure. During the careers and aspirations theme students learn in more depth about the different university pathways such as STEM subjects, humanities subjects and arts subjects. Global citizenship in Year 8 is themed around human rights - students learn what their rights are and how these rights have been used throughout history to make positive changes such as the women’s suffrage movement. Students also learn about the liberties enjoyed by UK citizens, including freedom of speech and the role of the free press. They practise critical thinking to debate current news stories. In their health and wellbeing unit students explore the concept of toxic masculinity and learn where they can seek support for their mental health. Students also learn about financial risks such as money crimes, and practise debating skills through topics such as ‘should the minimum wage be increased?’

Year 9 begin learning about making decisions by considering risks and rewards. They explore topics such as the cost of living, salary expectations, and safe use of the internet. In their health and wellbeing unit, students learn about the importance of sleep for the body as well as common mental health issues such as depression. The Year 9 careers and aspirations lessons support the students in their Key Stage 4 options through exposing students to their different pathway options such as BTEC and GCSEs. Global citizenship in Year 9 focuses on laws, how they are created in the UK and how they can be changed, as well as the role of the police and the operation of courts and tribunals. Towards the end of Year 9, students learn about sex and relationships and think critically about different risks in relationships and how to keep themselves and others safe.

Year 10 begins with life skills and students learn how to apply for a job and how to prepare to be successful in an interview. The health and wellbeing unit focuses on building healthy habits to support diet, exercise and sleep and how to reduce stress. Students then learn about risks to their health and how to avoid these. Careers and aspirations lessons prepare students for their work experience and build towards the mock interviews and careers fair. During global citizenship lessons, students compare the UK to other countries in terms of systems, forms of government and electoral processes. They also learn about the role of international organisations such as the United Nations and the Commonwealth. In their relationships unit students practise thinking critically by understanding the theory of social constructs. They also learn in more depth about risks in relationships and how to build healthy relationships by communicating boundaries.

Year 11 begin by looking at how to build habits for success. They learn about how to find purpose and how to manage their time. Through their health and wellbeing unit, students learn how to manage stress and how to avoid harmful coping strategies and practise healthy ones. The Year 11 careers and aspirations unit focuses on their Key Stage 5 pathway options and prepares them for interviews and applications. In their global citizenship unit, students delve into more depth and build on prior knowledge to learn more about the UK and the wider world. They explore diverse regional, national, religious and ethnic identities in the UK and the need for mutual respect and understanding. Students learn how they can be active citizens and volunteer in their local communities, as well as about other forms of responsible action. Students learn how to choose and set up a bank account, and how to manage their money safely.

Year 12 PSHE begins with life skills in the form of study skills to help prepare them for the transition from GCSE to A-level/BTEC. These activities also allow them to be aspirational in terms of their future plans and what they are aiming to achieve after sixth form. Students then go onto to look at mental health, building on what was covered at KS4 and focused specifically around topics such as exam stress and how to manage your mental health around big transitions, such as starting sixth form or university. The next theme for Year 12 is sex and relationships, which again builds on KS4. In this topic we look at healthy and unhealthy relationship patterns, consent, contraception, sexual harassment and toxic masculinity. Following this we look at feminism and diversity, including LGBTQ+ focused sessions. In the final term, we look at personal finance with a particular emphasis on budgeting and student finances as many students have part-time jobs and will be making the transition to university after sixth form. We also prepare students for university and apprenticeships with sessions supporting them to make these decisions and ensure they are aware of all the options open to them.

PSHE in Year 13 continues to explore a number of themes including study skills and organisation, speaking skills and oracy, mental health, relationships and sex education, sexual and gender diversity, financial education and university.