RSHE

(Relationships, Sex and Health Education)

PLEASE NOTE: Whilst we update the curriculum content for this area of the curriculum please refer to the school communication sent on 26th May 2026. The letter contains links to the lesson slides for each year group and also has the information evening slides.

It is our duty, as a school, to ensure all our pupils are taught how to keep safe, healthy and happy. At Earlsfield, RSHE is taught within the Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) curriculum and therefore has strong links with our school values of Care, Respect, Achieve, Challenge, Inspire and Enjoy. We strongly believe that a child’s wellbeing, emotional resilience and understanding positive relationships alongside resilience must be at the forefront of their education as they prepare for the challenges of modern life.

Alongside our school values, this curriculum provides a vital foundation for promoting fundamental British Values. Through PSHE/RSHE, we actively teach the importance of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance for all. By fostering an environment where every child feels valued and respected, we prepare our pupils to be responsible, inclusive, and active citizens in a diverse, modern Britain.

With this in mind, our objectives of RSHE are to:

Promote safeguarding through; developing communication skills, supporting children in recognising when something is not right or when boundaries have been crossed (in person or online) and ensuring children know what to do if this happens
Create a positive culture where pupils can openly discuss feelings and sensitive topics with trusted adults
Prioritise children’s wellbeing and promote emotional literacy and resilience
Teach children attributes of positive friendships and familial relationships
Embed school values, helping pupils to develop confidence and empathy and respect for themselves and others
Provide a vital foundation for active, inclusive citizenship
Deliver quality-assured, consistent and age appropriate education that adheres to DfE guidance (2025)
Progressively teach accurate and appropriate vocabulary to describe themselves and their bodies
Prepare pupils for puberty, and give them an understanding of sexual development and the importance of health and hygiene
Give pupils an understanding of reproduction and physical development
Ensure that all pupils, by the time they reach secondary school age, are well-equipped and confident to deal with the secondary RSHE curriculum
Empower healthy choices and combat exploitation by providing pupils with the essential knowledge, skills and attitudes to make positive, responsible choices (in line with our Behaviour Policy) and effectively manage risk both in person and online

In teaching RSHE, we strictly adhere to statutory requirements and the latest guidance issued by the Department for Education (DfE) under section 403 of the Education Act 1996.

The Curriculum: Statutory vs. Non-Statutory

The DfE mandates that all primary schools must teach Relationships Education and Health Education and elements of Sex Education which are also contained in the Science National Curriculum.

Statutory Health & Science Education: This includes teaching pupils about puberty, menstrual wellbeing, the changes as humans develop to old age and reproduction in some plants and animals. In line with robust safeguarding practices and statutory safety guidance, children are also taught the correct anatomical names for external body parts.
Non-Statutory Sex Education: The teaching of Sex Education remains non-statutory in primary schools. However, the DfE continues to recommend that schools deliver age-appropriate sex education in Years 5 and 6 to prepare pupils for secondary school. At Earlsfield, this is introduced in Year 6.

Our Scheme of Work: The Christopher Winter Project

To deliver this curriculum, we use 'The Christopher Winter Project', a scheme quality-assured by the PSHE Association. This program provides teachers with clear, age-appropriate objectives and up-to-date resources, with a strong focus on safeguarding and keeping children safe.

It is important that children build foundational skills from Reception onwards. Starting early helps children develop strong listening skills, empathy and the ability to talk about feelings with trusted adults. A key element of this curriculum is vocabulary progression; we ensure all children use accurate, scientific, and age-appropriate vocabulary.

Please Note: In some lessons in Years 5 and 6 covering puberty and changing bodies, boys and girls will be taught separately to allow for tailored support and comfortable discussion

Parents are welcome to email their class teachers for any further information regarding the teaching of RSHE at Earlsfield.

Curriculum:

Parents are welcome to request to view a hard copy of the resources and they are shared with parents through our online learning platforms.

You can view our policy through the policy page.

At Key Stage 2, the Science curriculum includes teaching the changes to the human body as animals and humans grow from birth to old age, including puberty. This remains statutory. Religious Education links to Relationships Education by looking at family, values and morals. Health Education, which has been statutory in state funded schools since the summer term of 2021, includes promoting emotional literacy, linking to mental wellbeing, the importance of friends and family, the impact of bullying, and who children can seek help if they have concerns. It also requires schools to teach about the emotional and physical changes that take place during puberty.

Key objectives of the statutory Relationships Education curriculum are outlined below. The objectives are to be achieved by the end of primary school.

Families and people who care for me

Children should know:

That families are important for children growing up safe and happy because they can provide love, security and stability.
The characteristics of safe and happy family life, such as commitment to each other, including in times of difficulty, protection and care for children and other family members, the importance of spending time together and sharing each other’s lives.
That the families of other children, either in school or in the wider world, sometimes look different from their family, but that they should respect those differences and know that other children’s families are also characterised by love and care.
That stable, caring relationships are at the heart of safe and happy families and are important for children’s security as they grow up.
That marriage and civil partnerships represent a formal and legally recognised commitment of two people to each other which is intended to be lifelong.
How to recognise if family relationships are making them feel unhappy or unsafe, and how to seek help or advice from others if needed.

Caring friendships

Children should know:

How important friendships are in making us feel happy and secure, and how people choose and make friends.
That healthy friendships are positive and welcoming towards others, and do not make others feel lonely or excluded. Pupils should learn skills for developing caring, kind friendships.
That not every child will have the friends they would like at all times, that most people feel lonely sometimes, and that there is no shame in feeling lonely or talking about it.
The characteristics of friendships that lead to happiness and security, including mutual respect, honesty, trustworthiness, loyalty, kindness, generosity, trust, sharing interests and experiences, and support with problems and difficulties.
That most friendships have ups and downs, and that these can often be worked through so that the friendship is repaired or even strengthened.
How to manage conflict, and that resorting to violence is never right.
How to recognise when a friendship is making them feel unhappy or uncomfortable, and how to get support when needed.

Respectful, kind relationships

Children should know:

How to pay attention to the needs and preferences of others, including in families and friendships. Pupils should be encouraged to discuss how we balance the needs and wishes of different people in relationships and why this can be complicated.
The importance of setting and respecting healthy boundaries in relationships with friends, family, peers and adults.
How to communicate effectively and manage conflict with kindness and respect; how to be assertive and express needs and boundaries; how to manage feelings, including disappointment and frustration.
Pupils should have opportunities to discuss the difference between being assertive and being controlling, and conversely the difference between being kind to other people and neglecting your own needs.
That they can expect to be treated with respect by others, and the importance of respecting others, including those who are different (for example, physically, in character, personality or backgrounds), or make different choices, or have different preferences or beliefs.
Practical steps they can take and skills they can develop in a range of different contexts to improve or support their relationships.
The conventions of courtesy and manners.
The importance of self-respect and how this links to their own happiness. Pupils should have opportunities to think about how they foster their own self-esteem and build a strong sense of their own identity, including through developing skills and interests.
The different types of bullying (including online bullying), the impact of bullying, responsibilities of bystanders (primarily reporting bullying to an adult), and how to get help.
What a stereotype is, how stereotypes can be unfair, negative, destructive or lead to bullying and how to challenge a stereotype.
How to seek help when needed, including when they are concerned about violence, harm, or when they are unsure who to trust.

Online and safety awareness

Children should know:

That people should be respectful in online interactions, and that the same principles apply to online relationships as to face-to-face relationships, including where people are anonymous. For example, the importance of avoiding putting pressure on others to share information and images online, and strategies for resisting peer pressure.
How to critically evaluate their online relationships and sources of information, including awareness of the risks associated with people they have never met. For example, that people sometimes behave differently online, including pretending to be someone else, or pretending to be a child, and that this can lead to dangerous situations. How to recognise harmful content or harmful contact, and how to report this.
There is a minimum age for joining social media sites (currently 13), which protects children from inappropriate content or unsafe contact with older social media users, who may be strangers, including other children and adults.
The importance of exercising caution about sharing any information about themselves online. Understanding the importance of privacy and location settings to protect information online.
Online risks, including that any material provided online might be circulated, and that once a picture or words has been circulated there is no way of deleting it everywhere and no control over where it ends up.
That the internet contains a lot of content that can be inappropriate and upsetting for children, and where to go for advice and support when they feel worried or concerned about something they have seen or engaged with online.

Being safe

Children should know:

What sorts of boundaries are appropriate in friendships with peers and others (including online). This can include learning about boundaries in play and in negotiations about space, toys, books, resources etc.
The concept of privacy and its implications for both children and adults; including that it is not always right to keep secrets if they relate to being safe.
That each person’s body belongs to them, and the differences between appropriate and inappropriate or unsafe contact, including physical contact.
How to respond safely and appropriately to adults they may encounter (in all contexts, including online), including those they do and do not know.
How to recognise when a relationship is harmful or dangerous, including skills for recognising who to trust and who not to trust.
How to report abuse, concerns about something seen online or experienced in real life, or feelings of being unsafe or feeling bad about any adult and the vocabulary and confidence needed to do so.
How to ask for advice or help for themselves or others, and to keep trying until they are heard. Where to get advice e.g. family, school and/or other sources.

These areas of learning are taught within the context of family life. We take care to ensure that there is no stigmatisation of children based on their home circumstances (families can include single parent families, LGBT parents, families headed by grandparents, adoptive parents, foster parents/carers amongst other structures). We also reflect sensitively that some children may have a different structure of support around them (for example: looked after children or young carers)

Science Curriculum links

In Key Stage 1 children learn:

To identify, name, draw and label the basic parts of the human body and say which part of the body is to do with each sense
To notice that animals, including humans, have offspring which grow into adults
To find out about and describe the basic needs of animals, including humans, for survival (water, food and air)
To describe the importance for humans of exercise, eating the right amounts of different types of food, and hygiene

In Key Stage 2 children learn:

To identify that animals, including humans, need the right types and amount of nutrition, and that they cannot make their own food; they get nutrition from what they eat
To identify that humans and some other animals have skeletons and muscles for support, protection and movement
To describe the simple functions of the basic parts of the digestive system in humans
To identify the different types of teeth in humans and their simple functions
To describe the life process of reproduction in some plants and animals
To describe the changes, as humans develop to old age
To identify and name the main parts of the human circulatory system, and describe the functions of the heart, blood vessels and blood
To recognise the impact of diet, exercise, drugs and lifestyle on the way their bodies function
To describe the way nutrients and water are transported within animals, including humans
To recognise that living things produce offspring of the same kind, but normally offspring vary and are not identical to their parents

Non Statutory Sex Education Links:

The DfE Guidance (2025) recommends that all primary schools have a Sex Education programme tailored to the age and the physical and emotional maturity of pupils, and this should include how a baby is conceived and born. Although Sex Education is not compulsory in primary schools, we believe children should understand the facts about human reproduction before they leave primary school. We therefore provide some non-statutory sex education, covering how human reproduction and conception occurs. As stated in our policy the following learning intentions and outcomes are non-statutory and, as legally prescribed, parents and carers have the right to withdraw their child from these lessons.

Parents and carers who wish to withdraw their children from the two non-statutory lessons in Year 6 should email year6@earlsfield.wandsworth.sch.uk.