Relationship, Sex and Health Education (RSHE)

'Children and young people need to know how to be safe and healthy, and how to manage their academic, personal and social lives in a positive way.'   -  Department for Education 

At St. Francis de Sales, we understand that children are growing up in an ever-changing and increasingly complex world. Although this presents many positive opportunities, it also poses challenges and risks. Therefore, it is our duty to prepare the children under our care for the wider world and to offer them the tools that they need in order to be safe and healthy, build positive relationships and understand how to manage their personal and social lives in a meaningful way.

We deliver the content of the Relationships and Health Education set out by the Department for Education in a broad and balanced curriculum. The teaching of Relationships and Health Education is built upon various elements of our curriculum including PSHE, Science, Computing and Religious Education. As a Catholic school, our programme of religious study (Come and See) features heavily in our Relationship and Health Education mapping as our approach is rooted in the Catholic Church's teaching of the human person and how love is the central basis of relationships. 

'A positive and prudent sex education is to be imparted to children and adolescences as they grow older.' - Pope Francis

We are legally required to teach those aspects of RSE which are statutory parts of National Curriculum Science.

We are tasked with educating young people and children about healthy loving relationships. Pope Francis has also spoken for the need for ' a positive and prudent sex education to be imparted to children and adolescences as they grow older.'

Any teaching about love and sexual relationships in a Catholic school must be rooted in the Catholic Church’s teaching about what it is to be truly human in Christ, what it means to live well in relationship with others and be presented within a positive framework of Christian virtue. For this reason, Catholic schools are encouraged to speak about Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) rather than Sex and Relationships Education (SRE), since this emphasises the importance of healthy relationships to human well being, as the core learning within an RSHE curriculum. 

At St. Francis de Sales, we understand that RSHE is sensitive to the different needs of the individual pupils. For this reason, we have chosen to use the RSHE programme ‘A Journey in Love’. This is an Archdiocese recommended resource that has been compiled specifically to present a Catholic, age appropriate vision. This programme is intended to support teachers to deliver a comprehensive understanding of human relationships. 

We provide Relationships, Sex and Health Education is built upon various elements of the curriculum including Religious Education, PSHE, Science and Computing. Please read the below documents to find out more. Alongside this, follow the link below directly to the PSHE Curriculum page. 

A Journey in Love

Please see the summary of planned teaching for each year group

Year Three: How we live in love

Year Four: God loves us in our differences

Year Five: God loves me in my changing and development

Year Six: The wonder of God’s love in creating new life