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Personal Development

Personal Development at Queen’s Park Academy

Personal Development First Pci

All children at Queen’s Park Academy receive a Personal Development programme that equips them with the knowledge that they need to make decisions, to be resilient and to develop their character and personality. These skills and experienced are clearly mapped through a well-planned curriculum and through wider school experiences.

We aim for all children to grow into well- educated, respectful, responsible adults who are:

Comfortable with who they are and have a deep sense of belonging
Respectful of others and see difference as positive and not a threat
Able to make a positive contribution to school life, the wider community and society in general
Happy, safe, confident and resilient
Financially secure
Model citizens prepared for life in modern Britain

Our Personal Development programme is in line with our PSHE curriculum Jigsaw. Each half term, we focus on the development of one of the following areas:

Be Me in My World - How can we make Queen’s Park and Bedford an even better place to live?

Celebrating Difference - How can we best celebrate the diversity within our school and local community? How can we learn about each other and develop shared understanding, tolerance and respect?

Dreams & Goals - How can we follow our interests and gain the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful in our next steps? How can we link our learning to future opportunities?

Healthy Me - How can we together develop strategies to support our mental health and wellbeing? What can we do to help us to feel good so that we are ready to learn and able to participate fully?

Relationships - What can we do to give back to our community through volunteering our time and effort? How can we develop inter-generational partnerships in our area?

Changing Me - How can we protect our natural resources over time? How can we reduce waste and reuse materials in order to look after our planet?

Personal Development Days at QPA

The British Values are promoted through the use of the Jigsaw Learning Charter which is shared at the beginning of every Jigsaw PSHE lesson. The Learning Charter is child-centred and aims to encourage children to work together and follow a set of ‘ground rules’ to create a safe, positive learning environment. The behaviours of the Jigsaw Charter are reflected in the whole-school Learning Charter developed in the first puzzle of the year (Being Me in My World), and will consequently permeate the school community, supporting children as they grow and learn. The Learning Charter supports the work that is going to happen in each Jigsaw lesson.

Hands Democracy is evident across all puzzles within the Jigsaw PSHE 3-11 programme. Children have lots of opportunities for their voices to be heard through whole class, group or paired discussions. The Jigsaw Learning Charter aims to ensure that all lessons establish a safe learning environment. The ‘ground rules’ of the Learning Charter invite children to sign and agree to try and stick to the rules during all Jigsaw lessons. It encourages children (and adults alike) to listen carefully to one another and respect the right of others whilst having opportunities to have their own opinions and voices heard. Jigsaw encourages children to take ownership of their learning through their ‘Help Me Reflect’ time when recording their thoughts, feelings and ideas in their individual Jigsaw Journals. Many of the Jigsaw PSHE lessons include ‘Pause for Thought’ moments, whereby children can reflect in the moment, considering their thoughts and feelings. Opportunities are given to all the children to share their thinking, thoughts and ideas with others if they feel comfortable doing so.

Scales The Rule of Law is evident in every Jigsaw lesson when beginning the session with the Jigsaw Learning Charter. Establishing a safe, comfortable environment for all children (and adults) to learn in is paramount to every lesson. Children are also taught about their rights as a child, including those from The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). These are included in all puzzle pieces. At Jigsaw, we believe it is important for children to understand equality and their rights, to understand how both they should be treated, and how they should treat others. A separate mapping document has been created to evidence where these are taught in the Jigsaw 3-11 PSHE programme. Children are taught the value, importance and reasoning behind why rules exist. There are lots of opportunities throughout all age groups to explore making positive choices as well as how this balances with consequences. Making positive behavioural choices is explored through class, partner and group discussions. Opportunities for children to explore their thoughts during ‘Pause for Thought’ moments invite children to consider how they feel in the present moment, impacting choices and individual thinking.

Bird Individual Liberty. Jigsaw provides a structured programme of personal development to nurture the ‘whole child’ and increase learning capacity, underpinned by mindfulness philosophy and practice. Jigsaw PSHE begins this teaching right from the beginning in the Early Years Foundation Stage and offers opportunities for children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development. At Jigsaw, we believe these opportunities are vital for children’s development, understanding of themselves and others, and increasing their capacity to learn. Children are provided with opportunities to make informed choices and feel comfortable expressing their views. The ethos of a Jigsaw lesson aims to always make every child feel welcomed, valued and comfortable and therefore promotes a positive learning environment.

Thumbs up Mutual respect. One of the key aspects of Jigsaw is how we enable and teach children to have respectful discussions on sensitive subjects. Jigsaw aims to provide a structured lesson format in which a safe learning environment is created. Each lesson plan includes phrasing, suggested use of language and terminology as well as suggestions for asking open ended questions sensitively and reflectively. Jigsaw lesson plans provide these prompts through ‘ask me this’ questions. These are designed to support adults leading the session to feel confident in connecting with children to think about how they feel or what their opinions/ideas may be. Often this includes topics which involve thought-provoking and sensitive subjects. As children get older, they build on previous knowledge and skills to develop their ability to listen to others respectfully, debate other people’s views and consider ways that we can be accepting of those who may be different to ourselves. Even in lessons where different points of view are encouraged, and issues may be debated, the Learning Charter is always revisited and its expectations reinforced. This ensures that children feel enabled to freely express their faith, feelings and values in an environment of mutual respect.

Holding hands Tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs. The Celebrating Difference puzzle specifically looks at how we might differ in many ways, but that there are human and spiritual elements in us all where we can find a connection and empathy with each other, no matter how much the world might find difference a cause for conflict. Jigsaw aims to go beyond ‘tolerance’ to help children ‘celebrate difference’, their own individuality and that of others. The children learn to be interested in what makes us all unique from as young as 3 years old and this includes the way we embody our beliefs, feelings and values. For children 7 years and over, elements of the Equality Act are examined within this puzzle which again ensures that the faiths, feelings and values of others are respected. Schools with Jigsaw embedded into their everyday life will also invoke the Jigsaw Learning Charter in other lessons, for example, in Religious Education. This ensures that children understand that the respect we discuss in Jigsaw PSHE permeates into other areas of school life and supports schools in ensuring that all differences in faith and beliefs are celebrated and respected.

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) elements are developed across all subjects and aspects of school life at Queen’s Park Academy. Children develop the ability to be reflective about their own and others’ lives and positive relationships are evident across school. Children readily apply an understanding of right and wrong to their everyday lives and have many creative and cultural opportunities during their time at school, including those that are artistic, musical and sporting.

Development of Pupils	Some Examples of How We Do This
The spiritual development of pupils is shown by their: Ability to be reflective about their own beliefs (religious or otherwise) and perspective on life Knowledge of, and respect for, different people’s faiths, feelings and values Sense of enjoyment and fascination in learning about themselves, others and the world around them Willingness to reflect on their experiences	RE PSHE/RHE Assemblies British Values Faith Tours Culture Days
The moral development of pupils is shown by their: Ability to recognise the difference between right and wrong and to readily apply this understanding to their own lives, recognise legal boundaries and, in so doing, respect the civil and criminal law of England Understand the consequences of their behaviour and actions Interest in investigating and offering reasoned views about moral and ethical issues	PSHE/RHE Assemblies Anti-Bullying Week School Council and other Reps Eco Club British Values Behaviour resets
The social development of pupils is shown by their: Use of a range of social skills in different contexts, for example working and socialising with other pupils, including those from different religious, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds Willingness to participate in a variety of communities and social settings, including by volunteering, cooperating well with others and being able to resolve conflicts effectively Acceptance and engagement with fundamental British Values of democracy, the Rule of Law, Individual Liberty and Mutual Respect and Tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs; they develop and demonstrate skills and attributes that will allow them to participate fully in and contribute positively to life in modern Britain	PSHE/RHE Restorative Practice Anti-Bullying Week Extra-curricular clubs British Values Family Picnic Always Star picnics Family Dinner School trips Speech and Drama Festival
The cultural development of pupils is shown by their: Understanding and appreciation of the range of cultural influences that have shaped their own heritage and that of others Understanding and appreciation of the range of different cultures in the school and further afield as an essential element of their preparation for life in modern Britain Ability to recognise, and value, the things that we share across cultural, religious, ethnic and socio-economic communities Knowledge of Britain’s democratic parliamentary system and its central role in shaping our history and values, and in continuing to develop Britain Willingness to participate in and respond positively to artistic, musical, sporting and cultural opportunities Interest in exploring, improving understanding of and showing respect for different faiths and cultural diversity and the extent to which they understand, accept and respect diversity. This is shown by their respect and attitudes towards different religious, ethnic and socio-economic groups in the local, national and global communities	Assemblies RE PSHE Trips, visits and visitors British Values Range of diverse texts Key authors from a range of cultures and backgrounds Speech and Drama FestivalFamily Dinner

At Queen’s Park Academy, we are committed to supporting the emotional health and wellbeing of our pupils and staff. We know that everyone experiences life challenges that can make us vulnerable and at times, anyone may need additional emotional support. We take the view that positive mental health is everybody’s business and that we all have a role to play.

For our pupils we aim to develop the 'whole child'. This means working to develop them educationally, emotionally, spiritually, morally and physically. As well as caring for their education we also care for their mental health and wellbeing and feel that it is essential to provide children with information to enable them to make life long, well informed decisions about their diet and health.

We have a designated trained ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant) who delivers nurture groups for pupils and individuals, including 1:1 check ins in liaison with our SENDCo (Special Needs & Disabilities Co-Ordinator) and Behaviour Lead.

In each class we have ‘Ask it, Baskets’ for pupils to share their worries with a safe adult.

We have nominated school council members in each class to represent their peers and gain feedback in class assemblies.

We hold regular meetings for pupils who need more regular meetings to support their needs.

We have home/school communication books for pupil’s who require more regular updates.

We have transfer days and meet the teacher sessions to support transition.

We have Key Stage 2 children as play-leaders to support younger children in positive play.

We have positive behaviour systems in place to promote positive social behaviour.

The topic of mental health and wellbeing is covered within assemblies to promote resilience and self-management.

We have a PSHE curriculum that helps pupils to build important life skills, such as learning to learn, habits of mind and the growth mindset.

Our ethos is to promote supporting the development of skills and character traits such as perseverance, compassion and teamwork.

We celebrate events during the year which may promote mental health e.g. Mental Health Awareness Week.

Round stuff We offer different levels of support:

Universal Support

To meet the needs of all our pupils through our overall ethos and our wider curriculum. For instance, developing resilience for all.

Additional support

For those who may have short term needs and those who may have been made vulnerable by life experiences such as bereavement.

Targeted support

For pupils who need more differentiated support and resources or specific targeted interventions such as wellbeing groups or personal mentors.

Protected Characteristics What do we do in school to protect these characteristics?

We believe in our school values and demonstrate them throughout our school
Everyone is welcome in our school
Everyone can take part in our clubs
We help people if they have a disability
We have assemblies that teach us about equality and diversity
Everyone has a voice
We have lots of diverse, informative books
We respect our visitors
Everyone is different and we celebrate everyone!