Personal Development

Personal Development Programme (PDP) lessons are designed to encourage students to discuss and debate a wide range of topical issues that directly affect their day to day lives. Topics are challenging and age relevant.  Whilst most of the PDP lessons are delivered by the tutor using a wide range of taching methods, some lessons are delivered by guest speakers such as dentists, Fire fighters, and touring pop bands/drama companies. Discussion is a regular feature of lessons and students become confident in articulating their own opinions and responding appropriately to the contributions of others.

All students complete the Milestones programme, which requires students to develop a variety of skills and explore a variety of topics, which are assessed half termly through tasks such as presentations, role plays, poems, posters etc.  

Year 7 Personal Development

Lessons link to the PSHE statutory framework and are divided into three areas: living in the wider world, relationships and health and wellbeing. The first half term is designed to help students settle into life at St Bartholomew’s School, where ground rules are established. Students explore appropriate ways of working together within a community, how to develop positive friendships and the importance of being resilient in their learning. To conclude term 1, students explore topics linked to puberty and cover the more sensitive issue of FGM. Over the course of the rest of the year students cover aspects of health and wellbeing and managing risk by exploring healthy choices, road safety, online safety, smoking, healthy eating and basic first aid.

Year 8 Personal Development 

Students cover a range of topics throughout the year that focus on health (including alcohol, and illegal substances), discrimination, conflict and safe behaviour. Basic first aid continues with students learning to be able to put a casualty into the recovery position and to know when and how to give CPR.

Year 9 Personal Development 

Lessons build on from the topics covered in previous years and continue to link to the PSHE framework; living in the wider world, relationships and health and wellbeing. The first term looks at healthy relationships and managing risky situations and covers aspects such as; alcohol consumption, sending inappropriate images, consent, sexual health (contraception, STIs) and pregnancy. Pornography is also briefly discussed. In the Spring term students focus on GCSE option choices and explore potential careers through the use on an online career programme called Fast Tomato. They also look at employability skills and consider their attitudes towards managing money (including gambling and the law). Students in the final term explore different political parties and have the opportunities to create their own laws, take on the role of a MP and debate current issues within their tutor group.

Year 10 Personal Development lessons

Students start the year focussing on careers covering aspirations and employability skills. This is to help embed the importance of resilience and keeping options open for the future. Finance is considered to include banking, loans, interest, and safety when handling money. Students then explore a unit of work based on diversity and human rights covering British values, racism, group blame, Islamophobia, torture, Syria, refugees, forced marriages and death penalty. Basic first aid is covered in detail to ensure students are safe and understand how to react in different situations, including topics such as CPR, recovery position, breaks, sprains, burns choking and shock. Healthy lifestyle choices are also considered, such as legal highs and sun safety. The final unit of work will be based upon sex and relationship education. Progress will be monitored via baseline and progress checker tests at the start and end of units.

Year 11 Personal Development lessons

The focus for the Autumn term is careers and skills for life. Students work on preparing a CV, letter of application and research job choices (using Fast Tomato – an online career programme) and employment law. This is used in an interview skills day where each student has a practice interview with a professional and receives personal feedback. Post 16 options are considered to help with next steps. A unit of work is devoted to ensuring students are exam ready and focusing on ways to reduce anxiety and stress, to support mental health. The importance of sleep and how to plan revision are also included. The last unit of work covers positive relationships. This includes consideration of sexual equality, controlling behaviour, consent, rape, grooming, homosexuality and ‘coming out’.

Find out about Personal Development in Year 12 and 13 here…