At Priory Rise School, the building of positive, meaningful relationships at all levels are fundamental to our ethos and values. Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) is lifelong learning about relationships, emotions, looking after ourselves, different families, understanding life cycles and, at Year 6, how a baby is made. Lessons involve acquiring information, developing skills and forming positive beliefs, values and attitudes. RSE has a key part to play in the personal, social, moral and spiritual development of young people.

At Priory Rise we aim to provide a forum in which children can develop confidence and be articulate in talking about feelings and relationships from the very start of their Priory Rise career. Of most importance is that children develop feelings of confidence, self-respect and empathy for themselves and others. Children recognise the importance of valuing themselves and others and will move onto the next part of their educational journey with a strong moral compass.

Relationships are key at Priory Rise School. Children will understand the diverse range of relationships, and families, and their importance for the care and support of children. Throughout their time at Priory Rise, staff will guide children in making positive choices and support children when a less successful choice has been made. Through relationship education, children revisit our Priory Rise values in order to strengthen their understanding of them.

In the final half-term of the year, children will be taught the correct vocabulary to describe themselves and their bodies (linking into our science curriculum). All of our RSE lessons throughout school are carried out with sensitivity and are of an age-appropriate context. As the pupils move through Upper Key Stage Two, they will begin to understand puberty, giving them an understanding of sexual development and an understanding of the importance of health and hygiene, so they may be able to keep themselves safe.

At Priory Rise, we use the Jigsaw scheme of work to deliver our PSHE and RSE in line with national curriculum expectations throughout each year group. Relationship education became compulsory for all children from September 2020. Some aspects of RSE, such as lifecycles and learning the names of body parts, are embedded within our science curriculum. Our sex education (that is not delivered in the science curriculum) takes place in Year 6 where children learn how babies are made. This session is delivered where parent consent has been obtained. 

The importance of working with parents is fundamental in this subject area. We wish to work in partnership with our families.  Each year, a letter will be sent home to parents exploring what children will be learning about in regard to RSE.  The letter is sent out in May each year.  Our Year 6 parents and carers are invited to attend an RSE meeting; this is delivered to parents and taught in the second half of the summer term.  The content of all other units is shared each half-term in a year group newsletter which is sent to parents via Arbor.