Personal Development

What is personal development?

Personal development refers to the development of character, skills, attitudes, values, and behaviours which play a crucial role in shaping a child’s future success and well-being.

What does personal development look like at Sunnyhill?

Personal development is at the heart of our curriculum and we want pupils to leave Sunnyhill Primary School ready to take on the next chapter in their lives. As part of their personal development journey we want all children to experience:

• Pupil leadership opportunities
• A wealth of educational visits including trips to the theatre, museums, art galleries and places of worship
• Performing in front of an audience (singing concerts, music recitals and drama performances)
• Participation in sporting events including competitions
• Development of oracy skills though our work with Voice 21

Our vision is ‘Learning Together, We Will All Be Exceptional!’ With our 5 core values, the vision and values drive our practice and our approach to education. We truly live our values:

• Respect one another          
• Every Individual Matters
• Take responsibility
• Strive for excellence 
• Try your best

Through the children’s learning and extra curricular opportunities, we develop the character strengths of confidence, resilience, inspiration, motivation, courage, empathy and ambition. These character strengths underpin our school vision and dictate our values. We teach pupils how to develop their character strengths through real experiences, exposure to diverse role models and external speakers, and by giving them practical strategies they can apply to help them to navigate challenges.  We believe that every interaction (and every lesson) is an opportunity to develop the good character of our pupils.

Character is primarily ‘caught’ (picked up through experiences), therefore we create an environment that nurtures these character strengths. Our expectations of behaviour are driven by our core values with class rewards, behaviour tickets and celebration assemblies motivating  the children to develop self-control, empathy and a sense of responsibility.

Character is also ‘taught’ through assemblies and links made in learning across the curriculum.

Finally, our environment provides opportunities for character to be ‘sought’ through experiences during and outside the school day that broaden the pupils' passions and interests.

What is a UNICEF rights respecting school?

We are proud to be a UNICEF Rights Respecting School. UK Rights Respecting Schools are required to implement the following four evidence based standards:

• Rights-respecting values underpin leadership and management.
• The whole school community learns about the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
• The school has a rights-respecting ethos.
• Children are empowered to become active citizens and learners.

To find out more visit this website: https://www.unicef.org.uk/rights-respecting-schools/

How does Sunnyhill teach personal development through the curriculum?

At Sunnyhill, our personal development curriculum has, at its foundation, a structured programme of PSHE and RE lessons timetabled weekly from Reception to Year 6. 

The Jigsaw PSHE scheme of work develops:

• Pupils’ confidence, resilience and knowledge of how they can keep themselves mentally healthy (including internet safety)
• Pupils’ understanding of how to keep physically healthy, eat healthily and maintain an active lifestyle
• Pupils’ age-appropriate understanding of healthy relationships through appropriate relationships and sex education  

The Jigsaw RE scheme of work teaches pupils about different faiths, enriching their worldview, cultivating kindness and respect, and preparing them to be thoughtful, compassionate global citizens. 

We prepare pupils for life in modern Britain and create opportunities within our curriculum and additional activities to teach and support the development of all of the British Values. Within these, we aim to:

• Enable students to distinguish right from wrong
• Encourage students to accept responsibility for their behaviour, show initiative, and to understand how they can contribute positively to the lives of those living and working in the locality of the school and to society more widely
• Enable students to acquire a broad general knowledge of and respect for public institutions and services in Britain
• Further tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions by enabling students to acquire an appreciation for and respect for their own and other cultures.
• Encourage respect for other people, paying particular regard to the protected characteristics set out in the Equality Act 2010.

How does Sunnyhill promote personal development beyond the curriculum?

At Sunnyhill, we offer a wide variety of inclusive, enrichment opportunities that support the personal development of all our pupils. These experiences help pupils to build confidence, develop new skills, and gain a better understanding of themselves and the world around them. Some of these opportunities include:

1. Performances (music and drama)
2. Sports and physical activities
3. Leadership opportunities
4. After school clubs 
5. Educational visits
6. Community engagement
7. Outdoor learning and nature exploration

The following Personal Development Map outlines provision across the school.