PSHE Curriculum Review 2026  

At Senacre Wood Primary School, we are committed to providing high-quality Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) education that supports your child's development and wellbeing throughout their time with us. 

Reviewing our PSHE provision 

We are currently reviewing our PSHE curriculum in line with the DfE's updated statutory guidance for Relationships, Sex and Health Education (published 2025, for implementation from September 2026). This is a positive opportunity to bring our curriculum content up to date in a changing world, whilst maintaining our age-appropriate focus on the core knowledge and essential skills that children need to navigate different aspects of their lives with confidence both in and beyond primary school. 

At Senacre Wood we use Jigsaw, the mindful approach to PSHE, as our comprehensive scheme of work. The programme consists of six half-term units (Puzzles): Being Me in My World, Celebrating Difference, Dreams and Goals, Healthy Me, Relationships and Changing Me. Each Puzzle contains lessons that build progressively through the school, developing children's emotional literacy, self-esteem, resilience and understanding of how to build positive, healthy relationships. 

The updated guidance enhances the Jigsaw programme we already know and trust, rather than requiring radical changes. The strong foundations remain the same - we continue to focus on building the fundamental skills and knowledge children need - whilst ensuring our content reflects the world they are growing up in. As part of our review, we are also considering how we adapt the programme content to best suit the needs and context of our school community. There will be only small additions and minor adjustments made to the Jigsaw curriculum to ensure it fully aligns with the statutory guidance for Relationships, Sex and Health Education set out by the UK Department for Education.

PSHE and RSE Policy 2026

DFE GUIDANCE

Jigsaw Parent Leaflet 2026

jigsaw and our rshe curriculum 

Statutory requirements 

Relationships Education and Health Education became statutory in all primary schools in September 2020, as outlined in the DfE's statutory guidance for Relationships, Sex and Health Education. Updated guidance was published in 2025 and will be implemented from September 2026. 

These subjects are a statutory entitlement for all children. This means that whilst we highly value parental views and take these into account when planning and reviewing our curriculum, parents cannot withdraw children from Relationships or Health Education content. However, parents do retain the right to request withdrawal from specific non-statutory Sex Education lessons.

TERM 5: RELATIONSHIPS

Positive relationships are woven throughout our PSHE curriculum all year, but the Relationships Puzzle provides focused teaching on the different relationships children have with friends, family and wider communities. Children learn about the characteristics of healthy relationships, how relationships change as we grow, and how to keep themselves safe in all contexts, including online. 

TERM 6: CHANGING ME

The Changing Me Puzzle helps children understand and cope positively with change. As in all the Jigsaw PSHE Puzzle units,  content is carefully matched to children's age and developmental stage: 

• Early Years and Key Stage 1: Children learn about life cycles, how we all grow and change, and develop vocabulary for body parts including correct anatomical terms for genitalia. Children also learn about privacy; understanding which parts of the body are private, what privacy means, and who they can talk to if they have questions or concerns. This vocabulary and understanding supports safeguarding and lays important foundations for later learning.
• Key Stage 2: Children learn about puberty as part of their statutory Health Education, in line with statutory expectations that all pupils are prepared before puberty begins. Puberty can start any time between the ages of 8 and 11, so this teaching ensures children understand the changes ahead and feel informed rather than anxious. This includes learning about physical and emotional changes, menstruation, personal hygiene during puberty, and strategies for managing these changes positively. Teaching is designed to help children feel prepared and to encourage them to talk to trusted adults at home or school if they have questions. 

The DfE recommends that all primary schools include age-appropriate Sex Education, and at Senacre Wood we follow this guidance by teaching one Sex Education lesson in Year 5 and one in Year 6.

What will my child learn? 

The Knowledge Organisers below provide an overview of both the Relationships and Changing Me content for Term 5 and 6 for your child's class. Below, we provide specific detail about the Changing Me Puzzle, particularly the lessons relating to puberty and human reproduction. 

The content shown reflects our PSHE curriculum, which has been developed in line with statutory requirements and our school's values and context. 

All content is taught by class teachers and is carefully matched to each year group's developmental stage. We do not teach beyond the remit of each year group. If children ask questions that go beyond the planned content, teachers will acknowledge the question positively and either suggest the child discusses this at home or explain that we'll explore that topic at a later stage in their learning.

Parent Guide To RSHE In Primary School 2026

PSHE Statutory Relationships And Health Education Mapping Document

Relationships Parent Knowledge Organiser

Changing Me Parent Knowledge Organsier

Talking about Puberty, Sex Education and
Growing Up with your child

 

All schools are expected to provide opportunities for the spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development of their pupils.

As part of this, you should promote “fundamental British values”. The DfE define these values as:

• Democracy
• The rule of law
• Individual liberty
• Mutual respect for and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs

At Senacre Wood, the Fundamental British Values are covered through the use of our PSHE scheme Jigsaw. Within Jigsaw, the values are embedded and taught throughout the scheme. An overview of this is available on request.