FAQs
Does my school have to become a healthy school?
My school has stalled. How do we get going again?
It seems so much work. How am I going to manage this?
There are certain criteria that I am unsure about. Where can I get help?
Where can I get help with writing policies?
How does the school benefit from joining the Programme?
Who should join the task group?
What level of support can the school expect?
Will the Healthy Schools Team be looking for progress in any specific areas of school life?
Can we still have a validation visit?
How long does the status last?
Can we still get support/guidance once we have achieved full status?
Does my school have to become a healthy school?
‘A Healthy School promotes the health and well-being of its pupils and staff through a well-planned, taught curriculum in a physical and emotional environment that promotes learning and healthy lifestyle choices’, (Page 1 ‘National Healthy School Status: A guide for schools’ 2005). 100% of schools are expected to have achieved successful engagement by 2009. Whilst it is not a statutory requirement to achieve Full Healthy School Status, there are many benefits to the whole school. Working towards Healthy School Status demonstrates that the school is addressing pupils’ needs in line with national priorities, in particular those around health and well-being. It is also excellent evidence for Ofsted and will contribute to the SEF sections 2, 4, 5 and 6.
My school has stalled. How do we get going again?
Re-familiarise yourself with up-to-date and relevant information, explore each section of this website and look at National Healthy Schools website. You are welcome to attend one of our network meetings or get in touch with the Healthy Schools Team for further support.
It seems so much work. How am I going to manage this?
You will probably find that your school is already meeting many of the criteria. The whole school community should share the workload. Remember the Healthy Schools team are here to support you.
There are certain criteria that I am unsure about. Where can I get help?
- Contact the Team for advice and support
- Network meetings
(716.00 KB) provide an opportunity for you to meet other Healthy Schools Co-ordinators and share good practice.
Where can I get help with writing policies?
For PSHE policies, refer to the PSHE handbook. Word versions of sample policies are also available. Alternatively, you can get in touch with one of our Teacher Advisers.
I work in a secondary school and my Head is keen on off timetable days for PSHE. Can you offer any guidance on the benefit of these theme days in PSHE? I am concerned that my school believe these are enough for good provision of PSHE yet I feel otherwise. Do you have any official guidelines?
Response from Dr. John Lloyd, Policy Adviser, PSHE Association (25.00 KB)
Ofsted Guidance on the Inspection of Suspended Timetable Days (22.50 KB)
I'm a teacher in a secondary school reviewing the schools SRE policy- the current DfES guidance dates from 2000. Are there any plans to update this soon? Is there any other guidance that can help me?
There is currently no commitment to update the DfEE 2000 SRE guidance. There are other more recent documents that are relevant to SRE however, for example the Ofsted report Time for change? Personal, Health and Social education. These do not constitute guidance but they could certainly infom policy development - as could the recent SRE audit tool that the Sex Education Forum have published - Are you getting it right? 
(273.11 KB)
You may also find a visit to the Sex Education Forum's website useful www.ncb.org.uk/sef.
A government review of SRE is currently underway - following a commitment to do this in the Children's Plan 2007. Recommendations from the review may give a clearer idea as to the potential for the 2000 guidance to be updated.
The Worcestershire Sexual Health Education Unit will be able to support you with policy development. Please contact Kate or Debra on 01905 681752.
I have recently been employed at a primary school and been given responsibility for PSHE and Healthy Schools. Until recently the school nurse delivered the sex education but now we don't have a school nurse. I have agreed to do it but don't really know where to start. I also need to contact parents to let them know what we intend to deliver. Can you help?
With regards what to teach at Primary level you need to have a look at the QCA framework for PSHE. Also the Sex Education Forum has some really useful information, with resources, factsheets, FAQ’s and more. This guidance document from them and has a section on working with parents as does this factsheet. Get in touch with Helen Roberts for advice on SRE provision for Key Stages 1 and 2.
For further specialised training in SRE provision you could look into the National PSHE CPD programme, further information available from nationalpshe@vtplc.com or Adrian Bowden-Green.
Can you help me with developing assessment of PSHE? Are there any resources, level descriptions, assessment activities that would help?Look out for training offered by the Worcestershire Healthy Schools Team.
There are no level descriptions for PSHE. We asked QCA about the end of key stage statements they published a couple of years ago. This is their reply:
Non-statutory end of key stage statements and related assessment guidance were produced by QCA in November 2005. Since then they have been extensively used by schools and local authorities to develop and improve planned assessment opportunities for PSHE. In the light of the secondary review, there is a clear need for a review of assessment opportunities to reflect the new curriculum, in particular the division of the new PSHE education framework into two programmes of study (Personal wellbeing and Economic wellbeing & financial capability).
QCA guidance on assessing PSHE can be found on the PSHE pages of the QCA website www.qca.org.uk
Further guidance can be found in the Worcestershire Handbook for PSHE Coordinators (6.02 MB).
The PSHE Association has also published for members a guidance document on assessment in PSHE. www.pshe-association.org.uk
How does the school benefit from joining the Programme?
The school gets valuable support for the entire school community, closer relationships with parents and external partners, recognition of its achievements, and a broader and more balanced curriculum. There is growing evidence that a healthy school contributes to raising pupil achievement.
Who should joing the task group?
All members of the wider school community: parents, pupils, staff, governors, caretakers, school crossing patrol, school cook, police, dieticians, health advisors, school nurse etc.
What level of support can the school expect?
The Healthy Schools Team works closely with schools, making sure they get all the support they need to plan and set targets. The team will be available to offer support, guidance, training opportunities, give regular updates of new resources available and network opportunities to share good practice.
Will the Healthy Schools Team be looking for progress in any specific areas of school life?
The Healthy School Programme requires a whole school approach which impacts on the following areas of school life:
- Leadership, management and managing change
- Policy Development – SRE/drugs education/physical activity/anti-bullying policy/food policy
- Curriculum planning, resourcing
- Working with outside agencies
- Monitoring and evaluating teaching and learning
- School culture and environment
- Giving pupils a voice
- Staff professional development
- Partnership with parents/local communities
- Assessing, recording and reporting pupils’ achievements
Can we still have a validation visit?
Validation visits are no longer part of the healthy schools process. However, you are encouraged to contact a member of the team to provide support through the process, particularly in the period prior to self-validation.
How long does the status last?
Three years, but schools are expected to review after two years.
Can we still get support/guidance once we have achieved full status?
Of course, just contact the Healthy Schools Team.
Last modification: 09:05:22, 29th September, 2008 by Stephanie Mowbray
Review date: 25th December, 2008
