SMSC

Curriculum Menu

SMSC

SMSC stands for Spiritual, Moral, Social, and Cultural education. This is not a separate subject that is taught explicitly. At Thatto Heath CPS, SMSC is an integral part of our Heart Curriculum. Key drivers for SMSC are our PSHE, Character Education and RE lessons however at Thatto Heath it permeates all that we do.

SMSC refers to the personal development of our pupils, encompassing their spiritual, moral, social, and cultural awareness. This includes their sense of self, their relationships with others, their appreciation of the world around them, and their understanding of different cultures and values.

By focusing on SMSC, we aim to help our pupils develop a strong sense of identity and purpose, and to equip them with the skills they need to navigate the complex and rapidly changing world around them. Through engaging with a variety of moral and ethical dilemmas, our pupils will be challenged to think critically and creatively, and to consider the perspectives of others.

We believe that SMSC is essential for our pupils’ personal and academic success, and we are committed to providing opportunities for them to develop these skills and values not just through our curriculum but also our extracurricular activities, and community projects.

SACRE SMSC Policy

Ofsted Definitions of SMSC

Spiritual development is shown by their:

beliefs, religious or otherwise, which inform their perspective on life and their interest in and respect for different people’s feelings and values
sense of enjoyment and fascination in learning about themselves, others and the world around them, including the intangible
use of imagination and creativity in their learning
willingness to reflect on their experiences

Moral development is shown by their:

Social development is shown by their:

use of a range of social skills in different contexts, including working and socialising with pupils from different religious, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds
willingness to participate in a variety of social settings, cooperating well with others and being able to resolve conflicts effectively
interest in, and understanding of, the way communities and societies function at a variety of levels

Cultural development is shown by their:

understanding and appreciation of the wide range of cultural influences that have shaped their own heritage
willingness to participate in, and respond to, for example, artistic, musical, sporting, mathematical, technological, scientific and cultural opportunities
interest in exploring, understanding of, and respect for cultural diversity and the extent to which they understand, accept, respect and celebrate diversity, as shown by their attitudes towards different religious, ethnic and socio-economic groups in the local, national and global communities.

Through our SMSC provision we:

Enable students to develop their self-knowledge, self-esteem and self-confidence.
Enable students to distinguish right from wrong and to respect the civil and criminal law of England
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 England
Further tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions by enabling students to acquire an appreciation of and respect their own and other cultures
Encourage respect for other people
Encourage respect for democracy and support for participation in the democratic processes, including respect on the basis on which the law is made and applied in England

This underpins our ethos to developing SMSC in school. We ensure opportunities for developing the British Values through our SMSC. To see examples that relate to the British Values specifically please click below:

British Values

SMSC Team

To ensure that our SMSC development is outstanding we have a strategic development team who meet at least half termly.

Mrs F. Lyons-Boulton – SMSC Lead

Miss A Fitzhenry – PSHE Subject Leader

Mrs J. Whalley- RE Subject Leader

Mrs L. McCallion – Deputy Head teacher/ Inclusion Manager

Mrs C. Ireland – Headteacher

Links with the Wider Community

Visitors are welcomed into our school
Excellent links with St John’s church
Visits to places of worship of other faiths are arranged to support the understanding of different cultures
Annual inter-faith week inviting representatives from a range of faiths into school
The school supports the work of a variety of charities
The development of a strong home-school agreement is regarded as very important, enabling parents and teachers to work in an effective partnership to support the children
Children are taught to appreciate and take responsibility for their local environment
Liaison with local secondary schools to support the primary curriculum and effective transition, takes place regularly

Picture News Assemblies

We are a Picture News Advocate School. Picture News is used each week in assembly. A current news story from around the world is explored through an image, a thought provoking question and a variety of teaching resources. Picture News develops the children’s respect for others beliefs, feelings and faiths.

Each week links are made between the news story, a British Value, a Protected Characteristics and UN Rights of the Child.