SCARF - Our whole school approach focuses on promoting behaviour and wellbeing. These blocks cover relationships, valuing differences, keeping themselves safe, rights and responsibilities, growing and changing and being their best. This scheme includes guidelines on Mental Health and Wellbeing and British Values. Workshops include Personal Development, Internet Safety and Mental Health and Wellbeing. Themes of SCARF are built upon as the children move through the school ensuring age appropriate learning in line with the National Curriculum.

SCARF fulfils statutory requirements for Relationships and Health Education, children's Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural (SMSC) development and Ofsted inspection criteria for personal development, behaviour and welfare.

Visitors to school help raise the profile of the themes of PSHE and the ethos and values at Bluecoat. Their personal experiences help to inspire our children.

The impact of our PSHE curriculum, including all aspects of whole school life, has seen our pupils:

• be able to approach a range of real life situations and apply their skills and attributes to help navigate themselves through modern life

• be on their way to becoming healthy, open minded, respectful, socially and morally responsible, active members of society and celebrate difference and diversity

• recognise and apply British values of Democracy, Tolerance, Mutual Respect, Rule of Law and Liberty

• be able to reflect on their own lives and provide opportunities to flourish individually

• be able to understand and manage their emotions and look after their mental health and wellbeing

• be able to develop positive, healthy relationships with their peers both now and in the future, to feel empowered in their own lives

• understand the physical aspects involved in RSE at an age appropriate level

These things have been evident in class discussions and a raised profile of the PSHE themes across the school. Pupil voice is used across the school to evidence attainment of the children and also to monitor attitudes and opinions. Evidence of the impact of our curriculum is monitored through regular recorded pupil voice sessions.

At Bluecoat School we believe that every child should be taught to recognise what is positive and appropriate touch. The positive touch programme is part of the Massage In Schools Programme (MISP) which is used across the world and is an evidence-based, child to child, internationally respected peer massage programme. It has been used in the UK since the 1990s and has Scandinavian origins. There are generally very mixed feelings about touch and a study was carried out in the 1960s to observe couples from a range of backgrounds and countries in a cafe setting to see how often they touched each other during conversation; incidental gestures such as a pat on the back or touch of the hand. The results were remarkable. Couples from Puerto Rico touched each other 180 times over the hour of conversation whilst those in London averaged zero times over the hour.

Here at Bluecoat, we facilitate weekly sessions for children up to year 3. Positive Touch is only carried out within set times, within a trained situation and over clothes. Parental consent is required prior to any child participating in the programme and they are invited to an information session soon after their child starts at the school.  The pupils are required to give and receive consent before beginning massage and this is central to the foundations of the Massage in Schools Programme. 

The programme is a set of 15 moves that are used as an anti-bullying strategy. The children are taught each move by a trained Positive Touch practitioner. The children are partnered up and the massage only takes place child to child and never with an adult whilst calming music is played. Children may opt out at any time. 

Research shows that there are lasting, positive outcomes for children who are involved in the MISP regularly, impacting on their well-being and preparation for learning.