Welcome to Personal Development!

In the Gospel of John, Jesus proclaims, ‘The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full’ (John 10:10). This verse is often used in catholic schools to underline the purpose of their personal development and pastoral programmes and with good reason. However, it is often only the second, positive part of the verse that is quoted. The first element is however just as important to recognise and consider. Far too often we see young people whose joy for life has been taken away from them due to relationship issues, mental and physical health problems and through a lack of purpose and hope. It is this that our personal development programme seeks to address.

At John Henry Newman we firmly believe that parents are the chief educators of their children in relation to their personal development. We therefore see our role as serving parents in order to complement their infinitely valuable work. Our curriculum intent is therefore to increase the cultural and personal capital of our students through to adding to the experiences, knowledge and inspiration that parents have imparted.

This happens progressively within 5 areas; Character Education (SMSC), Health Education, Relationship and Sex Education, Vocational and Careers Education and Citizenship Education. An 'at a glance' overview of the curriculum can be seen below along with links to details of the discreet KS3 lessons taught.

At John Henry Newman Catholic College, we teach 'Relationship and Sex Education' through the online resources provided through the organisation 'TenTen'. This is the resource recommended by the CES and Birmingham Diocese. Whilst the central lesson aims of each lesson are shown in the attached document we do however adapt the resources to meet the needs of our own students.