Personal Development

At St. Mary’s Catholic Voluntary Academy, our Personal Development curriculum is designed to nurture the whole child, supporting each pupil in reaching their God-given potential and leaving us as the best version of themselves. We strive to provide pupils with enriching experiences and opportunities they may not otherwise have had, ensuring they are well-prepared for life in the modern British world.

As a Catholic School our personal development in rooted in our school’s Gospel Values and the Catholic Social Teaching principles. We also recognise the importance of British Values and the Protected Characteristics to foster respect, resilience, and a deep sense of social responsibility equipping them to contribute positively to their communities. The Five Ways to Wellbeing ensure regular personal reflection to develop a strong sense of self and personal resilience.

We provide opportunities for pupils to take on school roles and responsibilities, participate in enrichment days, welcome diverse visitors, and build meaningful community links. This holistic approach ensures every child leaves St Mary’s confident, compassionate, and ready to thrive.

Protected Characteristics

The Equality Act became law in 2010. It covers everyone in Britain and protects people from discrimination, harassment and victimisation. Everyone in Britain is protected. This is because the Equality Act protects people against discrimination because of the protected characteristics that we all have. Under the Equality Act, there are nine Protected Characteristics:

  1. Age
  2. Disability
  3. Gender reassignment
  4. Race
  5. Religion or belief
  6. Marriage or civil partnership
  7. Sex
  8. Sexual orientation
  9. Pregnancy and maternity

As a Catholic school we strive to be a haven of respect and custodians of the true dignity of each human being. We encourage,  celebrate and value the diversity of all our communities. We actively promote the principle of equality for all. We aim to ensure that everyone within our community is treated fairly, with respect and dignity. We seek to eliminate any form of inequality, bullying or discrimination.

Pope Francis speaks eloquently on the matter of equality: “The Church does not exist to condemn people but to bring about an encounter with the visceral love of God’s mercy. For the Church to offer God’s mercy it must ‘go outside and look for people where they live, where they suffer and where they hope’ The enemy of mercifulness is self-righteousness.”

Protected Characteristics Intent And Progression Document

Ten:Ten RSHE Guidance On Protected Characteristics

Fundamental British Values

At St Mary’s, we think about how the values of our society are fundamental as we live in an increasingly growing diverse and vibrant society. We know that it is possible to live together peacefully, each of us a valuable part of our multicultural world. Through understanding the core British Values, we strive to be the best citizens we can be.

British Values:

  • Democracy
  • Rule of law
  • Individual liberty
  • Mutual respect
  • Tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs

These values are taught through Religious Education and RSHE, as well as Collective Worship. We have also embedded British Values throughout our broad and balanced curriculum, ensuring that our curriculum planning and delivery includes real opportunities for exploring these values in depth. We take opportunities to actively promote British Values, through whole school systems and structures such as electing and running a successful School Council, Chaplaincy Team, Eco Team as well as many other pupil led groups. We also play active parts in supporting our local and global community through a range of workshops, missions and charity work.

British Values Intent And Progression

Catholic Social Teaching

Our faith calls us to love God and to love our neighbours in every situation, especially our sisters and brothers living in poverty. Following in the footsteps of Christ, we hope to make present in our unjust and broken world, the justice, love and peace of God. Catholic social teaching (CST) is rooted in Scripture, formed by the wisdom of Church leaders, and influenced by grassroots movements. It is our moral compass, guiding us on how to live out our faith in the world.

Catholic Social Teaching Principles:

  • Human Dignity: We believe everyone is special.
  • The Common Good: We believe in thinking of everyone.
  • Participation: We believe in taking part.
  • Subsidiarity: We believe everyone should have a say.
  • Stewardship: We believe in caring for God’s gifts.
  • Option for the Poor: We believe in putting people in most need first.
  • Solidarity: We believe in showing we care.
  • Distributive Justice: We believe in sharing fairly.
  • Promoting Peace: We believe in being peacemakers.

Catholic Social Teaching Poster

Catholic Social Teaching Progression

Behaviour Curriculum

At St Mary’s, we develop children’s character through our behaviour curriculum, The St Mary’s Way. In order to build character, we define the behaviours and habits that we expect pupils to demonstrate. We want to support our pupils to grow into adults who are polite, respectful, grateful and who always consider others. We believe that as pupils practise these behaviours, over time they become automatic routines that positively shape how they feel about themselves and how other people perceive them.

Our whole school rules are consistently applied across the school by all staff and are explicitly taught and modelled to pupils. All children have a clear understanding of the rules, routines and expectations of behaviour and are therefore able to understand the consequences of their actions.

The whole school rules are based upon the school’s mission and Gospel Values:

•            Always try our best

•            Show love and respect

•            Take care of one another and our environment

•            Move calmly around school

•            Look smart and take pride in our uniform (Dress to Impress)

The St Mary’s Way is taught explicitly during the first week in Advent Term. Children learn the content of the curriculum so that they can recall the information and act upon it. At the start of each term, the behaviour curriculum is revisited with pupils and will continue to be reinforced throughout the year. Teachers will also demonstrate these behaviours and ensure pupils have time to deliberately practise these (particularly in the first few days of term). For example, lining up will be taught in the classroom but will be reinforced in different locations and times throughout the school day e.g. at lunchtime. It is expected that all pupils will know this content.

Behaviour Intent And Progression Document (draft)