Personal Development

Cultural Capital & Plan          9 Protected Characteristics       British Values        SMSC

At Ocean Academy we consistently promote outstanding Personal Development opportunities for our children whereby they have access to a wide, rich set of experiences both in school and beyond. We  prioritise and build our children’s character throughout their time with us so that they are confident, resilient and independent.

Our 3 Guiding Principles of Self-Worth, Engagement and Purpose drive our commitment to secure the skills, knowledge and experiences our children need to thrive now and in the future. We carefully plan  activities, events and lessons that enable all children to achieve our aims.

By the end of Key Stage 2, our aim is that all of our children will have developed a character to be proud of!

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How we do this:

Keeping Healthy                                    

• On site lunches cooked following strict healthy guidelines
• We encourage all pupils to maintain an active lifestyle. Alongside the P.E curriculum, children can join sports  teams, attend lunchtime and after school clubs, take part in bikeability events, attend swimming lessons and compete in annual sports days. We are a PLATINUM School Games school!
• We encourage our pupils to walk  or scoot to school.
• Pupils’ wellbeing is considered within all areas of our curriculum and is visible within the learning environment. Mental health is also promoted through PSHE, assemblies and events such as ‘Children’s Mental Health Week’. We have Mental Health Accredited staff and a Mental Health First Aider.
• Our PSHE curriculum ensures pupils have an age-appropriate understanding of relationships and the 9 Protected Characteristics. We also weave a robust SMSC offer throughout our curriculum.
• High levels of engagement in a wide variety of extra curricular clubs is in place.

Staying Safe

• We actively teach the contextual safeguarding concerns (road safety, fire safety and water safety) for our pupils and ensure they know how to stay safe through lessons, assemblies, workshops and events. We also focus on the local context such as County Lines and beach safety.
• We take Online safety very seriously and integrate this into all areas of Computing being taught within school, so that children can see the real life dangers involved with using digital devices. This is also well covered through assemblies and the PSHE curriculum.
• All pupils will know that bullying is wrong and that they should challenge it when they see it.
• All pupils are encouraged and frequently reminded, to speak to a trusted adult when they have concerns or worries.
• We engage with the local services to support our pupils understanding (Police, Safer Schools Team, RNLI, Wessex Water, Railways etc.)

British Values

• The British Values are taught, promoted and reinforced regularly in a variety of ways: lessons, debates, weekly assemblies, through school council and celebrations.
• Current events  are used to promote discussion and learning opportunities.
• We have developed a school culture that promotes diversity in our classrooms. We understand that each pupil brings unique experiences, strengths and ideas and the exploration and incorporation of these differences enriches our learning. We use stories, resources and teaching materials that celebrate different religions, cultures and disabilities. We also hold assemblies and themed events where all children learn about and discuss a particular focus.
• We have culture days in school.

Rich Experiences

• We consider pupils’ cultural capital through all aspects of academy life.
• We widen our pupils vision for their future by introducing the world of work and employment – having big dreams and striving to reach these. We use Primary Futures and meeting external professionals to enhance their experience.
• We ensure all classes take part in educational visits to bring their topics to life. These include wildlife parks, museums, residentials, science centres, theatres, local universities and education centres.
• We regularly have visitors into the academy to inspire pupils. These include the police, RNLI, Various employers and professionals, local university students and academics, charity workers, faith leaders and historians.
• We nurture and develop pupils’ talents and interests through our broad and exciting curriculum, whereby our children’s interests and talents are considered and where an understanding of equity and diversity is paramount.

Responsible Citizens

• We give pupils’ extra responsibilities and ensure they understand how important and appreciated their role in our school is. These include Green Team, School Councillors (MPs), Sports Leaders, Library Monitors, Maths Champions, Digital Leads and so on.
• We want our pupils to have a voice and to use this for the common good.
• We support the local and wider community by raising money for charities, collecting donations for food banks and working closely with the local community.
• We encourage pupils to look after the environment through science, geography and PSHE lessons. Our pupils are proud of their school and are happy to litter pick, plant flowers and so on. Each class has monitors to ensure our environment is clean and tidy. Mr Chamberlain, our site manager takes very good care of our school building and grounds!

Developing Character

In addition to the above, to support pupils in building the character skills they will need, we;

• Strive to maintain our consistent;y above national attendance figures.
• Ensure all pupils display positive behaviour through our ‘four rules’ : Be Safe, Be kind, Make good choices, Be responsible.
• Deliver PSHE  and RSE lessons that explore feelings and emotions and provide our pupils with strategies to manage them.
• Teach pupils life skills such as cooking, sewing and being responsible with money.
• Provide positive role models for all children: the academy staff and visitors such as footballers, doctors, boxers and police officers.
• Provide challenge in lessons and problem solving activities that build pupils’ resilience.
• Support children to take part in competitions and games, developing skills such as team work, discipline and determination.
• Ensure the academy is a place pupils feel safe and cared for and that they understand bullying is never tolerated and a trusted adult is always available to talk to.
• At an age appropriate level, we actively teach the 9 Protected Characteristics. Our pupils understand that these are protected by law and that discrimination should never be tolerated.
• Our children respect each others views and characteristics and debate school, local and global issues.
• Have highly skilled staff, including those who specialise in pastoral and social / emotional needs.
• Work collaboratively with parents and wider stakeholders.