At Birtley House we aim to support pupils to become the best possible version of themselves and to offer them a scope of opportunities. We aim to develop the whole child through a holistic approach focussing on nurturing the children to grow in all areas. We hope to prepare them for all aspects of life outside of Birtley House and equipping them with knowledge past the National Curriculum. Our Personal Development curriculum will highlight how we intertwine the British values into our school and curriculum as well as how we ensure children are developing spiritually, morally, socially and culturally. Our children develop core values of: respect, kindness, teamwork, success and pride. Birtley House has always provided its pupils with a range of educational trips and out-of-school opportunities, priding itself on being inclusive for all. We provide these experiences through a carefully planned balance of curriculum and extra-curricular activities. Many pupils with SEND often are unable to attend a range of opportunities therefore our mission is to make all of our personal development curriculum inclusive so no child is not benefiting from these opportunities. Throughout the years we have provided our pupils with a host of opportunities to enable their confidence to grow and develop unique passions for future endeavours. Our curriculum’s purpose is to prepare pupils for their adult lives and leave Birtley House much more rounded and developed individuals.
Birtley House Independent School is committed to meeting all statutory requirements for personal and development education. As an independent school, we provide Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education (PSHE) under the Independent School Standards. Our PSHE curriculum includes the statutory requirements for Relationships Education and, where appropriate, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE), as set out in the Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education and Health Education (England) Regulations 2019. This policy was approved in October 2025 and will be reviewed annually to ensure continued compliance with statutory guidance and best practice.
SMSC
Children’s’ Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural development is integral to everything we do at Birtley House.
Spiritual – We allow children to explore a range of beliefs firstly through a well-planned RE curriculum as well as through a range of activities. We instil respect in the children while learning about a range of beliefs. We enable to children to develop their personal values and beliefs that make them who they are while praising children’s creativity and imagination.
Moral – This area mainly relates to behaviour and children’s’ understanding of societal values and rules we follow to live our lives. From the beginning, children learn the importance of knowing right from wrong and how to regulate their own behaviour. We promote positive behaviour within our school through a range of ways which can also be seen in our Behaviour Policy.
Social – Children’s social development is an area that is particular paramount at Birtley House as the majority of our pupils have a diverse range of social and communication needs. While we support our children in their needs within the classroom we also use our personal development curriculum to broaden their opportunities to develop in this area. We promote children’s communication skills as well teamwork and relationship building skills.
Cultural – We aim to provide the children with diverse cultural opportunities which promote tolerance and respect for people from a range of backgrounds, lifestyles and beliefs. We encourage our pupils to participate in different cultural activities to learn through a practical approach.
British Values
Birtley House teaches children the British Values explicitly while also using them as key values in all areas of our school life. We see the British Values as extremely influential and important to developing children holistically: Democracy; The Rule of Law; Individual Liberty; Mutual Respect and Tolerance of Those with Different Faiths and Beliefs.
Democracy – At Birtley House we embed democracy into decisions we make as a school so children can observe first-hand the benefits of listening to others while also having the right to share their opinion. We use elections to select School Council members as well as Head Girl and Head Boy. This reflects this specific British Value by valuing the importance of each pupil having their voice heard.
The Rule of Law – This British Value is mirrored in our school rules and expectations which are clearly explained and followed by the pupils of Birtley House. Through our Behaviour Policy our children are supported to know the difference between right from wrong and to follow the school rules. Children have also been visited by a range of visitors who have explained the importance of laws and how they are used to govern and protect us.
Individual Liberty – A common progress made by the children at Birtley House is their growth in confidence; this enables them to become more independent in making choices and decisions that affect themselves. We provide children with a safe environment where they can show initiative and be encouraged to seek different opportunities. All of our pupils are protected by our Safeguarding and Anti-bullying policy with a positive culture embedded throughout the school.
Mutual Respect – Respect is a key value of Birtley House and is extremely important to ensure all of our children feel safe and respected in our school. All our pupils have a range of Special Educational Needs and it is integral that all pupils show each other mutual respect. Staff teach the importance of mutual respect through the curriculum and children are very understanding of differences that make us unique.
Tolerance of Those with Different Faiths and Beliefs – Through the PSHE, RE and Enrichment activities children learn about a range of faiths and beliefs. Our diverse curriculum and activities ensure children are aware there are a range of differences to celebrate. Children begin to understand our culturally diverse society and how to respect the beliefs of others.
Clubs and Wider Opportunities:
We are extremely lucky that the teachers at Birtley House are passionate about extra-curricular clubs, each lunchtime a different club is offered to all children. The clubs we offer are:
- Street Dance
- Board Game club
- Singing Club
- Signing Club
- Football club
Pupil Voice:
I liked the Pokemon treasure hunt with my friends
My favourite day was watching a movie and bringing in my blanket
