Secondary PSHE with VotesforSchools
Covering knife crime once a year lets you tick it off a list. It doesn't help in the moment your pupils actually need it. Our lessons are built around what's happening in the world right now - so when knife crime hits the headlines in July, you get to talk to your pupils about it that week.
Our topical, current affairs approach strengthens your existing PSHE and RSHE lessons, while we also guarantee full coverage of British Values, SMSC, Personal Development, Citizenship and Character Education. For most secondary schools, that conversation happens in tutor time - the one slot every school already has, whether or not PSHE gets a dedicated lesson of its own.
Try a lessonSecondary PSHE brings together statutory Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) and wider PSHE learning, including economic wellbeing and careers.
VotesforSchools contributes to both - most often through tutor time - but in different ways.
VotesforSchools provides substantial, but not comprehensive, coverage of statutory Secondary RSHE.
Some objectives are developed regularly through discussion and VoteTopics. Others are covered through additional resources designed for more focused teaching.
We're clear about what our resources cover, so schools can see where VotesforSchools fits within their wider planned RSHE provision.
VoteTopics regularly give pupils opportunities to explore money, careers and the wider world of work through real-life issues.
Alongside specific topics, pupils develop transferable skills through discussion, teamwork and reflection, while considering their own strengths, goals and aspirations and encountering different experiences of education and employment.
A new VoteTopic gives pupils a real-life question to explore every week. Because VoteTopics respond to current affairs and issues affecting young people, a single discussion can connect naturally with several areas of PSHE.
A question about AI and emotional advice, for example, can open up discussion around mental wellbeing, online life and online harms. A VoteTopic about gambling can explore online harms alongside personal safety, risk and influence.
The curriculum links change with the conversation, giving pupils repeated opportunities to apply their PSHE learning to the world around them.
Some of the most sensitive areas of RSHE require more structured teaching. Our in-depth resources break these subjects into carefully planned learning, giving teachers the space to cover the relevant knowledge, risks, law and routes to support where appropriate.
Schools remain in control of when these lessons are delivered. We recommend reviewing resources before use so teachers can make informed decisions based on their pupils and setting.
Headteacher, The Crescent Academy
Deputy Head, Bebington High School
Headteacher, Headington Prep
Some curriculum content needs a dedicated lesson. Other skills become stronger through regular practice. Discussion sits at the heart of every VoteTopic, giving pupils repeated opportunities to:
These skills connect across areas including healthy relationships, inclusion and discrimination, online life, mental wellbeing and personal safety.
Rather than being introduced once and left behind, pupils practise them through different real-life situations throughout the year.
When something hits the headlines, you can bet that we're making a lesson on it - so when all of your pupils are talking about something, so are you.
That way, you're not relying on your pupils to remember knowledge from two terms ago when something concerning occurs, but refreshing their memory alongside what they're seeing and hearing outside of school
How the resources are made
When something happens in your local community that you need to talk about, our database will have you covered. From county lines and knife crime through to social media and AI, just search for what you need, or browse through each curriculum area to see what's on offer.
Each lesson has it's very own curriculum map, so you can see exactly what areas of the curriculum you've met as you go. Added to being able to search by curriculum strand, you never have to guess how a lesson fits into your curriculum.
Curriculum coverage
Each half term, we'll send you a report of all of the curriculum areas you've met so far. That way, when someone asks, you have the information at your fingertips.
Ofsted InspectionsEvery VoteTopic is mapped to specific curriculum criteria, visible within the platform, so you can see what is being covered that week.
Need to revisit a particular area? Search more than 200 previous VoteTopics by theme to find relevant resources from the archive.
Every half term, your Curriculum Coverage Report brings your coverage together, helping you see what pupils have explored, identify areas for further teaching and plan what comes next.
Every VotesforSchools resource is developed by an Education Team with classroom experience.
Schools decide which resources are appropriate for their pupils and when to use them. If a particular VoteTopic isn't right for your setting, you can choose another from the archive.
For sensitive subjects, resources include appropriate signposting to help pupils and staff know where further support is available.
That flexibility is particularly important for RSHE, where schools need to consider the age, needs and context of their pupils when planning their provision.
Not yet.
VotesforSchools provides substantial coverage of statutory Secondary RSHE through weekly VoteTopics and additional resources, but we don't currently claim comprehensive coverage.
That means VotesforSchools should sit alongside your wider planned RSHE provision rather than being treated as a complete replacement for it.
What we can show you clearly is what has been covered, where our resources contribute and where further teaching may still be needed.