Personal and Social Education Delivery and Implementation Group: sub-groups

In order to maximise efficiency and ensure relevant expertise from key partners informs delivery of the PSE Review recommendations, a range of sub-groups, working under the Delivery and Implementation Group (DIG), will focus on supporting delivery of the recommendations within the agreed timescale.

In fulfilling their functions, these sub-groups should also consider any potential impact their work will have on the protected characteristics set out in the Equality Act 2010 (under the Equality Act 2010, there are nine protected characteristics: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and sex) to help inform both Equality and Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessments on the work to deliver the recommendations, which will be published on conclusion of the DIG. 

Raising the Profile Sub-Group

For the work of the DIG to succeed, raising the profile of PSE is a top priority in ensuring it achieves the same prominence as literacy and numeracy in the Scottish curriculum. This sub-group will look at how the barriers, as set out in the “Raising the Profile” paper, can be broken down and consider how the recommendations in that paper can be taken forward to give PSE more prominence on the timetable as a recognised, beneficial and valued subject to learners.

ITE and CLPL Sub-Group

Ensuring appropriate skills, knowledge and time for teachers to deliver meaningful PSE learning will be a crucial part in strengthening this core area of the curriculum. This sub-group will support delivery of recommendations 11 and 15 covering professional teaching standards and working with ITE institutions to develop pathways for ongoing professional development.

Pupil and Parental Engagement Sub-Group

Evidence gathered over the course of the Education and Skills Committee’s inquiry and the PSE Review exemplified the importance and value children and young people place on their PSE learning, including their peers being involved in its delivery. This sub-group will support delivery of recommendations 8 and 13 covering pupil participation in delivery of PSE learning, and a senior phase mentoring programme with associated award for pupils supporting delivery of learning.

This sub-group will also be key to providing the voice of children and young people in advising the DIG and its sub-groups on their work in delivering all recommendations. This sub-group will also be key to relaying the voice of parents and carers in advising the DIG and its sub-groups on their work in delivering all recommendations. Parents and carers are the first and most enduring educators of their children. As such, they will be keenly interested in the work to deliver the recommendations of the PSE Review.

PSE Lead Officer Network

The main focus of the Network will be collating or developing effective resources teachers need to implement the recommendations to strengthen delivery and consistency of PSE. They will play a key role in designing and devising a cost effective PSE Toolkit. The Network will support delivery of recommendations 4, 5, 9, 10 and 12 covering the PSE Toolkit, tracking and monitoring pupil progression in PSE, resources to support learning on protected characteristics and direction for teachers in supporting senior phase pupils for life after school. There are a myriad of organisations who play a vital role in supporting the learning experience of our children and young people. Providing children and young people with access and signposts to these services appropriately through a toolkit of resources will ensure they are aware these services exist and they can be accessed in later life. The Network will help identify and tabulate these services to help signpost teachers to reliable and useful resources using the Wakelets developed by Education Scotland as a template.