Personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education has in various forms been part of the national curriculum for schools in England since 2000. Some aspects, but not all, have been compulsory. PSHE is defined by the schools inspectorate Ofsted as a planned programme to help children and young people develop fully as individuals and as members of families and social and economic communities. Its goal is to equip young people with the knowledge, understanding, attitudes and practical skills to live healthily, safely, productively and responsibly.[1]
In Wales, the comparable element of the state school curriculum topic is Personal and Social Education (PSE).
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Recent research at the University of Southampton and the University of Bristol has resulted in a thrust towards changing this. The UK government has published the "SEAL" pack (Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning) for primary schools to teach emotional literacy and personal growth overtly through PSHE and the curriculum. This is to be supported also in secondary schools in England and Wales with a similar pack, still in development, called "SEBS" or Social, Emotional and Behavioural Skills. It is also sometimes referred to as variants of PSHEE (Personal Social Health Economic Education).
More recently, the largest ever study of PSHE education in primary and secondary schools in England was completed by the Centre for Education and Inclusion Research (CEIR) at Sheffield Hallam University (Formby et al, 2011). This research was based on a nationally representative survey and in-depth case studies to map and assess the delivery and effectiveness of current provision in English primary and secondary schools.
In July 2011, the Department for Education launched an internal review of personal, social, health and economic education to look at the content and quality of teaching of PSHE in schools [2]. Closing date for the responses to the review is Wednesday 30 November 2011.
There are many independent publications supporting the teaching of PSHE in schools in the UK: