Personal Development Curriculum
Vision
HAB pupils benefit from a broad personal development curriculum which aims to cultivate Active Citizens who will lead with ambition, compassion and respect. The curriculum teaches the necessary skills, knowledge and understanding students need to lead a joyful, independent life and navigate their way through society. Through exploring themselves and their potential impact on society and the lives of others, students are taught to make conscientious decisions that reflect both the needs and challenges of thriving in modern British society.
In particular, students who leave HAB and HAB6 will:
- Be responsible, respectful and active citizens who are tolerant of all people
- Understand the fundamental British values of democracy, individual liberty, the rule of law and mutual respect and tolerance.
- Understand that individual characteristics and differences are positive
- Develop their own character and find their own motivation
- Understand the importance of physical and mental health
- Understand what healthy relationships look like
- Have learned about various careers and post-16 and post-18 pathways and are able to transition to their next stage successfully.
“There is a high level of trust between staff and pupils, which contributes to a positive culture where pupils feel safe.” — Ofsted, 2025
Curriculum design
At HAB we take a thematic approach to PSHE education, covering all three core themes of the Programme of Study over six half terms. The themes we cover are:
- Relationships
- Health & wellbeing
- Living in the wider world
At HAB the personal development curriculum teaches statutory content on Relationships Sex and Health Education (RSHE) and Relationships education, Citizenship, British Values and Social, Moral, Spiritual and Cultural education. The personal development curriculum also supports the delivery of Careers Education Information and Guidance at HAB alongside our Careers Plan.
Click here to download our personal development curriculum.
Tutor time
PHSE lessons are delivered twice a week in tutor time for a total of 1 hour. In addition to this HABmin sessions are designed to praise students for attendance, punctuality and positive points received during the week. During literacy sessions all HAB students complete literacy booklets with a specific theme and focus for each half term. On these days some students receive extra literacy guided intervention during this time and other students participate in the peer-based mentoring programme Reader Leader. HAB6 student engage in peer mentoring of students in other years during their tutor time sessions.
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | |
| Year 7 | Assembly | PSHE | HABmin or intervention | Literacy or intervention | PSHE |
| Year 8 | PSHE | Assembly | HABmin or intervention | Literacy or intervention | PSHE |
| Year 9 | HABmin or intervention | PSHE | PSHE | Assembly | Literacy or Intervention |
| Year 10 | PSHE | PSHE | HABmin or intervention | Literacy or intervention | Assembly |
| Year 11 | HABmin or intervention | Assembly | PSHE | PSHE | Literacy or intervention |
| Year 12 | Peer mentoring / Reader Leader | PSHE | Assembly | PSHE | HABmin + academic mentoring |
| Year 13 | PSHE | PSHE | Assembly | PSHE | HABmin + academic mentoring |
Literacy
Literacy sessions at HAB are designed to support the personal development curriculum and cover a range of topics.
While exploring spoken word students have explored poetry about identity and belonging
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The Struggles of Being a Chinese Kid in a White Family by Honey Birch, 2018 London
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George The Poet on Hate Crime, 2017 London
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Mathematics by Hollie McNish, 2017 Cambridge
Through teaching vocabulary and learning the morphology of words students have developed their racial literacy and understanding by studying the following lessons
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Interpersonal racism
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Colourism
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Micro-aggressions
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Institutional racism
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How to respond to a racist incident
Character development
At HAB we develop student character through developing their values and virtues. Through our approach to behaviour and character development we set high expectations for students, alongside a strong commitment to supporting their wellbeing.
Our approach is rooted in our core HAB values of Ambition, Compassion and Respect.
We use Jubilee Centre’s Framework for Character Education to set out our character development work at HAB.
| Character Development | How we do this at HAB |
| Character caught - Character can be caught through a positive school community, formational relationships, and a clear ethos. Environment, Vision, Ethos, Culture, Relationships |
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| Character taught - Character education can be taught through the curriculum using teaching and learning strategies, activities, and resources. The curriculum, teaching and learning, activities | Students are given the knowledge, skills and language to develop their character through educational experiences, both in and out of the classroom
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| Character sought - Character can be sought through chosen experiences that occur within and outside of the formal curriculum. |
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SMSC & British Values
At HAB we embed SMSC and British Values into our Personal Development curriculum.
All students study Religious Studies throughout KS3 and KS4 which encourages students to explore their own beliefs, and teaches them respect for others.
We encourage students to reflect on their experiences at HAB and how these allow them real-life opportunities to demonstrate and embody the British Values. Through these experiences and reflections students will be better prepared for life in Modern day Britain.
Our assemblies programme makes explicit links to the British Values and reinforces students spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.
Assemblies
Assemblies take place each week for every year group and play a key role in the delivery of the Personal Development curriculum. This allows each year group to come together as a community and learn about important issues and topics. Assemblies are planned carefully to reflect what students are learning in PSHE lessons and each half term we deliver assemblies with a specific safeguarding focus to address our contextual safeguarding factors. This ensures that students understand how to keep them safe and understand how to report any concerns they have. Stand-alone assemblies exist to address important themes such as racism, online safety and to mark national awareness days such as Refugee week, Holocaust Memorial Day and cervical cancer awareness day. Praise assemblies take place at the end of each term to celebrate and reward student achievements.
Assemblies for Autumn Term 2026
Our assemblies programme makes explicit links to the British Values and reinforces students’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.
| SMSC FBV HAB value | Assembly focus | Date Week beginning |
| Social + moral Mutual respect + Rule of law Respect + Ambition | HAB expectations + safeguarding | 1st September |
| Spiritual + Social Individual liberty Respect | HOY assembly: the year ahead
| 8th September |
| Social Mutual respect Compassion
| The equalities act – know your rights
| 15th September |
| Moral Tolerance Ambition | Safeguarding assembly Reporting safeguarding concerns + Mental health
HAB6 – youth construction
| 22nd September |
| Cultural Rule of law + tolerance Respect | Managing risk & safety – unsafe and emergency situations
WEX launch Y10
Y11 assembly (led by HAB6: Why choose HAB6?) | 29th September |
| Social Individual liberty Ambition | Careers assemblies HAB6 elections
| 6th October |
| Cultural Tolerance Respect
| Student led assembly - Black History month
HAB6 – DISCOVER assembly (mental health and wellbeing)
| 13th October |
| Moral Mutual respect Respect + Compassion | Anti-bullying / child on child abuse
| 3rd November |
| Cultural Democracy Respect | Safeguarding: Online safety and YPSI
| 10th November |
| Moral Rule of law Respect | Christmas appeal: Donation dive launch for The Manna Society
| 17th November |
| Cultural + social Individual liberty Respect | Jack Petchy speeches | 24th November |
| Social Individual liberty Respect | Health – vaping
| 1st December |
| Spiritual Mutual respect Compassion | Challenging prejudice and discrimination | 8th December |
| Social Mutual respect Respect + ambition | HOY awards assemblies | 15th December |
Ofsted