Personal Development

As our students take the next important steps in their education, the issues they encounter in their personal lives and the wider world often become more complex. However, the opportunities on offer to them, both inside and out of school, also become more exciting and can really help them gain an understanding of who they are the ‘future self’ they aspire to. 

Personal Development Curriculum

Our Personal Development curriculum builds upon the topics and issues that students encounter in Key Stage 4, allowing them to explore issues related to personal wellbeing, relationships, safety, British values and other elements PSHE/RSE in an age-appropriate manner. Our goal remains the same as in lower school: to equip students with the knowledge they need to lead healthy, happy lives, both now and in the future. Alongside statutory learning in PHSE/RSE, Personal Development also includes information on careers and higher education.

Personal Development is delivered through tutor periods, assemblies and a series of collapsed days in each academic year. The documents below provide a full overview of the curriculum:

Personal Development Topics Overview: This is a brief summary of the topics covered in each term.

Personal Development Topics Overview

Enrichment Opportunities

Alongside the Personal Development curriculum, we offer a number of opportunities for students to develop their transferrable organisation, leadership and teamwork skills:

Senior Students: Each year, we select a number of senior students from our talented pool of Year 12s. The students who are selected for these positions demonstrate the three core values of the school  - Respect, Determination and Excellence – in abundance. As well as being role models to other students, they represent the school at a number of events, including Open Evenings and Achievement Evening.

Action Groups: We run a number of ‘Action Groups’ where students take responsibility for improving aspects of life in the Sixth Form, or for raising awareness of important issues. Our current Action Groups include sport and fitness, equalities and diversity, and a social group. In the past, these groups have organised whole-school assemblies, trips to venues like Thorpe Park, and have even planted wild flowers around the school site.

Sports Leaders: Students who study Sport also take part in the Sports Leaders Award. Through this, they help coach and run events for younger students in the school, which helps develop both their organisation and leadership skills.

Peer Mentors: A number of students in Years 12 and 13 are trained as peer mentors. These peer mentors meet regularly with younger students and offer them support and guidance with the challenges they might face in school. 

Reading Mentors: Each year, we select students in Year 12 to support our most avid readers in Year 7. These students meet regularly in the library to read a book that they have chosen together, and to discuss the big ideas and themes that these book raise.

Football Fixtures: We have just organised our first ever set of football fixtures against our neighbours at John of Gaunt Sixth Form. We hope to expand upon the friendly competition between our two schools in the near future.   

Outreach Opportunities: We regularly share information on a number of outreach opportunities offered by universities and other organisations that seek to provide young people with experience of higher education or aspirational careers. In the past year, Clarendon students have taken part in schemes such as Access to Bristol, Pathway to Bath, The Sutton Trust Summer School, a Women in Science residential conference at the University of Cambridge, a dentistry summer school at the University of Birmingham, and many more.