Physical Education

Our intent is for all learners to enjoy taking part in a broad range of physical activities whilst aiming for personal bests. We aim to develop skills from EYFS to KS5 and want our learners to experience the enjoyment of taking part in sports and understand the importance of leading a healthy and active life. Our expectations and standards are high and we are extremely proud that every year, our KS4 Entry Level exam cohort receives excellent feedback from external moderators. 

We feel it is vital that our learners learn about the importance of leading a healthy and active lifestyle because children and young people with disabilities are more likely to be obese than children without disabilities. This risk increases with age which can then lead to a greater risk of health conditions such as diabetes, asthma, and depression (Public Health England). 

Ofsted recognizes that learners with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported to achieve well in PE when the curriculum endpoints are clearly defined and ambitious for all, and staff are well-trained and supported to implement specific strategies for learners with SEND. We are proud of our PE curriculum and believe that it is inclusive, supportive, and challenging. Our staff supports learners through modeling techniques (both good and bad), encouraging them to keep trying and differentiate tasks according to their needs and abilities. Many of our learners join Westhaven with a negative experience of PE and it is our job to turn that around and make PE something that they love.

Our PE curriculum is taught by a subject specialist and we follow the National Curriculum.  We offer a wide range of activities including swimming, outdoor adventurous activities, team sports, health-related fitness and gymnastics. Our KS1 and KS2 learners are taught dance by a professional teacher for one term a year and we offer a range of extracurricular activities such as competitions, festivals and after school clubs. Where possible, we link with local clubs to support and inspire our learners, for example Somerset County Cricket club have provided us with cricket coaching, England Netball coaches have led our after school club and Bristol Bears Rugby Club have coached some of our learners for rugby, which has led to them taking part in Bristol Bear rugby festivals. 

We have also established links with Twist O’Flex Dance Group, Somerset County Cricket Club and Somerset Football Association to enable and encourage our learners to access sport during their free time. 

A key part of our PE lessons is striving for personal bests, this means that every single learner, regardless of ability level, aims to achieve a personal best every lesson. No matter how big or small this might seem, it is always in the forefront of our minds that we can always try to do better than the previous time. 

During PE lessons, we encourage our learners to be: 

• Safely Independent
• Confident communicators
• Respectful Citizens
• Resilient Learners
• Inquisitive Thinkers

This can take many forms, from being safely independent when using new equipment to being confident communicators when evaluating performances. Above all, we teach our learners to be resilient so that they are able to overcome their barriers to achieve and improve. 

Every learner at Westhaven has timetabled PE lessons every week: 

Our learners are taught in mixed-ability classes and each lesson is tailored to bring out the best in every learner. We have a wide range approach to PE at Westhaven, the curriculum map is mapped so that as learners come through the school they get the chance to access a wide range of sporting opportunities and build on prior learning and skills. 

In Lower School (EYFS – KS2), learners are taught the key fundamentals of PE such as movement, coordination, balance, teamwork skills, and hand-eye coordination. As our learners progress through the school they follow a spiral curriculum where they move into more sport-specific learning whilst revisiting the key fundamentals in every lesson. 

During sport-specific PE lessons, learners are taught the basics of many different sporting activities such as netball, cricket, and athletics, as well as the holistic side of sports and how sports can improve mental health and self-esteem. For indoor sports, we use the school hall and for outside activities, we use the main playground, the running track, and the local area (e.g. the beach for cross country). Word mats are referred to in lessons to support our learners with understanding and every term is finished with a choice session where learners choose an activity from the term to repeat. 

As well as PE lessons, learners are encouraged to take part in sports, particularly basketball and football, at lunch and break times. The Head of PE and duty staff lead these activities every day with an emphasis on teamwork and supporting others. 

Sports Day 
The highlight of the year is our sports day in term 6 where learners are able to showcase their sporting talents to families, friends, staff, and peers whilst representing their house. All learners are invited to take part and the emphasis is on participation and achieving a personal best.. The events take place on our all-weather running track and include traditional running races as well as a carousel of events to showcase the skills they have worked on all year in PE, such as football dribbling, throwing for accuracy, and javelin. Points are accrued throughout the day all across all ages and the winning house is awarded the Barlow Shield by Mr Peacock at the end of the day.  

Qualifications 
When our learners reach KS4 they are entered for the Entry Level Physical Education award where they can achieve an Entry Level 1, 2, or 3 award. 

Celebrating Success
Every week, two classes are chosen as “PE classes of the week” (one from Lower School and one from Middle / Upper School) and trophies are presented during the weekly celebration assembly. Learners are also encouraged to share with their peers any sporting achievements from outside of school during the weekly celebration assembly.

‘ I love PE, I enjoy doing all the different sporting activities especially archery’ Lower School Learner. 

‘ I enjoy the fitness aspect of PE, I love being active and fit and working hard in PE always helps this’ Liam and George Yr 11 Learners.

PE Curriculum Map
SEND PE Activities Youth Sport Trust