Social, Moral, Spiritual and Cultural

At Allens Croft Primary School, we recognise that social, moral, spiritual and cultural development is central to the education of all pupils and permeates the whole curriculum and ethos of the school. It is reflected in the behaviours of individuals and in their interactions and also in the provision of teaching, resources and learning environments.

Social development relates to the development of knowledge and understanding and the acquisition of skills in relating to others. This begins with family and friends and extends to the wider community beyond. Pupils are taught to respect each other and to appreciate each other’s similarities and differences. An awareness and understanding of, and respect for, the environments in which they live is also developed.

Moral development relates particularly to developing knowledge and understanding of right and wrong. Pupils learn to make choices in their behaviour through developing knowledge of boundaries and understanding of consequences. They learn by example and by practising through role-play, story and group activities.

Spiritual development is concerned with the exploration and development of feelings and emotions; personality, individuality and uniqueness; and knowledge and understanding of their own and different beliefs and cultures.

Cultural development is concerned with encountering the defining aspects of different cultures. Explorations of values, beliefs, customs, foods, artefacts and stories allow the pupils to make comparisons and develop knowledge of lifestyles and choices of others.

Strategies

SMSC development is taught through and reflected in all areas of the curriculum and through all aspects of school life. Pupils are provided with the opportunities to gain in knowledge and understanding and to develop the skills they need to participate in the life of the diverse community in which they live. For example:

Social

• Staffing at lunchtimes and on the playground is organised to promote appropriate social interaction. Pupils play together in group games and imaginative play on their own and with adults. Calm Club is a provision for children to attend at lunchtimes if they/staff feel that they would benefit from additional support throughout unstructured times.
• Circle times feature in all classes promoting turn taking and social interaction.
• The PSHE scheme of work contains units on Health and Wellbeing, Relationships and Living in the Wider World.
• Children learn to be effective communicators through P4C (philosophy for children), Reciprocal Reading, Social Group time, high quality questioning and the of symbols, photos, PECS, technology and Makaton.
• Educational visits within the community, including swimming, visiting the local library and park visits.

Moral

• There is an agreed reward system in place for good behaviour as well as academic achievement.  
• Star of the Week assembly , where parents/carer are invited to
• Head Teacher and Deputy Head Teacher Awards
• Regular meetings are held to discuss positive behaviour to ensure that all staff are supported and that ideas are shared.
• Implementation of whole school emotion coaching
• Behaviour targets are agreed and implemented with the help of the Inclusion team for individual pupils
• The PSHE scheme of work has units dealing with issues to do with rules, negotiating difficult situations, emotions, caring for one another, making and keeping friends, living in a community.

Spiritual

• The RE scheme of work (Birmingham Agreed Syllabus) contains units on celebrations, festivals and worship from different faiths
• Through PSHE and circle time activities, children are helped to gain an understanding of their feelings and emotions and their likely impact on themselves and others.

Cultural

• There are regular celebrations of religious festivals over the year including harvest, Divali, Christmas, Easter, Eid, Chinese New Year.
• Geography and RE have units on other cultures and religions.
• English includes units on stories from other cultures.
• All pupils are accepted equally and play an active part in the school community regardless of their colour, religion or gender.
• Children participate in a range of artistic, sporting and other cultural opportunities provided by the school.

Where you can find SMSC in Allens Croft Primary School

• The curriculum as a whole
• The Religious Education Curriculum
• The PSHE Curriculum
• Home-School Agreement
• Circle Time
• Assemblies
• Positive Behaviour  and Anti-Bullying Policy
• Structured and personalised reward systems
• Extra-curricular activities
• Emotion Coaching 
• Educational visits and Workshops
• Performing Arts Programme
• Whole School Events (and Awareness Days
• Pupil Voice (School Council, Eco School, Eco Council, Rights Respecting Steering Group, School of Sanctuary, Young Researchers Project Group)
• Whole School Event Days and Awareness days