How does college support my personal development?

College is not only about teaching you on the subjects you have chosen to study. It's about learning new skills and developing your personal interests through meeting other students, joining in activities, having new experiences and learning more about the local and global community. 

PASTORAL AND TUTORIAL

Alongside your subject lessons you will also have pastoral teaching, whether through 1-to-1s, group tutorial sessions or a mixture of both.

In these lessons, you will cover topics that fall under PHSCE (Personal Health, Social and Citizenship Education). This will include British Values, PREVENT (the government's strategy to tackle radicalisation), Relationships and Sex Education and Careers. 

You will also learn about a range of other topics. This will vary in different subject areas, but could include topics such as:

• rights and responsibilities in society;

• the environment and sustainability;

• prejudice and discrimination;

• bullying and negative relationships;

• independent living skills;

• mental health and wellbeing; and much more. 

Learning about these topics will give you more knowledge and skills to move onto your next steps, whichever path you decide to take. 

They will also help you to develop on a personal level as you gain a better understanding of the world around you. Pastoral lessons are a great opportunity for you to ask questions and consider your own ideas, as well as think about the experiences of other people.