Personal Development

Here at The City of Leicester College, we know that a student’s personal development is an ongoing journey that takes place both inside and beyond the classroom. Our ambitious personal development programme prepares our students for a future as a responsible, active, and respectful citizen, who makes positive contributions to society. We provide extensive support to develop appreciation of our British values and of the differences within our diverse world and people, so our students are well equipped and prepared to flourish in a modern global world.  Below, you will find more details about the specific ways we support our students.

The TCOLC Personal Development Offer:
  • Our focus on Personal Development and Character Education is promoted through our bespoke TCOLC Character education Pillar Programme and the four key pillars of Community Character, Intellectual Character, Moral Character, and Performance Character.
  • The TCOLC Character Pillars are embedded through a student’s whole school experience: from assemblies to trips, from character discussions to life-skills workshops, to extra-curricular clubs and subject intervention sessions. Character education supports a student’s broader Personal Development by building their positive personal traits, dispositions and virtues that inform their motivation and guides their conduct, so that they reflect wisely, learn eagerly, behave with integrity, and cooperate consistently well with others.
  • We will seek to instil in students an expectation of ambition beyond their expectations through the challenge built into all lessons and activities in school.  We want our students to be alert to current affairs and be diligent in their appetite for challenge and who value their Personal Development curriculum. Personal Development will broaden our students understanding of fundamental British values, democracy, individual liberty, the rule of law and mutual respect and tolerance.
  • Personal Development will enlighten students so that they possess confidence, resilience, and knowledge so that they can keep themselves mentally and physically healthy. Through a wide number of high-quality co-curriculum clubs and additional activities. We provide a rich and varied range of experiences and opportunities to develop talents, interests, and a student’s cultural capital.
  • Through a range of educational trips students’ will be able to explore issues and experience opportunities beyond the classroom and develop lifelong learning memories.
  • Through Personal Development, students will know that we can all thrive together, and our students will gain understanding that difference is powerful positive characteristic that fuels our community to lead to an improvement of the world around us. All TCOLC students are unique, in an inclusive environment, where all members of the community feel welcomed and valued, irrespective of age, disability, gender, race, religion, belief, sex, sexual orientation or body shape.
  • Personal Development will equip our students with the abilities to recognise online and offline risks to their well-being and make them aware of the support available to them.
  • We develop our students’ readiness for the next phase of education, training, or employment so that TCOLC students are equipped to make their transition successful. This will be due to our effective careers programme which will offer all TCOLC students unbiased careers advice, work experience and an understanding of what they need to succeed in their chosen careers. We ensure our Leadership programmes enables our students to engage, inspire and achieve ready to flourish in a modern, forever changing, global community.
How Personal Development is delivered at TCOLC:

Our Personal Development and Character Education programmes are constructed around research led models for Personal Development guided by organisations such as PHSE Association, The RSE framework, The Jubilee Centre for Character Education, Healthy schools Network and have achieved accreditation from organisations including the Rainbow Flag award, Diane Centre

Student development is nurtured and will build year on year; capitalising on what students should already have studied at Key Stages 1 and 2. This is delivered by:

  • Weekly targeted PSHE lessons - building age-appropriate understanding of healthy relationships through appropriate relationships and sex education lessons. Health and well-being through strategies to maintain positive emotional wellbeing and mental health and to make positive life choices. Living in the wider world building understanding of democracy, application of British values, personal financial management and internet safety lessons.
  • PSHE external production programme - targets topics ranging from on-line safety, county lines awareness, sexual exploitation, drug awareness, domestic relationship with theatre companies such as Alter-ego, Belle Music, Warning Zone Online safety, and Heart size CPR training.
  • Daily bespoke Character Education - Tutor time activities targeting the TCOLC character pillars, current affairs, academic skills, careers, school competitions, literacy skills, numeracy skills, celebrating TCOLC character successes, rewards, and topic discussions
  • Weekly range of Community Pillar assemblies - tutor time discussions and whole school events form Black History Month, Mother tongue week, interfaith week, religious celebrations, fundraising, mental health awareness, literacy, STEAM weeks to Remembrance day. TCOLC celebrates and reflects through over 20 different Community pillar events
  • Students’ TCOLC Character journals - allows students to reflect on their learning and character development at regular intervals through the educational journey
  • Wellbeing and Physical mental health Tutor time -sessions supporting students understanding of how to keep physically healthy, eat healthily and maintain an active lifestyle
  • Student leaderships structure - through student leaders, ambassadors, and year councils, including student captains, EAL Young Interpreters, Reading Buddies.
  • Students’ anti-discriminatory behaviour ambassadors – anti-bullying ambassadors and PRIDE club, we are the first Leicester school to be awarded the Rainbow Flag award for our work to raise awareness and inclusiveness for the LGBTQ+ school community.
  • Co-curriculum activities - from football to boxing, to Robotics clubs and Expressive art school production, from feminist book club to Arts and crafts we have over 28 different clubs in operation.
  • Wide range of educational visits and opportunities - from Kenilworth Castle to Hunstanton beach, from presenting at the We Welcome Refugee conference to the British Big Bang Science fair, and from Alton towers to Christmas Ice skating we organise over 20 different trips per year.
  • Career education is delivered through targeted lesson using Unifrog and LEBC work experience placements. College applications are supported using PS16 system.

Our PSHE Policy can be found on our Policies page. Please click HERE.