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Original poster

Does anyone have access to Jigsaw PSHE lesson plans?

64 replies

LittleCabbage · 28/09/2020 18:04

I posted earlier today on a thread from earlier this year, which came up when I searched for threads about Jigsaw, a company providing PSHE resources for schools. But I think it is less confusing if I just start a new thread.

I have just seen that my child's school is planning to use the Jigsaw PSHE curriculum this year, and the thread I found here discussed concerns re encouraging secrecy, and also a mention of possible concerns with the teaching of equality.

I plan to contact the school and ask to see the lesson plans for these areas. I have looked on the Jigsaw website but they only give subject areas rather the the specifics of what is included in lesson plans.

Before I email the school, can anyone offer any insight into what is being taught, and their opinions on the subject matter? Thanks.

OP posts:
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Changeychangeychange · 20/06/2021 14:04

Hi OP I know this is quite an old thread now but just wondering if you ever did get a proper reply from your school? I'm trying to get into from mine at the moment but not having much luck. Would be good to know how it turned out for you.

Aesopfable · 10/11/2020 23:21

For your request to be dealt with according to the Freedom of Information Act, you must:

contact the relevant authority directly;
make the request in writing, for example in a letter or an email. You can make a verbal or written request for environmental information;
give your real name; and
give an address to which the authority can reply. This can be a postal or email address.
You do not have to:
mention the Freedom of Information Act or Environmental Information Regulations, although it may help to do so;
^know whether the information is covered by the Freedom of Information Act or the Environmental Information Regulations; or
say why you want the information.^

Assuming you are not an academy school, a request for information would count as a freedom of information request.

Original poster
LittleCabbage · 10/11/2020 22:29

Yes, after a brief reply from the school, I am being ignored when I ask for actual detail. It makes me suspicious, so if they are entirely confident in their choice of PSHE materials, they are not helping themselves.

OP posts:
ValancyRedfern · 10/11/2020 20:07

I think going by that research Jigsaw is not as bad as a lot of the others! Not to say it sounds much good either. I teach some Jigsaw materials at secondary and they are quite well planned but the units I'm using don't relate to this topic. Keep going OP. I think unfortunately ignoring is the primary strategy for dealing with anyone raising concerns.

Purpler5 · 10/11/2020 19:32

Thanks so much @LittleCabbage

I need to find some more time to look at this again.

Do please update as and when there is anything more to report and I’ll do the same.

Original poster
LittleCabbage · 04/11/2020 22:38

Hi @Purpler5,

It’s all very difficult to research, isn’t it? As far as I can tell, the “Mr Hughes” is an imaginary teacher? I think that letter is a sample letter to show the sort of letter Baroness Nicholson is advising that parents send to their child’s school. Although I am very pleased that Baroness Nicholson has taken on this fight, and seems so determined, I sometimes find her communications a little disorganised and confusing. I guess she is extremely busy though.

So I presume she hasn’t actually sent that letter herself (although is sending plenty of others) and therefore has not received a reply.

As far as your third question goes, I was looking at a related thread earlier, and found a link to a document by the Safe Schools Alliance which does specifically mention Jigsaw, and details some concerns regarding its PSHE provision. Link here:

safeschoolsallianceuk.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Parents-Guide-to-external-PSHE-RSE-providers.pdf#page28

And I will attempt to attach screenshot!

(Still waiting for further info from child’s school.....)

Does anyone have access to Jigsaw PSHE lesson plans?
OP posts:
Purpler5 · 04/11/2020 16:57

Hi again all, I've spent a long time trying to make some sense of all this and what I should be asking of my DC's school (which is part of a large MAT and so actually thousands of children impacted).

Can anyone help me with a couple of really basic questions...apologies for my ignorance:

  1. Who is the Mr Hughes that Baroness Nicholson has written to?
  1. Do we know if she has had a reply?
  1. Do we know how Jigsaw define gender and sex?
Purpler5 · 03/11/2020 15:02

Thanks @LittleCabbage for the update and keep us posted. I think another posted said about "not letting it lie". It is decidedly dodgy/unethical for Jigsaw to advise ignoring letters. Very concerning indeed.

Original poster
LittleCabbage · 03/11/2020 14:41

Hi everyone,

Sorry for the long silence. Life got busy for a while and I haven’t had the spare time to keep up with this. I did not receive a reply from my child’s school to my enquiry about Jigsaw PSHE lesson plans, so have emailed again today to ask again.

How interesting that some posters have seen evidence that schools are being advised to ignore such emails. Very dodgy.

OP posts:
Whatwouldscullydo · 02/11/2020 16:19

Ok so my dds school have signed up for jig saw too Shock how bad is it likely to he fir yr 5s?

ValancyRedfern · 01/11/2020 11:17

This is what alarms me. I think that list of orgs without evidence has given schools an excuse to ignore us as cranks. I am also horrified that anyone is advising schools just to ignore letters from parents, however, whatever they may think of the views within them. I am a pshe teacher and have also seen the advice to ignore such letters. How can that be ethical practice? Women are being treated with absolute contempt.

JiggingTheSaw · 01/11/2020 10:45

I've name-changed for this thread but I work in a school that uses Jigsaw.

Schools that use it were sent an email from Jigsaw about the letters that had been received and advised them not to reply.

ValancyRedfern · 31/10/2020 14:54

Has anyone had any reply to their letters to schools regarding rse policies?

ValancyRedfern · 31/10/2020 12:59

I think that list of orgs not to use is unhelpful and counter-productive because its origin is unclear and it certainly does not come from the dfe or any official source. I have seen a version of the template letter posted on a pshe teachers group and teachers dismissing it as made up as the dfe do not advise against using any specific organisations.

Purpler5 · 30/10/2020 18:01

Bumping this thread for any updates. I have a related thread on School Transgender and PHSE policies and am becoming increasingly alarmed that material is being used in school that is totally confusing at best, and more like biologically inaccurate in some cases. Very worrying indeed.

sultanasofa · 05/10/2020 13:53

There's a useful template letter and lot of background information here (including on external agencies although not Jigsaw):
lgballiance.org.uk/schools-campaign/

BeautifulandWilfulandDead · 04/10/2020 13:26

@LittleCabbage can you point to anything that proves that the DfE have barred Jigsaw, Twinkl, Stonewall etc? Because unless the DfE have published that information somewhere, it simply isn't true!

Original poster
LittleCabbage · 03/10/2020 23:27

[quote BeautifulandWilfulandDead]@LittleCabbage it doesn't say that that letter has come from the Baroness and the attached letters from the Baroness only mention Stonewall, not Jigsaw? [/quote]
I have realised the letter was written by someone called Emma Palermo, who seems to be working with the Baroness on this issue. It was emailed round to many of us in September, with this message from Baroness Nicholson:

Letter to Friends & Colleagues on behalf of Baroness Nicholson

Emma Palermo
To
Emma Palermo
& 2 more
25 Sep at 10:36

"Dear Colleague and friend,
I attach a letter from Emma Palermo to a long list of parents in which she strongly recommends they access head teachers locally to bring the hugely welcome change of direction on Schools RSE materials to their attention. You can access the letter on this link here

It would be wonderful if you could support this excellent letter in any way you can. The Dept for Education has barred all of the unseemly and in some cases deeply unsettling materials by banning the organisations which have produced these.

However, this complete switch is both sudden and the opposite of all previous instructions given that the materials in question and their producing organisations have been stamped with government approval by financing and by materials‘ endorsement with departmental logos.

Please do all you can to spread the new and highly welcome change of position by DofE.Newspapers,social media,radio and local or national tv can ensure if briefed by you that no more children are forcibly exposed in formal teaching away from parental agreement to materials that seem to myself and many others far from being educational and more closely aligned with the deliberate lowering of a child’s natural and right inclination to maintain personal privacy for intimate matters.

I hope you have time and can make the opportunity to spread the good news.

With my warmest good wishes as we celebrate and move on to the next steps,

Yours,
Emma"

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ButterflyBitch · 03/10/2020 19:40

Yo jul is quickly 🤦🏻‍♀️

ButterflyBitch · 03/10/2020 19:39

My son came home in year 5 and said that people can change sex which i yo jul explained that no they cannot and why not. He understood me thankfully.
His school have a zoom session soon on their RSE topic but I don’t think I’m going to be available to watch it. Am waiting to hear if it’ll be recorded. Will raise any concerns I have then.

BeautifulandWilfulandDead · 03/10/2020 09:36

@LittleCabbage it doesn't say that that letter has come from the Baroness and the attached letters from the Baroness only mention Stonewall, not Jigsaw?

sultanasofa · 02/10/2020 21:32

Thank you, I'm glad it was useful! And good luck with your school discussions!

BreatheAndFocus · 02/10/2020 17:51

Oops - sorry @sultanasofa !

Original poster
LittleCabbage · 02/10/2020 17:07

I have to give credit for that link to @sultanasofa, who used it earlier in this thread.

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