Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course
About this course
What is it?
ASDAN’s Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course supports schools, colleges and other settings to deliver practical, engaging personal, social and health education for learners aged 13 and over.
Through practical carefully devised challenges, learners gather evidence, reflect on their progress and build core skills that can support future education learning, employment and next steps progression into adulthood.
Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course is the new name for the PSHE Short Course. The revised course is mapped in full to the Department for Education statutory guidance for Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education in England. DfE statutory guidance no longer includes an 'economic' element.
From 1 September 2026, all new learners should will be registered on the updated version of the The Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course. The previous version remains active at this time available for existing learners who are already registered.
To help organisations understand what has changed, ASDAN has created a PSHE Short Course changes document. This shows how previous challenges map to the current course and highlights where changes have been made. This also shows detailed mapping to the new RSE curriculum.
The flexibility of ASDAN’s Short Courses means the The Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course can be delivered in a range of settings, over a time frame that suits the needs of the learner and the organisation delivering the course. Challenge descriptions can be interpreted and adapted according to the learning context.
Delivery format: Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course is available through Equitas, ASDAN’s digital learning platform, or in student book format. Some Equitas challenges differ from the student book version. Use one format per learner group. Equitas challenges can be downloaded.
| Learner age | 13+, 14+, 14–16, 14–25, 16+, 16–19, 19+, Adults |
| Level (indicative for non-regulated courses) | Entry 3, Level 1 |
| Key Stage | Key Stage 5, Key Stage 4, Key Stage 3 |
| Education setting | Mainstream school, Justice system (including youth offending), Further education, Community Education, EOTAS, PRU, Academy / Multi-academy trust, Voluntary sector, Training provider |
| Guided learning hours | 20–60 hours, 10–20 hours |
| Regulated | Non-regulated course |
| Certification | Externally certificated, digital or hard-copy (additional fee) |
| Location | International (including Channel Islands and Ireland), Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, England |
| UCAS points | No UCAS points available |
| Available on Equitas | Yes |
| Pathway | Personal Effectiveness |
Helpful information
Who is it for?
Short Courses are suitable for learners aged 13 and over in formal and non-formal settings.
Course information
- offers flexible, portfolio-based learning
- can be adapted for learners working at different levels
- accredits between 10 and 60 hours of activities and skills development
- is assessed and internally moderated by the centre
- leads to an ASDAN certificate
- can count as up to three of the credits needed to achieve ASDAN’s Personal Development Programmes
- can support skills development for ASDAN’s Personal Effectiveness Qualifications
- may contribute to recognition of prior learning where the required standards are met in full.
Short Courses are widely used in formal and non-formal settings, by 13-19 year olds. Because they are multi-level, the focus is on completing challenges and skills development according to individual ability, although learners are expected to be working at Entry level 3 to Level 1.
Requirements
Each learner must have their own registration. Learners must present evidence of their activities in an organised portfolio.
This should include:
- a record of the challenges completed, with supporting evidence
- recording documents showing how the learner planned and reviewed their activities
- a summary of achievement highlighting skills development
- a personal statement.
Equitas organises evidence against each challenge within the platform.
Course content
The Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course contains seven modules:
- Mental wellbeing
- Being safe
- Digital wellbeing
- Alcohol
- Tobacco, vaping and drugs
- Intimate and sexual health
- Respectful relationships
- Families
- Physical wellbeing
Educators can select challenges from across the modules to create a personalised programme of between 10 and 60 hours.
For guidance on running ASDAN Short Courses, please see our step-by-step guides:
ASDAN training supports educators to deliver this course successfully. Sessions provide an introduction, alongside guidance on planning, delivery, assessment and internal quality assurance. Training is not mandatory but is strongly recommended.
Training is included in ASDAN membership for organisations joining or renewing after 1 April 2026, excluding tailored INSET.
Book training in the members area
ASDAN members can also take part in our special interest groups. These online sessions focus on specific areas of practice and provide opportunities for discussion, collaboration and networking with other members.
All costs shown below are per learner, unless otherwise stated. Each learner will require their own copy of the student book or a login and registration on Equitas. Books and registrations purchased for Short Courses are valid for three years from the date of purchase.
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course student book | £12 |
| Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course Equitas learner registration and digital learning platform login | £12 |
| Personal, Social and Health Education Short Courseprinted and foiled certificate (optional, per learner, per Short Course) | £3.75 |
Products can be purchased below.
Volume pricing for Equitas Short Courses
We're now offering scalable pricing on Equitas Short Courses.
- 1–9 learners: £12 per registration
- 10–19 learners: £8 per registration
- 20–29 learners: £6 per registration
- 30+ learners: £4 per registration
This pricing applies only to new registrations made together in a single transaction for the same Equitas Short Course.
Products
Course resources
Evaluation chart (individual)
This evaluation chart can be used by learners to evaluate a six-week individual activity. Learners are asked to mark on the graph each week to show what they did and how they felt; at the end of the project the learner should join up the marks to give a picture of the whole activity. This resource is particularly suited to challenges in Short Courses, Personal Development Programmes (Bronze, Silver, Gold), CoPE and Wider Key Skills.
Evaluation chart (group)
This evaluation chart can be used by learners to evaluate a six-week group activity. Each member of the group should choose a different colour and mark on the graph each week to show what they did and how they felt. At the end of the project, each group member then joins up their marks to give a picture of the whole activity. This resource is particularly suited to challenges in Short Courses, Personal Development Programmes (Bronze, Silver, Gold), CoPE and Wider Key Skills.
Planning a group or team task
This resource can be used when planning a group or team task. It links particularly well to ASDAN's Short Course programmes.
Self-evaluation template
This generic self-evaluation template can be used by learners to evaluate almost any group activity. Learners are asked to record how they felt about the activity and pick out the best and worst bits, before reflecting on what they could do better next time. This resource is particularly suited to challenges in Short Courses, Personal Development Programmes (Bronze, Silver, Gold), CoPE and Wider Key Skills.
Teamwork health check
This generic teamwork health check template can support a wide range of group activities. Learners are asked to come up with a list of agreed ground rules for good teamwork, then rate each group member's performance against these criteria. This resource is particularly suited to challenges in Short Courses, Personal Development Programmes (Bronze, Silver, Gold), CoPE and Wider Key Skills.
Short Courses summary of achievement and personal statement : PDF version (mandatory)
Short Courses summary of achievement and personal statement : Word version (mandatory)
Short Courses skills sheet 1 : PDF version (mandatory)
Short Courses skills sheet 1 : Word version (mandatory)
Short Courses skills sheet 2 : PDF version (mandatory)
Short Courses skills sheet 2 : Word version (mandatory)
Short Courses skills sheet 3 : PDF version (mandatory)
Short Courses skills sheet 3 : Word version (mandatory)