Refreshed Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course mapped to new DfE statutory guidance

Our updated Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course is now available to deliver and is mapped in full to the Department for Education (DfE)’s revised statutory guidance for Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education.

With the revised guidance now in effect from 1 September 2026, our updated course provides a practical way for education settings to support learners’ wellbeing, safety, confidence and personal development.

ASDAN’s new course is available through our online platform Equitas, making it easy to deliver, track learner progress and record evidence as learners work through their challenges.

New challenges reflect issues learners face today

A key feature of the update is the introduction of new and revised challenges addressing issues that are increasingly relevant to young people, such as the below:

Grief and loss: helping learners understand bereavement and develop ways of responding to loss

Grooming and exploitation: supporting learners to recognise unsafe situations and understand how to seek help

Knife crime: encouraging learners to consider risks, consequences and personal safety

Online misinformation and disinformation: developing learners’ ability to question information and understand the impact of misleading content

Intimate and sexual health: supporting learners to develop knowledge and make informed decisions about their health and relationships

The refreshed course includes 26 new challenges, alongside 42 challenges with revised content and a further 21 challenges with editorial changes. Twelve challenges remain unchanged.

These changes mean that learners can explore a range of contemporary issues through practical, engaging challenges, while centres can be confident that the course has been mapped against the areas covered by the revised statutory guidance.

Stronger focus on mental wellbeing and staying safe

The Mental wellbeing module has been substantially refreshed with challenges including:

Exploring emotions
Connecting with others to improve emotional wellbeing
Exploring mental health problems
Exploring the signs of mental health problems
Improving emotional wellbeing

The course also introduces new learning around grief and loss and making mistakes, providing opportunities for learners to explore how experiences and emotions can affect wellbeing.

Responding to the changing digital landscape

Our updated course places greater emphasis on the challenges young people can encounter online.

Alongside existing digital wellbeing content, the revised course addresses the impact of online misinformation and disinformation. This reflects the importance of helping learners develop the knowledge and critical-thinking skills they need to navigate the information they encounter online.

A dedicated financial education course

The revised DfE statutory guidance no longer includes an economic element, but we know that financial literacy remains important. Instead of standalone challenges within our updated course, we’ve refreshed our dedicated Personal Finance Short Course, which includes challenges designed to support learners’ understanding of financial choices and develop practical financial literacy.

Supporting relevant, practical learning

ASDAN’s updated Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course gives learners opportunities to explore the issues that affect their wellbeing, relationships, health and safety in meaningful and practical ways.

Find out more about the Personal, Social and Health Education Short Course or get in touch to speak with one of our curriculum experts.