Chameleon PDE Frequently Asked Questions

Pricing

Q: I am part of a MAT so can we purchase one license and use it across our schools?

A:

One subscription cannot be used across multiple schools, however, we can look at discounting if several school licenses are being purchased in one order. Please contact us to discuss your needs.

Q: I work for a local authority and would be interested in supporting my schools with purchasing subscriptions, is this possible?

A:

Yes, we already work with local authorities and are happy to support you with this. Please get in touch to discuss your requirements.

Q: Am I tied in financially with a 2 or 3-year plan?

A:

Our Ts & Cs state that if you enter a contract with us where we allow costs to be spread over more than one academic year you are agreeing to pay the annual amount stated for each year of the plan. This is still the case if you cancel your plan early.

Q: Can I negotiate a further discount?

A:

We have already factored in a substantial loyalty bonus into our pricing structure over and above what other providers offer. We have also created different payment options to help schools spread the cost of payments over more than one academic year. This means we have very little wriggle room for any additional discounts for a single school. However, when considering bulk licences for MATs we would be able to look at some further potential discount depending on the number of schools involved.

Q: Is there a cooling off period?

A:

Yes, if you change your mind you can do so within 14 days and request a refund. However, you must delete all Chameleon materials from school servers and staff devices as you will no longer be legally permitted to use them.

Q: How are the 2-year and 3-year plan prices calculated?

A:

Sometimes schools request to spread payment over more than one academic year. To accommodate this we have created our 2-year and 3-year plan options. Prices are calculated as follows (one year plan price+ renewal(s) at loyalty bonus rate / number of years). It's the same overall price for the one year plan plus renewals but spread over 2 or 3 years.

Q: What will be renewal price after our 2-year or 3-year plan expires?

A:

You will revert to the one-year plan and just pay the renewal price each year which includes the 50% loyalty discount.

Q: Can you explain the loyalty bonus?

A:

Chameleon are unique in offering such a substantial loyalty bonus for schools who stay with us. This reduces renewal costs by 50% off the 'year one price'. This loyalty bonus is also factored into our 2 and 3-year payment options. Most other subscription based providers do not offer this level of ongoing discount.

Q: Can you explain the one-year plan pricing?

A:

Schools pay an upfront cost in year one, and then the plan is renewed at a 50% discounted rate as a loyalty bonus in subsequent years. Schools need to retain an active subscription for continued use of Chameleon lesson plans so we would expect them to renew annually. This is because the lesson plans are licensed.

Q: Primary Pricing : What is the early adopter pricing and what does that mean?

A:

We are developing our primary resource library and schools can come on board as an early adopter with the understanding that not all the materials will be there immediately. The early adopter pricing reflect this. Once the library is complete and on sale at full price early adopter schools will then be asked to renew their licence. This will be a 50% reduction of the full price and will also be dependent on the size of the school. Early adopter schools will be kept informed and there will be no obligation to renew the licence.

Q: How do I pay for online resources and/or training?

A:

Sign-up to the website is free and will give you immediate access to any free sample materials. If you wish to purchase a subscription you can subscribe by logging into your free account and upgrade from there. Please ensure any Purchase Order number has been agreed prior with your finance team if this is a requirement of your purchasing system. You will gain immediate access and an invoice will be sent to your school. If your school does not pay the invoice within 30 days your subscription will be paused until payment is made. (See our terms and conditions for full details). Non-partner schools can purchase training materials separately and will be advised how to do this after attending a training event. Partner schools get all training materials, recordings and slides as part of their resource subscription.

Q: What's the benefit of resubscribing?

A:

Firstly, you are purchasing an annual licence, so in order to continue using the materials you will need to resubscribe. However, the cost of resubscription is discounted by 50% as a loyalty bonus for sticking with us. PSHE content changes rapidly so by resubscribing we guarantee you will have the most up-to-date resources available. We put the work into updating so that you don't have to. Schools can also run the 'How Are You?' survey annually which allows them to track implementation and impact of their programmes. We will also add new resources and services over time so partner schools will also gain access to these.


Resources

Q: Do I need to use the resources in the order they are presented on the list?

A:

No, you can use the resources in any order. We've grouped key themes together for ease of navigation, but how you use the resource is entirely up to you. If you don't want to build your own programme from the resource library we have example programmes for primary and secondary schools to follow.

Q: Do your resources meet the UPDATED RSHE guidance for English schools and RSE for Wales?

A:

Yes, we keep abreast of any changes in curriculum requirements and keep our resources updated accordingly. If you use our resources to deliver lessons you will cover the statutory guidelines.

Q: Have you included assessment or progression as part of the materials?

A:

Yes. We have created assessment guidance that our partner schools can follow to ensure they are collecting evidence and assessing relevant pupil progress. Our recommended assessment process is flexible so it can be adapted. Some of our partner schools follow our assessment process as suggested, whereas others adapt our materials and create their own system. There isn't a 'one-size' fits all approach and this is reflected in all our teaching materials.

Q: Have lessons and activities been differentiated?

A:

In our secondary and Post-16 library packs each 'lesson' is split into a number of different activities ranging in time from 10 minutes to 30 minutes. In total there's around 120 minutes of activities for you to choose from in each pack. Some of the activities are more or less complex allowing for differentiation. In every lesson there is a "challenge" activity for more able students that is more abstract in design. We strongly believe that only teachers who know their students well can effectively differentiate the materials, however, we've aimed to provide you with enough choice and flexibility to support you with this.
Our primary school materials vary in lesson length from 30-minutes to an hour and include advice on how activities can be differentiated.

Q: Do you have anything we can use to consult with students?

A:

Yes, for our secondary and Post-16 partner schools our online, anonymous 'How Are You?' survey is an effective tool you can use to collect students attitudes, perceptions, views and behaviour. The survey provides in-depth insight across the whole school and is quick and easy to deploy. We send you a report with collected data. We have a simpler primary version that can be used with older year groups. Our primary lesson packs often contain activities that will allow you to 'baseline' pupil knowledge and/or collect their views.

Q: I'm a new teacher and haven't delivered this type of content before, is there anything to help me?

A:

The lesson plans that accompany each library pack will suggest ways to manage/deliver each activity. We also have online training available to build confidence and increase knowledge of teachers. The subject, by nature, is fast-changing so everyone is always learning new things (including us at Chameleon PDE!). We will do our best to keep teachers in our partner schools supported through regular lesson updates, information on our blog and included training so you can be confident that you are as up-to-date as you can be when it comes to personal development/PSHE/health and wellbeing lessons.

Q: Am I able to adapt the resources to the needs of my students?

A:

One of the key aims of Chameleon PDE is to provide you with a flexible resource. All PowerPoint slides are fully editable. Throughout lesson plans we suggest adaptations and modifications you may wish to consider to make the materials as relevant as possible to your students.

Q: Are the materials mainly aimed at English schools?

A:

No. Our resources are aligned to the guidance set by the 4 UK nations and wider 'personal development'. We do not write them to any one curricula and instead aim to produce comprehensive personal development resources that incorporate the requirements of all four home nations. International schools that broadly follow a UK curriculum would equally find the resources suitable. The flexible nature of the materials allows schools to choose lessons that are most relevant to their unique settings.

Q: What happens if the statutory expectations of the curriculum change?

A:

We know that the UK curricula rarely remain static for very long and new expectations around personal development education are often brought in, frequently in response to national agendas. This is why Chameleon PDE offers a subscription model that ensures we can remain current and up-to-date with any statutory changes. The annual licence fee pays for our time to review, research and update resources meaning your students always receive the most up-to-date information.

Q: We have our own resources and some regular visitors who deliver aspects of health and wellbeing, can we still use them if we buy your resource?

A:

Yes, of course. The flexible nature of our resources means you can easily mix and match materials with your own resources. External visitors can also be a welcome and interesting addition to your programme. We want teachers and schools to confidently build the programme that is of the most benefit to students. By providing a solid, up-to-date and constantly evolving structure you will have an effective, strong foundation from which to build a bespoke programme for your school.

Q: How do I navigate the resources?

A:

Download the guidance document 'Making the most of your Chameleon PDE subscription' from the resources list. This guide shows you several ways you can navigate the library, as well as having other relevant information about the materials.

Q: What is the purpose of your advisory board?

A:

We have always consulted with schools and students when creating our resources to ensure relevance. We have formalised this through our teacher and student advisory boards that meet twice a year. If a member of staff or your students are interested in being part of these groups please contact us. Students have a one year tenure. Please see the team page on the website for current membership.

Q: How is survey data returned to schools??

A:

You will receive a pack that includes your collated data in an easy to interpret report.

Q: My secondary school delivers PSHE through tutor time and "off timetable" days, will the materials enable me to meet statutory requirements within this system?

A:

This type of delivery model can be more challenging, however, the flexibility that is an integral part of Chameleon PDE's resources means that you can plan your programme no matter whatever timetabling constraints you are under. It may mean that you have to be quite selective about what is covered to ensure statutory requirements are met and build evidence of learning. It is much easier for teachers and beneficial for students to have regular, timetabled lessons, but we do appreciate that this can be challenging for some schools.

Q: Are your resources aligned to the PSHE Association?

A:

Yes. The Association's framework was one of the starting points for developing the resource libraries. Every library pack is cross referenced to the PSHE Association framework and we have a mapping document showing lesson by lesson coverage. If the Association change their framework we will update our resources and mapping documents accordingly.

Q: Does the programme only cover statutory parts of PSHE in the UK??

A:

No, in planning the content of our resource libraries we look at much wider 'Personal Development' meaning statutory content in all 4 Uk nations is more than adequately covered. Because our resources go beyond just what is statutory in the UK, they are also suitable for international schools. We also update and add to our libraries regularly based on the needs of our partner schools from information we collect on emerging issues through our 'How Are You?' survey and our teacher/student advisory boards.

Q: Do I need to be a subscriber (Partner school) to access the 'How are you?' survey?

A:

Our partner schools have the survey included with their license if they want to use it. Secondary and FE settings are able to purchase the survey separately.

Q: Do you have resources available for SEND settings?

A:

We have many SEND settings already using our primary and secondary materials because they find them easy to adapt. In partnership with SEND teachers we are developing a SEND pupil progress tracker. This is complex and has been delayed because we need to wait for updated DfE guidance before taking this to completion. We have no plans to produce a separate SEND scheme of work as schools vastly differ in pupil cohorts and there isn't a 'one-size' fits all model.

Q: Why do you offer a library and not a fixed programme?

A:

Students' needs in PSHE change constantly. The PSHE Subject Association (and school inspection processes) suggest that schools should be reviewing PSHE regularly. Static 'off-the-shelf' programmes are more challenging to adapt to the changing needs of pupils. We do offer sample programmes and progression for schools as a starting point, but also encourage them to use knowledge of their pupils to increasingly 'bespoke' their programme and closely match it to their students and setting. This is why we include the 'How Are You?' survey in the subscription for our partner schools.

Q: Can you buy the 'How Are You?' survey without having to subscribe to your resource package?

A:

Yes, this is an option for secondary and FE settings and we have a separate page about this on our website and brochure to provide details and costings. The primary 'How Are you?' survey is linked to our resource subscription and accessed independently by schools from their account dashboard. This cannot be bought separately.

Q: Is there anything included to support planning?

A:

There are a range of supporting documents that will help you plan, monitor and evidence the programme you are delivering. We also have online training available that supports subject leads and classroom teachers with the planning, delivery and rationale behind effective personal development/ PSHE/health and wellbeing lessons. This training is included for partner schools in their subscription so there are no additional costs. Non-partner schools can attend the live training events for free but cannot get access to recordings or slides. We are committed to supporting all schools but we need to differentiate between the benefits of being a Chameleon partner school and a school who is aceesing our training for free.

Q: How do I add users to my account so other staff can access the resources or training?

A:

Partner schools can set up 'subordinate users' by the lead 'owner' (the person who purchased the resources - usually the subject lead) logging in to their dashboard and creating accounts for them from there. Staff will receive an email automatically generated when you set them up as a user and they will need to confirm their account from this email. Remind them to look in spam/junk in case the email gets filtered. Details of how to do this are in the 'Making the most of your Chameleon subscription' booklet that can be downloaded in the Advisory and Guidance documents section of the resources list. Instructions are also provided in the 'Getting started' video on your dashboard.

Q: Can you produce the resources in languages other than English?

A:

We are only a small business and the cost of translation is prohibitive to us.

Q: Can I add our own questions to the 'How Are You?' survey?

A:

In order to provide comparative data the questionnaires contain standardised question sets so it's not possible to add/delete/change questions. We can provide a unique questionnaire with additional /bespoke questions for your school but this would have to be costed outside of the subscription. Some of our partner schools have successfully used the Key Stage 3 survey with older students if this question set is deemed more appropriate for a particular cohort. Most partner schools have found all the questions in the different surveys to be entirely age-appropriate.

Q: Can we share your resources with parents and carers?

A:

Parents have a right to see any of our teaching materials and our Ts & Cs reflect this. However, this should be conducted on school premises in the presence of a teacher. This enables the resources to be viewed and discussed in context and pedagogy explained. This is not because you (or we) have anything to hide, but instead to safeguard your PSHE programme and our reputation as experienced PSHE consultants. There have been occasions where resources have been posted online/ social media or end up in the press with commentary that misrepresents PSHE. As our materials are editable (a feature that our partner schools like) we have to be careful. Some of our teaching materials have been shared on social media and in the press after being edited by an unknown individual not representing the source material. If government guidance changes and it is made compulsory for PSHE lessons to be emailed to parents or published on a school website, we will produce uneditable versions of our materials that also include a non-disclosure agreement that will state the resource is only for the parent's information and not to be shared on social media or to the press. This is what the PSHE Association do currently.


Training

Q: I'm a subject lead, does your included training cover all the staff CPD we need?

A:

Yes, we offer a range of online webinars as part of your library subscription. Look at the 'Events' section on our website's top menu to see what's available and book from there. There is no limit placed on the number of staff who can attend. You can also book us to do bespoke training for your setting which we discount for partner schools. As a partner school you will also get recordings, slides and any CPD Accreditation for your staff (much of our CPD is independently verified by CPD-UK).

Q: Is the training only available for secondary schools?

A:

We do training for primary and secondary schools.

Q: Do I get any evidence to show that I have completed training?

A:

Most of our training is independently verfied and accredited by CPD-UK. Attendees from our partner schools will be given a certificate. We are unable to provide this accreditation for attendees from non-partner schools. We have to pay to get our training accredited by CPD-UK so we cannot give this free to all schools. Non-partner schools can purchase certificates separately if desired and details are provided on the event listing.

Q: Is there any specific training available for SEND settings?

A:

Many SEND setttings already attend our webinars for primary and secondary schools where we always try to be inclusive of alternative provision. Look at the events page on our website for the latest CPD events.

Q: Is there any training available about the 'How Are You?' survey?

A:

We have a 'Getting started with Chameleon' video that explains how the 'How Are You?' survey works and what you do to get it deployed. The same information is included in the downloadable booklet 'Making the most of your Chameleon PDE Subscription' that is available from the Advisory and Guidance documents in your resources lists. You can also get in touch with us if you have a question.

Q: Do you offer training about how this curriculum area is inspected?

A:

If you are effectively delivering a programme and taking a "whole-school" approach it is likely that you will be meeting inspection expectations. Your subject lead should be fully aware of inspection requirements and share this with the team delivering the programme. We have a range of audit and mapping documents within the library for our partner schools that can be used to 'map and gap' coverage. Our subject lead training delves into inspection in much more detail. This is run at least once per academic year and is included as part of your subscription. Non-partner schools are also free to attend the 'live' event but we are unable to provide them with recordings or slides as this is a benefit of being a Chameleon partner school.

Q: Does my school need to be using your teaching resources in order for me to access the training?

A:

No, our LIVE online twilight webinars are free for anyone and would support any PSHE/Health and Wellbeing delivery, irrespective of the resources you are using in school. We are committed to supporting all schools but in order to differentiate between a school accessing free training and our partner schools (who have a paid subscription), we are unable to give non-partner schools recordings or slides. These can be purchased separately if desired and details are always present on the training description. To see our current CPD opportunities visit the Events and Training page on our website.

Q: I work for a local authority /charity can I attend your training?

A:

We are always open to working in partnership with Local Authority officers and charities, however, we do not routinely let people, other than teachers, attend any of our free training. Chameleon PDE is not a charity or CIC and it costs us money to put on all of our events which we need to fund through schools becoming our partners. LA officers and charity workers can attend if we can discuss some potential joint working.

Q: Does your training provide me with recordings, slides and resources to cascade back in school?

A:

As a partner school you will have access to everything as part of your subscription. Non-partner schools can purchase any resources, slides and recordings and details of how to do this are provided in the training listings. It is FREE for non-partner schools to attend any of our LIVE webinars but we cannot provide materials as this would be unfair on our partner schools who have a paid subscription with us.


Admin and Subscription

Q: What do I do if I have a problem with the resources?

A:

You can contact us at: info@chameleonpde.com and we will endeavour to rectify any problem.

Q: How long does my subscription last?

A:

Your subscription is live for 12 months from the date you subscribe. You will then have the option to re-subscribe for a further 12 months. (See terms and conditions for full details). We will notify you when your subscription is due for renewal.

Q: What do I do if I want to cancel my subscription?

A:

Let us know and we will cancel it for you, however you will need to delete any resources you have downloaded from your school servers and staff laptops. As the materials are licensed you will not be permitted to use them once your subscription expires.

Q: If I move school can I take the subscription with me?

A:

No, the licence is for the school and not an individual.

Q: If I download the resources can I then use them for as long as I want to without re-subscribing?

A:

No. When you agree to the Ts & Cs on purchasing you are buying a licence to use Chameleon PDE materials. If a school chose not to resubscribe then they would not be permitted to carry on using any of our materials, even if they have been downloaded. Schools will be expected to remove local copies of resources and find an alternative supplier.

Q: I've forgotten my password?

A:

There is a password reset option on the login page. Remember to look in junk / spam email for any confirmation emails.

Q: I'm having problems getting my account confirmed?

A:

Unfortunately due to the nature of Chameleon PDE our website, training and materials refer to words that are often filtered by school IT systems (e.g. sex, drugs). If you have not received a confirmation email it's likely that it will be in your junk or spam email folder. If it's not in there, then the school has filtered it and has not been passed on to your school email account. In which case see your IT technician and explain they will need to 'white label' or approve emails from us. You can ask for a new confirmation email and password reset on the login page. If everything we suggest hasn't worked please contact us at info@chameleonpde.com

Q: How much do the teaching resources cost?

A:

Details can be found on the resources pages of this website.

Q: Is it true you discount resubscriptions?

A:

Yes. Schools pay a higher upfront cost in Year 1. From Year 2 onwards we offer a substantial loyalty discount depending on the licence you have purchased. This resubscription fee pays for our time to keep the library updated, and to run the 'How Are You?' pupil survey service. We also add additional packs so the library is a constanly evolving resource.

Q: Will your prices increase?

A:

We aim to keep our pricing as low as possible for schools. Any price increases will be in line with inflation and we will notify subscribers of this in advance.

Q: Why are their download limits as a free user?

A:

We are happy for any school to access free materials including our sample lesson packs, however, we have had to impose download limits to ensure that our subcribers get added value for being a partner school.