Curbs on sex education use pupils as ‘political football’, school leaders say | Relationships and sex education
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School leaders have accused the government of using children as a “political football” over its proposals to limit sex education lessons by age in England.
The revised guidelines, to be published on Thursday, outline what topics can be taught to specific age groups, as well as allowing parents access to teaching materials used and further restricting how teachers deal with gender and sexuality, following pressure from conservative MPs.
Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, told the BBC: “Students are being put in the middle of an extremely sensitive subject and being used as a political football for the sake of headlines when we should be focusing on their welfare .”
Di’Iasio added: “We don’t think the government has dealt with the important issue of teaching sexuality education with the attention it deserves. She has not consulted with school leaders and we have not seen the guidelines that are planned except through leaked media reports.
Gillian Keegan, the Education Secretary, will bring the new age ratings for Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) into schools to ensure it is “appropriately and sensitively taught”, according to the Department for Education (DfE).
The revised guidelines will limit explicit discussions of important topics such as contraception and sexual abuse until children are in Year 9, the third year of secondary school when most pupils are 13.
Keegan said the revised guidance “will help schools know how and when to teach often difficult and sensitive subjects, leaving no doubt about what is appropriate to teach students at each stage of schooling.
“Parents can rest easy once and for all, their children will only learn age-appropriate content.”
Sex education will not be taught until Year 5 and at that point “from a purely scientific point of view”. The current guidelines allow primary schools to decide whether they need to cover any aspect of sexuality education based on the needs of their pupils rather than age.
The guidance will also require schools to show parents all classroom materials that will be used – a key requirement lobbied by a group of Conservative MPs.
The DfE said the consultation followed “numerous reports of disturbing material being used in RSHE lessons”, with the updated guidance aimed at ensuring that content is factual and that children have the capacity to understand what they are being taught.
Although the DfE’s comment states that “challenged gender identity theory will not be taught”, the guidelines will still allow secondary school students to learn about legally protected characteristics such as sexual orientation and gender reassignment.
“In the light of the Cass reviewit is important that schools take a cautious approach to teaching this sensitive subject and do not use any material that presents contested views as fact, including the view that gender is a spectrum,” the DfE said.
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The guide will be expanded to include a dedicated section on sexual harassment and assault, including abusive behavior such as stalking, as well as advice for teachers on how to deal with misogynistic online influencers.
Additional suicide prevention content will be included in the secondary health and well-being section designed to prepare students to recognize when they or their peers need help.
Louis Appleby, Chair of the National Suicide Prevention Strategy Advisory Group, said: “It is vital that young people are able to understand the thoughts of suicide or self-harm they may be experiencing and that schools are confident in tackling this most sensitive subject . The new guidance aims to break down the shame that can make it difficult to seek help and, crucially, emphasizes safe ways of coping.’
The DfE said the guidance will help young people understand the benefits of allocating time spent online and its impact on their wellbeing, as well as the serious risks of viewing content that promotes self-harm and suicide.
The revisions have been under discussion in the government since March 2023, when Rishi Sunak promised to present new guidelines. It followed more than 50 Conservative MPs lobbying the Prime Minister with claims that children were being “indoctrinated with radical and unproven ideologies” about sex and gender.
Introducing the new guidelines, Sunak said: “Parents are right to believe that when they send their children to school, they are safe and will not be exposed to disturbing content that is not appropriate for their age. That’s why I was horrified to hear reports of what was happening in our classrooms last year.
RSHE is a compulsory subject taught in all secondary schools in England, while relationship education is also compulsory for primary schools from September 2020.
Public consultation on the updated guidelines starts on Thursday and will remain open for nine weeks.
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