Revised sex education guidance in the UK caters to parents' apprehensions and respects religious liberties
The British Department for Education has published new statutory guidance on Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education, which aims to provide support for teachers, governors, and school staff in navigating challenges and fostering positive attitudes among students. This guidance applies to primary and secondary schools across England, including independent, free, academies, pupil referral units, and faith schools.
The updated guidance, set to be implemented by September 2026, emphasises the importance of teaching about relationships, consent, LGBT relationships, and accommodating pupils' religious backgrounds.
Teaching about Relationships and Consent
Secondary school students will learn about consent, kindness, and respect, focusing on preparing them for intimate relationships and helping them identify positive role models. Lessons will create safe spaces for meaningful, age-appropriate discussions.
LGBT Relationships
The guidance promotes inclusion and support for sexual orientation and gender identity issues, ensuring that every young person, including LGBT+ pupils, feels safe and seen at school. It addresses bullying, noting that LGBT+ students are disproportionately bullied.
Religious Background and Schools with a Religious Character
Schools are instructed to give due regard to pupils' faith backgrounds and the ethos of religious schools. For instance, schools with a Christian ethos can teach family, relationships, and sex topics from a biblical perspective, which is seen as important in discussions around online safety and pornography.
Parental Rights and Transparency
Parents have the right to view all RSHE curriculum materials upon request. Schools cannot restrict access to this content through contracts with external providers, ensuring parental awareness and the chance for dialogue at home.
Teacher Support and Curriculum Quality
Teachers will receive training to handle sensitive RSHE topics confidently. The curriculum aims to be more than biological explanations, offering comprehensive, practical education combined with robust pastoral support.
Other Provisions
The guidance includes provisions for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), teaching about the law, addressing sexual harassment and violence, safeguarding, and managing difficult questions sensitively.
This guidance represents a significant update since 2019 and balances inclusion, legal requirements, and faith considerations within RSHE and Health Education in England's schools.
Additional Provisions
- Schools should be mindful to avoid any suggestion that social transition is a simple solution to feelings of distress or discomfort.
- Pupils should be taught the facts and the law about biological sex and gender reassignment, but schools should not endorse a particular view or teach it as fact.
- The guidance defers to the school to determine when it is age-appropriate to teach children about LGBT relationships.
- Parents have the right to request that their child be withdrawn from some or all of sex education delivered as part of statutory RSE.
- The EAUK head of public policy, Alicia Edmund, states that the publication of this guidance is a small victory for Christian families.
- The EAUK welcomes the guidance on giving due regard to the faith background of the child and of schools with a religious ethos.
- The guidance encourages parents to be faith explicit when raising concerns about the content taught under RSE and Health Education.
The British Department for Education's approach mandates comprehensive, inclusive, and age-appropriate RSHE and Health Education that actively involves parents, respects religious contexts, supports LGBT+ pupils, and prioritises teaching about consent and healthy relationships. The EAUK will be hosting an online webinar this autumn to equip parents on how to engage positively with their school and how to teach and discuss a biblical sexual ethic with children and young people.
- The updated guidance in Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education in England's schools also focuses on politics, as it encourages parents, particularly those of Christian faith, to be faith explicit when raising concerns about the content taught and may attend an online webinar hosted by the EAUK to learn how to engage positively with their school and teach a biblical sexual ethic to their children.
- The guidance in education-and-self-development for British schools, which includes provisions for general-news topics such as sexual orientation, gender identity, and religious backgrounds, does not endorse a particular view but rather defers to the school to determine the age-appropriate time to teach students about LGBT relationships, and parents have the right to request that their child be withdrawn from some or all of sex education delivered as part of statutory RSE.
