Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of how resources can best be allocated to provide comprehensive sexual health education in schools.

Schools are free to determine how they use their funding in support of subjects, including RSHE training for teachers.

The department expects schools to consult with parents on what they teach. Schools should ensure that, when they engage parents, they provide examples of the resources they plan to use, for example the books they will use in lessons.

In light of concerning reports about the use of inappropriate materials used to teach the RSHE curriculum, the Secretary of State has twice written to schools to make clear that schools should share resources with parents and clarify the position about how copyright law applies when schools share resources with parents. Copies of both letters can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/secretary-of-state-letter-to-schools-about-sharing-curriculum-resources-with-parents.

The department has been reviewing the RSHE guidance and aims to launch a public consultation by the end of this year. The department anticipates that the revised guidance, including content on sexual health education, will be published in 2024.