Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the finding of the recent British Red Cross research report <i>Are prehospital deaths from trauma and accidental injury preventable?</i> that up to 59 per cent of pre-hospital deaths from injury could have been prevented with basic first aid, what steps they are taking to ensure that all young people have the opportunity to learn life-saving skills at school.

We want to provide all young people with a curriculum that prepares them for success in adult life. High-quality personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) teaching has a vital role to play in this, helping young people understand the world around them, building resilience and helping them to make good choices and stay safe.

The national ‎curriculum sets the expectation that pupils study PSHE education in maintained schools, and academies are encouraged to teach it as part of a broad and balanced curriculum.

Schools and teachers should decide what to teach based on their pupils’ needs, and taking account of pupil and parent views, when planning health education as part of PSHE.

Where schools decide to teach first aid they are free to draw on expert advice and resources for teaching, as provided by organisations such as the British Red Cross, when planning their curriculum.