Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the statutory guidance Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education to provide further clarification on what pupils should know about online gambling.

The statutory curriculum for relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) covers the risks relating to gambling, including the accumulation of debt. This can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/relationships-education-relationships-and-sex-education-rse-and-health-education.

Teaching about gambling and financial risks is also reinforced by other curriculum areas, including teaching financial literacy in citizenship and relevant topics in mathematics.

To support teachers to deliver these topics safely and with confidence, we have produced RSHE teacher training modules that are free to download from GOV.UK and include the dangers associated with gambling. These can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/teaching-about-relationships-sex-and-health.

The department is monitoring the implementation of RSHE, including measuring teacher confidence in teaching the statutory requirements. The department has contracted with IFF Research to undertake a national survey of headteachers, RSHE leads and RSHE teachers, supported by qualitative research with school staff and pupils.

The research will assess whether schools are teaching the subjects effectively and how good teaching of different topics can affect wider outcomes. It will also seek evidence on how to deliver high-quality teaching which the department will use to inform any further support. The research will provide emerging findings to inform decisions about our review of the RSHE statutory guidance. The department anticipates the final report of this research will be published in early 2024.