Yahoo News Schools will be told not to give children sex education until age nine, reports say
Schools will be banned from giving sex education to children until they reach the age of nine, reports say.
According to the Times newspaper, schools will be told not to teach any form of sex education until year 5, when pupils are aged nine. Other measures set to be announced by Education Secretary Gillian Keegan will prevent children from being taught they can change their gender identity, and rules out any explicit conversations about sex until they are aged 13, the newspaper said.
Children would also not be taught about contraception, sexually transmitted infections and abortion until this age. The new guidance is reportedly part of the Government's response following concerns that some children are receiving age-inappropriate relationships, sex and health education (RSHE).
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The Times reported schools will be required to provide parents with samples of the material their children will be taught to quell these fears. RSHE was made mandatory in all schools in England from September 2020.
The existing guidance outlines broad lesson modules which says primary school aged children should be taught about different types of families and healthy relationships. Secondary school aged children meanwhile are taught more complex topics, including puberty, sexual relationships, consent, unsafe relationships and online harms.
The Prime Minister commissioned a review into the curriculum after hearing concerns, including from Conservative MPs, that children were receiving sex education lessons at too young an age. The Department for Education said it could not confirm the newspaper reports, and that it would not speculate on leaks.
