Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) is one aspect of the broader PSHE programme, and is a subject which aims to provide students with the knowledge they need to make informed choices about their relationships and well-being. As the name suggests, RSE includes two components: relationships education, and sex education. As with all aspects of PSHE education, RSE is taught in a progressive manner, meaning that lessons are developmentally appropriate and build upon prior learning.
Relationships Education
The relationships component of RSE focuses on providing children with
the knowledge needed to develop and maintain positive connections with others
throughout their lives. This includes relationships with family, friends,
employers, colleagues, intimate relationships and connection with their wider
communities.
Primary School
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- What is a relationship, and what does a healthy one look like?
- Respect and treating others with kindness
- How to take turns and cooperate with others
- The importance of honesty
- Personal boundaries and privacy
- The different kinds of families
- What abuse is, how to recognise the different types of abuse, and where
to go for help
- The difference between appropriate and inappropriate contact, including
physical*
*This topic, in
particular, is an important building block to teaching about consent later on.
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| Secondary School |
- Different types of stable, committed relationships
- What marriage is and its legal rights and protections
- Roles and responsibilities of parents when raising children
- Characteristics of positive, healthy friendships, including online
- How to judge if a person is safe and trustworthy
- The effects of stereotypes and bullying
- The characteristics of positive, healthy intimate relationships and how
to recognise an unhealthy relationship
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Sex Education
The sex education component of RSE includes lessons relating to human sexuality, human development, and sexual health. As with other aspects of the curriculum, sex education lessons are tailored to developmental stages and take into account the physical and emotional maturity of students.
| Primary School |
- Names for parts of the body, and understanding that our bodies belong to
us
- Life cycles and looking after plants/pets
- How to keep our bodies safe and clean
- Different types of abuse, how to recognise these and ask for help
- How human life begins and what pregnancy is
- Puberty and how our bodies change
- What is sex and what does consent mean
|
Secondary School
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- Puberty and the changing body
- Age of consent and laws regarding sharing/sending indecent images
- Pregnancy myths and facts
- Contraception
- How drugs and alcohol can influence sexual behaviour
- Recognising and responding to sexual harassment
- How to decide if you are ready for sex and how to manage pressure from
others
- Consent
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