More than a third of schools in England are failing to provide pupils with age-appropriate education in sexual health and wellness. This is according to an Ofsted report based on inspections of 24 primary, 24 secondary and two special schools between January and July 2012. The schools watchdog says that child wellbeing could be at risk as a result of poor sex-and-relationships education.
According to the report, ‘A lack of high-quality, age-appropriate sex-and-relationships education in more than a third of schools is a concern as it may leave children and young people vulnerable to inappropriate sexual behaviours and sexual exploitation. This is because they have not been taught the appropriate language or developed the confidence to describe unwanted behaviours or know where to go to for help.’
The report also found, ‘Too many teachers lacked expertise in teaching sensitive and controversial issues, which resulted in some topics such as sexuality, mental health and domestic violence being omitted from the curriculum. This was because subject-specific training and support were too often inadequate. In 20% of schools, staff had received little or no training to teach PSHE education. Teaching was not good in any of these schools.’
Ofsted was particularly concerned about the lack of ‘emphasis on sexual consent and the influence of pornography’ in secondary schools. ‘The failure to include discussion of pornography is concerning as research shows that children as young as nine are increasingly accessing pornographic internet sites,’ the report explained. ‘And ChildLine counsellors have confirmed an increase to more than 50 calls a month from teenagers upset by pornography.’
PSHE Association chief executive Joe Hayman noted that the report painted a realistic picture of provision across the country. ‘The reality is that while there is outstanding practice in many schools, far too many teachers go into PSHE lessons ill-equipped to deal with the extremely important and challenging issues the subject covers,’ he said. ‘It is obvious from the report that teachers need more help than they are currently getting and as a result many pupils do not get the high quality PSHE education they deserve.’
A Department for Education spokesman commented, ‘The quality of PSHE teaching is not good enough. Our curriculum reforms have given teachers the freedom to tailor their teaching so it meets the needs of their pupils. We are funding the PSHE Association to work with schools to develop curricula and improve the way it is taught. The best people to fix this problem are teachers on the ground – not politicians in Westminster.’