Sex and Relationships Education

Anti-choice groups are entering our schools
Anti-choice groups such as the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) and LIFE are entering our schools and giving talks, in which they oppose Sex and Relationships Education (SRE), oppose abortion, promote abstinence education, and blame gay people for breaking up traditional family life. We want to gather more information on their activities. Take Action now!

What do we believe?

The BHA is committed to encouraging informed and responsible choice. Therefore, we believe that all children should be entitled to full and accurate age appropriate Sex and Relationships Education (SRE), including unbiased information on contraception, STDs, abortion, sexual orientation, and the many forms of family relationship conducive to individual fulfilment and the stability of society. See our position statement on SRE.

The BHA believe that SRE can best be improved if it is a statutory, compulsory part of the curriculum in all schools, being comprehensive in scope and well above the minimum basics of what is currently required by law. Only very basic information about the biological aspects of SRE is currently compulsory in schools. SRE provision is patchy across schools, and the standards and scope vary widely between schools. Making comprehensive SRE compulsory in all schools, together with the necessary training and investment in teaching resources and information, should help to give teachers the skills and confidence to teach excellent SRE to their pupils.

What are we doing?

The BHA is a member of the National Children’s Bureau Sex Education Forum (SEF), and we recommend its work to teachers, school managers and governors. The BHA also sits on the SEF’s policy working group, representing a humanist perspective to the policy and parliamentary work of the SEF.

The next big opportunity to make SRE a statutory entitlement for all pupils will be the coalition government's education and children bill, which is expected to be published in spring 2011. The BHA is working with a range of campaigners and practitioners to ensure that this opportunity is not missed.

What can you do?

You can support the BHA by becoming a member. That helps in itself, and you can help even more by supporting our campaigns in the ways suggested above. But campaigns also cost money – quite a lot of money – and we also need financial support.  You can make a donation to the BHA.