Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the implementation guidance being produced by his Department to support the implementation of statutory Relationships and Sex Education will be fully LGBT-inclusive.

The new subjects of relationships education (for primary age pupils), relationships and sex education (for secondary age pupils) and health education (for all pupils in state-funded schools) will become compulsory in September 2020. Many schools are already teaching aspects of these subjects as part of their sex and relationship education provision or personal, social, health and economic education programme. These subjects are designed to foster respect for others and for difference, educating pupils about healthy relationships.

The Department is investing in a central programme of support for the new subjects, which is planned to be available to all teachers from spring 2020.

This support will be accessed through a new online service and will include an implementation guide, which will accompany the statutory guidance, case studies from early adopter schools, and innovative materials to support staff training. The online training modules will also support teachers in developing inclusive teaching, including LGBT-inclusive approaches. The Department is working with a wide range of schools, teachers and expert organisations, including Stonewall, the NSPCC and teaching unions, to develop this support. There will also be training available for teachers through regional networks, offering opportunities to improve subject knowledge and build confidence.

The Department has also been working closely with over 1,600 schools who are acting on a voluntary basis as early adopters of the new subjects, so that we can support their journey, learn lessons and share good practice amongst all schools.

The Department will ensure that the central programme and materials supporting implementation of the new subjects are inclusive. We recognise fully the need to disseminate the good practice in teaching about LGBT relationships that is seen in large numbers of our schools.