Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has has made of the potential merits of providing schools with guidance on teaching pupils about the risks, symptoms and prevention of carbon monoxide poisoning; and what discussions she has had on incorporating carbon monoxide awareness education into the PSHE curriculum.

The department recognises the importance of ensuring that pupils understand how to keep themselves and others safe. The revised statutory guidance on relationships, sex and health education, which came into effect on 1 September 2026, includes new content on personal safety. While it does not prescribe teaching specifically about carbon monoxide poisoning, schools have flexibility to include this within their wider personal, social, health and economic education provision, in response to pupils’ needs and local public health priorities.

The department has not made a specific assessment of the merits of issuing additional guidance on carbon monoxide awareness or adding it to the statutory curriculum. The department will continue to keep the statutory guidance under review.