Compulsory sex education is not the answer to sexual violence in schools, says SPUC Safe at School

The education secretary Justine Greening has been told by the chairs of five select committees that the call for compulsory SRE is now "deafening".

"Making sex education a compulsory school subject won't help eliminate sexual violence and harassment in schools." said Antonia Tully of SPUC Safe at School.

Mrs Tully was responding to the news that the chairs of five parliamentary select committees have written to education secretary Justine Greening calling for sex education to be made compulsory in schools.

"Instead of making sex education compulsory we should be eliminating the highly explicit, provocative content of many sex education programmes," Mrs Tully continued.

"This type of teaching sexualises children. Surely we must ask to what extent such teaching fuels the sexual violence in schools it seeks to eliminate?

"Children and teenagers in school would be better protected from violence in school, if their parents were better supported in fulfilling their role as the primary protectors of their children.

"Compulsory sex education excludes parents from their child's sexual education, which is one of the key aspects of child development which parents are uniquely placed to deliver, precisely because they are the child's parents.

"The Safe at School submission to the Women and Equalities Committee points out that school programmes aimed at changing the sexual behaviour of young people simply don't work. It's time to put parents back in their rightful role and make our schools safe."