SPUC Safe at School has said that schools must listen properly to the concerns of parents following the announcement that the Department for Education is delaying the implementation of Relationships Education in primary schools and Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) in secondary schools, until April 2021.

The announcement came after Safe at School and other family organisations called for a delay to enable proper consultations to take place between schools and parents.

Dr Tom Rogers of Safe at School said: “It is imperative that parents take advantage of this reprieve to call on their child’s school to hold a proper consultation. Parents should not have any form of Relationships and Sex Education foisted upon their children without being properly consulted. This is particularly important as, from September 2020, parents no longer have an automatic right to withdraw their children from either Relationships Education or RSE.”

Safe at School has said that delaying the full implementation of Relationships Education will give schools time to hold a proper consultation with parents.

“We are hearing from parents that some schools are merely presenting parents with a policy and a curriculum for these new compulsory subjects and counting this as a consultation. This approach is completely inadequate and amounts to a slap in the face to parents,” said Dr Rogers.

“A proper consultation should result in schools truly respecting families which do not want their children to be exposed to explicit sexual content and teaching on same-sex relationships in the classroom. This must be accurately reflected in the policy and the teaching materials used in the school.”

Concerned parents can read “Important Information for Parents” to learn more about the new compulsory school subjects and how they can engage with schools.