Delivery of relationships, sexual health and parenthood education in Scottish schools: draft guidance

1. Introduction

1.1. The updated statutory guidance now contained in this document is issued under section 56 of the Standards in Scotland’s Schools etc. Act 2000^[1]. It replaces the earlier guidance, Conduct of Relationships, Sexual Health and Parenthood Education in Schools, issued in December 2014^[2].

1.2. Local authorities must have regard to this guidance in discharging their statutory functions relating to provision of this education within Curriculum for Excellence, in line, for example, with the experiences and outcomes for health and wellbeing^[3].

1.3. This guidance applies to local authorities’ delivery of RSHP education in the schools and settings they manage.

1.4. Alongside educational practitioners, this guidance is applicable to all professionals delivering RSHP education to children and young people, including youth workers, residential care staff, nurses including school nurses, health improvement staff, and specialist and generic third sector agencies.

1.5. Furthermore, the principles set out in this guidance are equally relevant to informal education activity or information (oral and/or written) developed with and for children and young people looked after by local authorities in residential settings. It further applies to children and young people in youth clubs or groups which are funded, in whole or in part, by local authorities, the Scottish Government or other public agencies.

1.6. Local authorities, as any public authority, have a duty to act in a way which is compatible with the human rights protected under the European Convention on Human Rights. This applies to the rights of parents and carers as well as the rights of children and young people. Parents and carers have the right to have their children educated in conformity with their own religious and philosophical convictions. This is why RSHP education should be presented in an objective, balanced and sensitive manner within a framework of sound values and an awareness of the law, and teachers should work closely with parents in its delivery, by discussing proposed lessons and resources with them in advance.

1.7. The delivery of RSHP education should reflect the drive towards improved awareness, understanding and realisation of child rights across Scottish public policy, public services and society as a whole. The incorporation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is an important part of the context of progressing children’s rights in Scotland.

1.8. Aspects of the UNCRC’s main provisions in relation to rights to education are already reflected in sections 1 and 2 of the Standards in Scotland’s Schools etc. Act 2000^[4]. However, it is important to read the UNCRC in its entirety and pay special attention to the four General Principles when planning RSHP education, thus ensuring children’s rights are effectively embedded across the curriculum.

1.9. The four General Principles assist in interpreting all the other articles and play a fundamental role in realising all the rights in the UNCRC for all children and young people. The four General Principles are:

• for rights to be applied without discrimination (Article 2);
• for the best interests of the child to be a primary consideration (Article 3);
• for the right to life, survival and development (Article 6); and,
• for the right to express a view and have that view taken into account (Article 12).

1.10. All children and young people have a right to privacy, safety, dignity and respect. In line with Getting It Right For Every Child, children and young people should be central to decision making. Chapter 1 of the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Technical Guidance for Schools in Scotland^[5] provides an overview of the schools provisions of the Equality Act 2010, including what may be lawful, unlawful and whether exceptions may be available.

1.11. The Equality Act 2010^[6] places a legal duty (known as the ‘General Equality Duty’) on public authorities, including education authorities, managers of grant‑aided schools and proprietors of independent schools, to prevent unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation in their schools and advance equal opportunities for all children and young people. The protected characteristics of disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation apply in relation to schools, protect individuals from unfair treatment and promote a fair and more equal society. In considering these requirements, education authorities should have due regard to the three needs of the General Equality Duty below:

• eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct that is prohibited by or under the Equality Act;
• advance equality of opportunity between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it; and
• foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it.

1.12. Since the publication of the 2014 guidance, the Scottish Government announced the national review of Personal and Social Education (PSE), in March 2017, including the role of pastoral care and children and young people counselling services, conducted as part of the Mental Health Strategy 2017 to 2027^[7]. Following the review, the Scottish Government identified 16 recommendations to improve the delivery of Health and Wellbeing and PSE in Scotland. Recommendation 7 outlined the need for updated teaching guidance in respect of Relationships, Sexual Health and Parenthood (RSHP) education:

“The Scottish Government, working with key partners in local government and the third sector, will ensure that the forthcoming review to update the existing guidance available to schools 'Conduct of Relationships Sexual Health and Parenthood Education in Schools (2014)' includes appropriate guidance to ensure that consent education is age and stage appropriate and reflects the issues that are facing children and young people, especially from online influences.”^[8]

1.13. The LGBTI Inclusive Education Working Group’s report^[9] to the Scottish Ministers recommended the Scottish Government develop National Guidance outlining their expectations regarding LGBT inclusive education while signposting practitioners to supporting resources. This links directly to this Working Group’s recommendation that “‘Conduct of Relationships, Sexual Health, and Parenthood Education in Schools’ (2014)^[10] is updated. Furthermore, recommendation 8 advises that the updated guidance uses a ‘thematic outcomes’ based approach. These thematic outcomes should cover various themes related but not exclusive to LGBT equality and inclusion, including:

• terminologies and identities;
• the impact of social prejudice and the history of social rights movements;
• the equality of people, families and relationships represented in an inclusive manner; and
• how to recognise and respond to prejudice within school and wider society while respecting individual rights and privacy.”

1.14. This guidance reflects those recommendations.