Sex and Relationships Education (SRE or RSE) supports children and young people to stay safe and make healthier life choices. A key area for OFSTED inspections comes under welfare, the hand book states “Pupils can explain accurately and confidently how to keep themselves healthy. They make informed choices about healthy eating, fitness and their emotional and mental well-being. They have an age-appropriate understanding of healthy relationships and are confident in staying safe from abuse and exploitation”.
Research evidence shows:
- Pupils with better health and wellbeing are likely to achieve better academically.
- Effective social and emotional competencies are associated with greater health and wellbeing, and better achievement.
- The culture, ethos and environment of a school influences the health and wellbeing of pupils and their readiness to learn.
- A positive association exists between academic attainment and physical activity levels of pupils.
- Further information about SRE is available
On 21 October 2015 the PSHE Association launched ‘the case for statutory PSHE’. Also see the Sex Education Forum's briefing on the evidence for SRE, published earlier this year. This includes the most recent Natsal-3 findings, which showed that young men and women citing school as their main source of SRE were more likely to experience first sex at a later age and were less likely to report unsafe sex or to have a diagnosis of an STI; young women were less likely to be pregnant by 18 and less likely to have experienced sex against their will. Natsal-3 also found that young people's preferred sources of information about sexual matters are schools, followed by parents and health professionals. Friends and the internet are not preferred sources