Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families Announcement:- Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) education will be made compulsory in schools from September 2011

05 November 2009
Ed Balls confirmed today that personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education will be made compulsory in schools from September 2011.

PSHE gives young people the information they need to make the right choices about their future. It covers a range of issues young people growing up today face such as:

leading healthier lifestyles
body image and health issues
managing personal finance
careers education
avoiding harm from alcohol and drugs
sex and relationships.
Building on the recommendations of an independent review by Sir Alasdair Macdonald and following extensive public consultations, PSHE, will become a statutory part of the national curriculum at primary and secondary level for all young people for the first time in 2011.

Ed Balls, Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, also reinforced the Government’s strong support for three important principles underpinning sex and relationship education (SRE)

Schools can continue to be able to tailor the curriculum in the ways they think best suit their pupils.
School governing bodies can retain their right to determine their own approach, in accordance with the ethos of their school.
The arrangements put in place appropriately recognise and respect the rights of the very small minority of parents who already withdraw their children, and of those parents who might want to do so in future.
Parents currently have the right to withdraw their children from SRE up until the age of 19. The Government supports this right but believes that the age should be lowered. Following discussions with parents, young people and faith groups, the Government will bring forward legislation to lower the age to 15. A majority of parents polled on this subject supported a lower age.

Ed Balls said:

The issues that personal, social, health and economic education covers are all central to children and young people’s well-being and to their healthy development as they grow up.

PSHE is really important so I’m going to accept the recommendations of the SRE review group that PSHE should be made compulsory and that all young people should learn about financial education, healthier life styles and avoiding harm from alcohol and drugs. It’s also really important that schools can tailor the curriculum, governing bodies can determine their approach in accordance with their ethos and that parents retain the right of withdrawal.

Over the last few months an issue has arisen about the age up to which parents should be able to withdraw their children from SRE, if they wish to exercise their right to do so. In practice, only a very small minority of parents choose to exercise this right. However, I believe it is very important that this right is maintained. This is all the more necessary once, subject to the will of Parliament, PSHE becomes a statutory part of the national curriculum.

It is important that parents, schools and young people are all clear about the age that is set, and that this is supported by parents and young people, as well as being practically deliverable and legally enforceable. We have therefore consulted experts in SRE and representatives of faith groups, among others, about this. In addition, my department commissioned some further quantitative and qualitative research in October 2009 to gather further relevant information.

This research, which was carried out with samples of parents and of adults, found quite a wide spectrum of opinion, against a context in which four out of five parent respondents (81 per cent) to the surveys said they supported the principle that all children should receive SRE. When asked about the right of withdrawal, 20 per cent of parents said there should be no right of withdrawal, 33 per cent of parents said the right should end at age 11, 9 per cent said it should end at age 14, and 7 per cent at the age of 16. A clear majority therefore supported a reduction in the age to which a right of parental withdrawal should apply.

After careful consideration of the outcomes of discussions with experts and other interested parties, including representatives of faith groups, and of the findings of this research, I have concluded that parents’ right to withdraw their children from SRE should continue until their children reach the age of 15. I have come to this view because I believe that proceeding on this basis is balanced, practically deliverable and legally enforceable, and maintains the right of withdrawal for the small number of parents who wish to exercise it. I also believe that setting the age limit at 15 offers the best chance of building a strong consensus.

This means that every young person will receive at least one year of SRE, before their 16th birthday.

Sir Alasdair Macdonald said:

Speaking as the Head of an inner city multi-faith secondary school, I know first hand the vital role that PSHE plays in preparing young people to deal with real life issues. In my review I consulted widely - with schools, teachers, parents, faith groups and children and young people - among all of whom there was very strong support for making PSHE, including SRE, part of the National Curriculum.

I am pleased the Government is taking forward my recommendations, including that schools should involve parents in developing their SRE policy. I support the Government's decision to limit the parental right of withdrawal, given the importance of SRE for all young people.

Adam Lonsdale, Member of Youth Parliament for East Riding of Yorkshire, said:

Sex and Relationships Education is obviously going through big change, and I think it is fantastic that so many young people will begin the path to greatly improved SRE.

I am delighted that because SRE will be a part of the statutory curriculum, schools and other establishments will be able to have a proper focus on delivering it with care and professionalism, addressing needs that would previously have been ignored.

The best news however is that parents will no longer be able to withdraw older students from SRE. Young people are the future. And the future of Sex and Relationship Education is here.

DCSF research shows that the majority of parents, teachers and young people agree that PSHE should be statutory and that they recognise the importance providing a broad curriculum to children and young people.

School Governing Bodies will also retain the right to ensure that PSHE teaching reflects the ethos and values of the school. However, this must be consistent with the core entitlement of PHSE. They will be expected to speak to parents when setting their curriculum and the Government believes that it is important to allow schools to shape the curriculum.