Case study – Sexual harassment

At the time of writing this resource, the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission is currently conducting an investigation into the provision of RSE across schools in Northern Ireland. This follows the introduction of the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019 which introduced paragraphs 85 and 86 of the CEDAW report directly into Northern Irish legislation, namely a duty to, “Make age-appropriate, comprehensive and scientifically accurate education on sexual and reproductive health and rights a compulsory curriculum component for adolescents, covering early pregnancy prevention and access to abortion, and monitor its implementation”.

OPTING OUT?

In Northern Ireland, there is currently no legislative provision permitting parental withdrawal from sex education; however, parents do have the right to request that their child be withdrawn from a particular lesson and schools can grant this request on an individual level (Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment guidance, post-primary, page 11).

Within education, parents are regarded as primary educators, and schools should complement and reinforce their role.

Some questions you could ask about the RSE curriculum:

In every region of the UK, parents and carers are permitted and indeed encouraged to be involved in ongoing consultation around the RSE policy within their child’s school. A good place to start is by requesting that a written copy of the policy be sent to you.

» What will my child be taught? » Could I please have a copy of the RSE

policy?

» How is the subject scheduled to be

taught in this academic year?

» Who will be involved in the delivery? » What teaching materials or resources

will be used?

» Do the resources reflect, or are they

sensitive to, a range of values and beliefs?

» How will faith perspectives be

represented?

» How will parents be kept informed? » What criteria does the school use to

assess external groups seeking to deliver RSE?