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NSPCC Says Children's Access to Relationships and Sex Education Should be Compulsory
Created: 02/07/2025
News/Events Category: Children and Families
The NSPCC is calling for all schools in Scotland to provide age-appropriate, consistent and relevant relationships and sex education to children and young people, as it reveals that over two-thirds of adults (67%) in Scotland believe it should be compulsory.
The YouGov survey, commissioned by the NSPCC, of over 1,000 adults across Scotland, also found that at least 90% of adults think it is important that relationships and sex education should include children and young people being taught about healthy and unhealthy friendships and relationships (90%); the types of abuse and how to seek help (94%); and online risks including risks of sending and sharing nude images of someone under the age of 18 (93%).
Despite the public backing for all schools in Scotland to teach relationships and sex education, the NSPCC has found from its campaigns work across the country that young people consider the delivery of Relationships, Sexual Health and Parenthood (RSHP) education patchy and insufficient. The charity believes that without a stronger statutory foundation, many children will miss out on vital knowledge that could protect them from harm.
NSPCC research and international studies show that consistent, relevant, inclusive and age-appropriate relationships and sex education helps children and young people:
- Understand healthy and unhealthy relationships.
- Develop empathy, respect and responsibility in relationships.
- Recognise inappropriate behaviour and abuse.
- Speak up and seek help when something is wrong.
- Navigate online risks and pressures.
There is also evidence to show it plays a crucial role in breaking down barriers and taboos, giving young people the language to express their experiences, and fosters a positive school culture, helping to tackle poor behaviour.
While RSHP is part of the health and wellbeing area of Curriculum for Excellence, local areas have discretion about what is taught and when. National guidance on RSHP is currently being redeveloped following a consultation carried out by the Scottish Government in 2023.
To ensure every child in Scotland receives appropriate, high-quality relationships and sex education, the NSPCC Scotland is calling for:
- Statutory duty for education authorities to provide it.
- Stronger recognition of children and young people’s right to this education, and their right to be involved in its delivery, in line with the UN’s Convention on the Rights of the Child,
- Clear and practical guidance for schools with examples of how RSHP should be delivered and tools to track and measure children’s learning.
- Adequate funding, professional training, time and resources for teachers to deliver effective RSHP.
- Regular monitoring and review by Education Scotland.
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