Parliament Workbench

Petition · PE01526 · Session 4

Making Sex and Relationship Education in Scotland Statutory for all Schools

Closed Submitted 3 Jan 2014 Education
Signatures
1
1,095 online signatures with a country
Comments
26
Considered
2 meetings
in the Official Report

What it asks

Calling on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to introduce comprehensive sex and relationship education (SRE) into the Scottish Education Curriculum and make it statutory for all schools to teach. I recommend that SRE should build upon current education guidelines and include additional criteria to keep up with technological advances. In providing non-judgemental accurate information in these areas, the children and young people of Scotland can have the skills and knowledge to make informed decisions for themselves.

What the petitioner did first

I have emailed a more extensive letter with information backing up why I would like SRE to be in Scottish Education to my local constituent MSP for Aberdeen and other North East Scotland regional MSPs. I have emailed Alex Salmond, Michael Russell, Alex Neil and Michael Matheson too. My email was forwarded to Education minister Michael Russell who replied with a standard reply of what was the current provision of SRE in Scotland and did not answer any of my questions. I feel that my concerns have not been addressed at all and now feel a petition is best to show the Scottish Government that the support for SRE in Scotland is very high and that they should act upon these concerns.

Where it was considered

Official Report
  1. 30 Sep 2014
    Public Petitions Committee
    New Petitions
    1 mention
  2. 9 Dec 2014
    Public Petitions Committee
    Current Petitions
    1 mention

Signatures by country

1,095 online signatures
  1. Scotland506 46.2%
  2. United Kingdom272 24.8%
  3. England222 20.3%
  4. Wales17 1.6%
  5. Sweden10 0.9%
  6. United States9 0.8%
  7. Ireland7 0.6%
  8. Northern Ireland7 0.6%
  9. Spain6 0.5%
  10. Netherlands6 0.5%
  11. 18 other countries33 3%

Comments

26 comments, oldest first
  1. Jacky 19 May 2014
    Education of of key importance along with fostering basic values
  2. James Forbes 19 May 2014
    Young people all over the world should have the right to make informed decisions regarding their gender identity and expression of their sexual desires. They need protection from homophobia, biphobia and transphobia and they need full awareness of their rights in order to protect themselves from unwanted predatory attention. Well done to Sexexpression for raising this petition with the goal of creating a better Scotland.
  3. Diana 20 May 2014
    I think Sex Education is an incredibly important thing for so many reasons. I realise that a lot of people think that such a personal subject should be in the hands of family
    - but to some degree I think these are the same people who don't actual teach their kids anything beyond this is how babies are made and it's a sin. Sexuality can be such a huge part of what we are and yet so many people learn all the wrong lessons in this. Lets make sure that respect and mutual enjoyment are at the core of what everyone learns.
  4. penelope ann mckee 20 May 2014
    teachers involved should ALL be accurately informed and trained in dealing with thtese sensitive issues, and the necessary contraception etc easily accessible
  5. amanda 21 May 2014
    Teach our children self respect and what love is. Don't leave it to the media.
  6. Joe Taylor 23 May 2014
    The more information young people have the lower the risk of sexual assault, sexually transmitted disease and unwanted pregnancy.
    Taking care of children increasingly needs to focus on how they understand sexuality and sex in a world dominated by unreal media expectations and pornographic concepts entering the common lexicon.
  7. Helen 23 May 2014
    School nurses have previously taught not just SRE but other health education topics however due to commissioning of services we are now being told this is not core business how wrong they are!
  8. Elizabeth Shimma 24 May 2014
    I'm a Youth Worker and know from experience that the young people start thinking and talking about sex and relationships long before they start to have sex. If they don't receive appropriate and honest information, they will get information from inappropriate sources e.g. Internet porn, friends, older siblings. Young people who have sex early usually do it because they're uninformed about the consequences, easily influenced by peers , have low self esteem and often aren't mature enough to make an informed choice. Scotland would do well to invest in helping Scottish young people to make well-informed choices about becoming sexually active and follow the guidance, values and education systems of countries where they have invested in SRE and have lower teen pregnancy and STI rates.
  9. Katherine McClure 27 May 2014
    I strongly feel that SRE should be mandatory in all schools.
  10. Miranda Clarke 27 May 2014
    Comprehensive education about the dangers or pornography too.
  11. Roy Kilpatrick 27 May 2014
    We can also learn from the developments in England and the guidance issued there, alongside the Brook charity's supplementary guidance. It must also include information on HIV and relationships education for young gay and bisexual men and women
    and for those who might be unsure.
  12. K Wills 2 Jun 2014
    Educating children on what constitutes good parenting would also be vital to future generations... The vicious cycle of parenting as you experienced parenting is devastating for some families.
  13. James Alexander 3 Jun 2014
    Make sure the faith groups don't run the agenda as usual !
  14. Leeze Lawrence 5 Jun 2014
    i feel that sexual expression in education should cover all sexualities and genders, this will reduce hate crime in schools due to lack of understanding and will allow a more diverse society for scotland.
  15. JRichards 9 Jun 2014
    Important
  16. Lewis Hughes 9 Jun 2014
    Why is this not a thing.
  17. Laura Sinclair 19 Jun 2014
    If I ever have a child, I would like for it to be well educated, this would then reduce the chance of it being ignorant to the feelings of others. I also don't want other children being horrible to my kid just because of his gender or sexual orientation.
  18. Maura Stott 20 Jun 2014
    education and awareness are key factors and Schools are a good target audience.
  19. Megan Birtill 21 Jun 2014
    This needs to happen the only way we progress is through education. We can never accomplish great things with our eyes shut.
    My sex and realionhsip education was shockingly bad and I don't want any children I have to be misinformed
  20. gul wakil 21 Jun 2014
    goood
  21. Kathleen Murray 23 Jun 2014
    reality is that whether we like it or not children are having multiple sexual partners from an early age. it is imperative that children are given the information they need to prevent this or at least increase awareness of safety precautions.
  22. Jennifer Forsyth 24 Jun 2014
    It is important that all young people are able to recognise what constitutes non- exploitative and non violent sexual relations. With the increase in access to Internet porn and violent porn it is important that children have the tools to deal with this.
  23. Bridget 24 Jun 2014
    Sex is not something that cannot be ignored
  24. Rachel Fitzpatrick 24 Jun 2014
    This should not be a taboo subject in 2014. It is time young people were taught about healthy attitudes towards sex.
  25. Les Morgan 25 Jun 2014
    we need this in England, well we need it in all schools world-wide, plus #NoMorePage3
  26. Frann Leach 27 Jun 2014
    It's difficult for gay and trans children in any case, they should have education to help them work out where they are going.