Sex Education Forum Sign Up Information

Speakers include:

• Nazir Afzal OBE
• Professor Emma Renold, Cardiff University
• Holly Bourne, author of ‘Am I normal yet?’
• Parentkind, Brook

And delegates can choose from workshops on topics including:

• Parental involvement
• Online sexual harassment
• Consent
• Putting guidance into practice
• Special educational needs and disability (SEND) inclusion

Full agenda

Book your place now at this popular conference!

In an independent poll commissioned by the Sex Education Forum, 16 and 17-year-olds were asked to rate aspects of their RSE at school and home. Only 41% per cent rated their school-based RSE as good or very good, slightly lower than a similar poll (45%) conducted in 2018.

At home, young people rated the RSE they received from their parents or carers as only slightly better, with 48% saying it was good or very good.

Presented at 'The Final Countdown' conference last Friday, the findings at the other end of the scale are that 1 in six (17%) young people rated their school RSE as bad or very bad, and 19% said the same of their parents, raising concerns that a lack of consistency and fear of addressing more sensitive topics is depriving some young people of learning that would support their safety and well-being.

A full report with infographics covering 22 topics are available from our website. 

Limited places for free training & support offer on LGBT inclusion – schools invited to register interest now!

Learn Equality, Live Equal (LELE) is a Government funded programme to support schools to tackle homophobic, biphobic and transphobic (HBT) bullying. It is a free 12-week, evidence based, whole-school support programme, enabling schools to find practical solutions. The programme is run by Anti-Bullying Alliance and Sex Education Forum and funded by the Government Equalities Office.  
 
The programme has a substantial free training offer, including 4 training days looking at the new Relationships and Sex Education guidance, delivered by the Sex Education Forum for primary and secondary schools, and ‘Gender Matters: course covering gender equality, gender identity and trans inclusion in schools. Training sessions on conducting effective consultation with pupils, staff and parents and further online modules are provided.
 

This is currently open to schools in Oxfordshire, Reading, Berkshire, Nottinghamshire, Buckinghamshire, Bracknell, Wokingham and Northamptonshire.  Special schools and independent schools, academies, maintained and faith schools all welcome.

To register your interest by 13 December 2019 please follow the links provided below. 
 
Nottinghamshire – here
Oxfordshire – here
Buckinghamshire – here
Bracknell, Reading, Wokingham – here
Northamptonshire – here

Membership of the Sex Education Forum costs just £49.50 a year. It gives you and a colleague at your school free access to: 

We are delighted to bring our ‘Countdown to Statutory RSE’ conference to the North East, in association with Newcastle City Council. 

Attendees will hear from keynote speakers including:

•    Jade Gilks, Department for Education on the ‘Implementation of statutory RSE’ 
•    Roary Pownall HMI, Ofsted, National Lead for PSHE on the ‘Intent, implementation and impact of RSHE’ 
•    Claire Robson, Public Health England on the ‘Reality of RSE and what we need'

Chaired by Alison Hadley OBE, delegates can participate in a question and answer session with the panel, and choose 3 workshops from a selection that address practical issues for the implementation of high quality RSHE including:

•    assessment
•    parental engagement
•    teaching about consent 
•    and SEND inclusion

Here are some sample parent questions, which could be part of a communication about the changes to RSE. These can be adapted for primary / secondary and to suit your school. A primary version is provided below. 

Part 1: Be clear about the facts
Did you know that a change in the law means that all primary schools are required to teach Relationships Education and Health Education from September 2020?

Yes / No / Not sure 
 
Did you know that all primary schools are recommended to teach sex education, and that parents continue to have the right to request that their child is excused from sex education?

Yes / No / Not sure
 
Do you have any questions about this?..........
 
Government have produced a pair of factual guides to RSE for parents - one for primary, one for secondary and these are now available in English, Arabic, Somali and Urdu from gov.uk  - add a link to these in your parent communication. 
 
Part 2: Questions at home
Has your child ever talked to…

Part 3: How can we help you?
Would you like more information about...

Want to download the whole template? Sign up for membership to the Sex Education Forum.

We are delighted to bring our ‘Countdown to Statutory RSE’ conference to the North East on March 26 2020, in association with Newcastle City Council. 

Attendees will hear from keynote speakers including:

•    Jade Gilks, Department for Education on the ‘Implementation of statutory RSE’ 
•    Roary Pownall HMI, Ofsted, National Lead for PSHE on the ‘Intent, implementation and impact of RSHE’ 
•    Claire Robson, Public Health England on the ‘Reality of RSE and what we need'

Chaired by Alison Hadley OBE, delegates can participate in a question and answer session with the panel, and choose 3 workshops from a selection that address practical issues for the implementation of high quality RSHE including:

•    assessment
•    parental engagement
•    teaching about consent 
•    and SEND inclusion

About the judges
Many thanks to our astute judging panel, in particular Young NCB members: Aayushi (13), Dmitrijs (14), and Amy (18).

They were assisted by input from our ‘professionals’: Lesley Kerr-Edwards, Director of Image in Action, and Alice Hoyle, RSE teacher and subject expert.

Prizes 
The winners will receive a collection of books and resources kindly given by Bloomsbury, Usborne, Walker Books, Discovery Education and Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Free tickets to attend Sex Education Forum webinars will also be given to the schools, acknowledging the team effort behind the best RSE teachers 2020.  

The winners will virtually receive their prizes at the Sex Education Forum partners summer event, which takes place on 1 July. 

Helena Wright is the strategic policy lead for relationships, sex and health education at the Department for Education.

Helena has been working in curriculum policy for 3 years. Her keynote topic is the Implementation of statutory RSHE.

Outside the Box is a personal development and RSE programme designed for targeted use with small groups of young people aged 11 - 18.

Frequent use of distancing techniques is made throughout the resource, which comprises 8 workshop sessions and a pre and post assessment tool. Facilitators support young people to create fictional characters that reappear throughout the programme and help to unlock a range of themes including consent, power, gender, body image, sexual health, healthy and unhealthy relationships.

“The young people really enjoyed this. They became totally absorbed and created 2 great characters”.

“ I might add in the future different bits of clothing and get the groups to choose one item they feel would be in their characters wardrobe”.

Workshop session 1 which includes detailed facilitator notes on how to run this activity is free to download from the Sex Education Forum website. 

Trained facilitators attending our 2 day remote course receive hard copy and digital facilitator manuals and powerpoint resources. 
 

'RSE definitions guide' includes:

• A table probing all key components of sex education and where this content might be placed in the curriculum
• 10 principles for how to approach definitions 
• Sample definitions for Relationships Education and sex education

The guide is available to purchase by non-members for £5.99  - free for members. 

You might also be interested in our new blog about 'RSE definitions'. 

Engaging with parents and carers is a crucial step in developing an effective programme of Relationships and Sex Education.

Government guidance (2019) requires that all schools in England consult with parents about their provision. Parental engagement can involve several steps.

A good starting point is to ensure parents are clear about the facts relating to the new legislation. A second step might focus on gathering parents’ views.

This tool includes a set of sample parent questions. These can be adapted for primary or secondary phase and to suit your school, and could be run as an online survey.

£5.99 or free for members.

All schools must consult with parents about Relationships and Sex Education as part of the new requirements. 

Approach your consultation activities with a clear understanding of the legislation and consideration of appropriate consultation methods.

Get ahead by booking our 75 minute webinar, facilitated by our Director Lucy Emmerson, with accompanying slides for delegates. Opportunities to interact and ask questions. 

Parental consultation & RSE webinar takes place at 4pm Thurs 10 September. 

A bespoke webinar focused on parent and pupil consultation in SEND settings takes place on Weds 9 September. 

 

Download your free gift - our whole-school RSE audit tool in digital format. Link expires in 7 days.

This 2 hour webinar focuses on creating a SEND inclusive RSE curriculum in mainstream settings.

Facilitated by RSE Specialist and teacher Rachael Baker, participants will:

• Consider the differing needs of learners with SEND in mainstream settings to develop an inclusive programme of study.
• Examine issues such as appropriate resources, different starting points and variable learning needs, guiding you towards creating a robust and sensitive model.
• Explore practical considerations such as how teaching assistant (TA) support may be deployed, considerations regarding resources, timetabling and learning environment, as well as ways to use targeted intervention and small group work.

£49.99 - £59.99

With 20 ideas for primary and 20 ideas for secondary settings there is something for everyone....  quick options and ones that will take a bit more planning. Some can be run with pupils in school, others shared with families. 

With Relationships and Sex Education becoming statutory in all schools from September 2020 it’s time to put the spotlight on excellent teaching in the subject. 

Nominations are open for 4 categories: primary, secondary, special school and COVID-19 response. 

Nominations require the support of a colleague, pupil, parent or governor and just 250 words to explain how the teacher meets our award criteria. 
 

Membership of the Sex Education Forum costs just £49.50 a year. It gives you and a colleague at your school access to: 

Members benefit from discounts on our training courses including webinars, remote training and events. 

Join our virtual conference on 5 October 2020 and select 3 workshop choices to attend from the menu below, and get access materials from all workshops.

Workshop Session 1: 12.00 - 13.00

(A) Defining RSE and designing a developmental curriculum - Lucy Emmerson, Director, Sex Education Forum

In this workshop delegates will consider what constitutes sex education and how to define RSE, steps which are necessary to inform the school policy. Referring to both the Government RSHE guidance and internationally recognised RSE guidance delegates will explore how to design a developmental RSE curriculum. Lucy will draw on research evidence to identify features of high quality RSE. 

(B) Twenty activities from Great RSE - Alice Hoyle, RSE teacher and author of Great RSE

Alice Hoyle will give you a taste of twenty activities selected from her new book ‘Great RSE’ and show how these can be used flexibly to enhance your RSE programme across primary and secondary age groups. A great way to gather new ideas to put into action in the classroom! 

(C) Using creative methods and stimuli to demystify domestic abuse - Polly Turner, Assistant Director, Changing Relations C.I.C

Drawing on the arts is an effective way to create a safe, open space to explore a tricky topic such as domestic abuse. In this workshop, Changing Relations will introduce the way they use their original creative resources as a concrete, visual reference point for young people to build the foundations needed to make safe and healthy relationship choices.Ideal for secondary phase

Workshop session 2 : 13:50 - 14:50

(D) Assessment in RSHE - Rachael Baker, Senior RSE Specialist, Sex Education Forum 

Government RSHE guidance sets out an expectation that pupil progress will be assessed in RSHE to the same standard as any other subject. Qualified teacher Rachael Baker will support participants to plan RSHE with assessment opportunities in mind. Participants will consider a range of methods to assess learning in RSHE, and participate in activities to practise assessment in RSHE, considering how robust assessment can inform differentiation and personalisation of the subject.

(E) Teaching about menstrual wellbeing - Dr. Eleanor Draeger, Senior RSE Trainer, Sex Education Forum 

As a Sexual Health Doctor I know only too well the problems that ensue if people are not taught adequately about the menstrual cycle and how to deal with periods.  In this workshop I will be exploring a variety of ways to teach both the menstrual cycle itself, and menstrual wellbeing, and giving participants the opportunity to explore a range of resources that can help teachers to deliver lessons on this subject in an inclusive and engaging way. 

(F) Consent – the grey areas - Dr Elsie Whittington

Dr Elsie Whittington will draw on young people’s voices and her thesis on the ambiguous and awkward aspects of real-life consent and support delegates to expand their model of consent and find new ways to support learners, particularly at secondary level, to navigate consent and develop competencies for intimate relationships.

Workshop session 3: 15:00 - 16:00

(G) Answering pupil questions in RSE - Dr. Eleanor Draeger, Senior RSE Trainer, Sex Education Forum

Answering student questions can be the most daunting part of delivering an RSE lesson.  In this interactive workshop participants will look at a selection of real questions asked by primary and secondary students in RSE lessons and will work together, supported by Dr Eleanor Draeger,  to provide accurate, age-appropriate responses. 

(H) Putting guidance into practice – SEND inclusion focus - Rachael Baker, Senior RSE Specialist, Sex Education Forum 

Join this workshop to get started in developing differentiated, age-appropriate curriculum for learners with unique needs. Facilitated by experienced SEND teacher and RSE specialist Rachael Baker, participants will identify key concerns for inclusive RSE provision for learners with SEND and gain confidence in the practicalities of creating a safe learning environment either in a SEND or mainstream setting.  

(I) RSE and LGBT+ inclusion - Nimerta Virdee and Jac Bastian, Diversity Role Models

Part of the new RSE requirements will be to ensure that the needs of all learners are met and this includes our LGBT+ young people. This workshop will provide insight into the lived experiences of the LGBT+ community and explain why creating a LGBT+ inclusive school is important. We will explore positive strategies for embedding LGBT+ inclusion into the whole curriculum and provide a forum to discuss overcoming challenges to this.  

Non members: £199
Members: £175 

Join today for just £49.50 to access your discount!

Parents and carers have an important role to play in teaching children and young people about healthy relationships and positive sexual health.

RSE Day highlights that RSE is the responsibility of all and an opportunity for families and schools to work in partnership.

This free new resource provides 10 ideas to share with parents ahead of RSE Day 2020 on 25 June. 

Roary joined Ofsted after a career in teaching across the full age-range of the primary years and has primary headship experience. 

His last school won numerous awards and was judged to be outstanding in all areas at the last two Ofsted inspections. 

Roary has a special interest in school leadership, the early years and the role of the school in supporting the personal development of pupils.

Roary is Ofsted’s National Lead for Personal, Social and Health Education and Citizenship.

The roll-out of a new Ofsted framework this September resets the compass on school inspection, and comes just 12 months ahead of new requirements for mandatory Relationships and Sex Education. As schools prepare for both changes, we look at how these two reforms align. 

Changes to the law, and the new Government guidance on Relationships and Sex Education (RSE), Relationships Education and Health Education give this cluster of subjects the same status as other curriculum subjects. In the past there has been very wide variation in quantity and quality of RSE in schools, resulting in a complete lottery for learners. The new guidance on RSE spells out that governors and school management must ensure the subject is ‘resourced, staffed and timetabled in a way that ensures that the school can fulfil its legal obligation’.

Ofsted is an accountability mechanism, so has a critical role to play in monitoring what schools do and setting benchmarks for standards. However, the days of judging each curriculum subject individually have long gone. There is no separate grade for maths, history or science, and there will be no grade for RSE.  

The new Ofsted framework is built on four key judgements: ‘quality of education’, ‘behaviour and attitudes’, ‘personal development’ and ‘leadership and management’. Taken together, with additional judgements for the early years and for 16-19 provision where appropriate, these form the basis of the overall grade for the school (either outstanding, good, requires improvement or inadequate). Inspections will now usually last two days, preceded by a 90 minute phone conversation with the Headteacher. The telephone conversation may be in two separate parts, as agreed between the headteacher and the inspector...

Lucy Emmerson, Director of the Sex Education, provides an overview of Government RSHE guidance requirements and outlines a clear step-by-step approach to preparing for statutory Relationships and Sex Education, covering parent consultation, policy development and curriculum planning.

No matter where you are in your journey towards up-to-date, inclusive RSHE, this webinar will point you towards relevant tools and good practice. After a video presentation, with accompanying power-point, there will be ample time for your questions and answers. 

This session is suitable for PSHE leads, SLT and organisations supporting schools such as local authorities. 

Enjoyable and useful RSE lessons depend on excellent teaching in the subject. We are calling for nominations for confident, knowledgeable and creative teachers of RSE.

This summer, 4 awards will be given, for best RSE teacher 2020 in the categories:

1) adapting to remote education and the context of the Covid-19 pandemic  
2) primary
3) secondary
4) special school 

A judging panel including young people will decide on the winner, to be announced on RSE Day, 25 June 2020. 

Pupils, parents, governors/trustees and school staff can nominate a teacher of RSE.  To make your nomination compete the form on our website (250 words) and send it to us by Friday 5th June 2020. 

Government statutory guidance on RSHE sets out what pupils should learn by the end of primary / secondary and includes references to HIV and AIDS: 

Pupils should learn (by the end of secondary)

Department for Education online training module for teaching 'Intimate and sexual relationships' includes advice to

There is also reference to HIV and AIDS in National Curriculum science and opportunities to cover viruses in mandatory Health Education. 

Facilitator: Rachael Baker, an experienced teacher.

This SEND specialist course is for PSHE leads, SENCO, teaching staff and members of the senior leadership team in special schools, and who support learners with additional and unique learning needs in mainstream schools.

Participants will work individually and in groups to explore the implications of statutory status and identify realistic, achievable goals for their school.

The session considers specific challenges faced by learners with special educational needs and disabilities, and supports teachers and staff to create inclusive, accessible and needs-led relationships and sex education.

The session will be run remotely, with opportunities to learn from colleagues, and a full set of course materials made available digitally. 

Lucy Emmerson, Director of the Sex Education, provides an overview of Government RSHE guidance requirements and outlines a clear step-by-step approach to preparing for statutory Relationships and Sex Education, covering parent consultation, policy development and curriculum planning.

No matter where you are in your journey towards up-to-date, inclusive RSHE, this webinar will point you towards relevant tools and good practice. After a video presentation, with accompanying power-point, there will be ample time for your questions and answers. 

This session is suitable for PSHE leads, SLT and organisations supporting schools such as local authorities. 

A free 'On track for statutory RSE' webinar for our members is being run on 12 May 2020, subject to availability. 

Lucy Emmerson, Director of the Sex Education, provides an overview of Government RSHE guidance requirements and outlines a clear step-by-step approach to preparing for statutory Relationships and Sex Education, covering parent consultation, policy development and curriculum planning.

No matter where you are in your journey towards up-to-date, inclusive RSHE, this webinar will point you towards relevant tools and good practice. After a video presentation, with accompanying power-point, there will be ample time for your questions and answers. 

This session is suitable for PSHE leads, SLT and organisations supporting schools such as local authorities. 

A free 'On track for statutory RSE' webinar for our members is being run on 19 May 2020, subject to availability. 

Our new series of webinars address key issues to support preparation for high quality, statutory RSE.

The sessions are facilitated by our expert staff, using zoom, with accompanying slides that are sent to delegates immediately afterwards. There are opportunities to interact and ask questions.  Webinar running time is 75 minutes.

RSE is now officially statutory and schools are making their preparations to be fully delivering the new requirements by Summer term 2021.

This virtual conference will guide teachers through the new legislation, foster discussion about topical issues and help you choose the best resources and teaching approaches to build an inclusive and up-to-date programme that is supported by parents and relevant to children and young people’s real lives. 
 
Who is it for?
Of national relevance and accessible for all through the virtual format, this conference is centred on the North East and features case studies from local schools.

Ideal for primary and secondary teachers leading or teaching PSHE / RSE, head teachers and deputies, pastoral staff, youth workers, school nurses, local authority RSE leads.
 
Join us on Monday 5 October 2020 for:

• Expert keynotes from the Department for Education and Ofsted with Q and A
• Panel discussion about parental engagement, with case studies from schools in Newcastle and South Tyneside
• A choice of workshops addressing RSE definitions, assessment, SEND and LGBT+ inclusion, answering pupil questions, consent and more
• Networking in the virtual conference environment
• Access to materials after conference day

The event will be Chaired by Alison Hadley, OBE. Speakers include: 

• Helena Wright, Department for Education 
• Roary Pownall HMI, Ofsted, National Lead for PSHE
• Alice Hoyle, RSE teacher and author of Great RSE
• Lisa Davis, Director, Changing Relations
• Dr Elsie Whittington
• Nimerta Virdee and Jac Bastian, Diversity Role Models
• Lucy Emmerson, Rachael Baker and Dr Eleanor Draeger, Sex Education Forum 

Non members: £199
Members: £175 

During the open café we will spend one hour exploring the questions brought by delegates.

Your question could be about:

• consultation
• policy
• curriculum planning
• particular areas of content in Relationships and Sex Education

Your question must be submitted as part of the booking process.

Groups for the café are limited to 12 participants.

£24.99 - £29.99