Primary schools in the UK are being forced to teach sex education, while secondary schools are being encouraged to hand out contraception and hold condom demonstrations in class under a scheme meant to promote 'healthy' lifestyles
Primary schools in the UK are being forced to teach sex education, while secondary schools are being encouraged to hand out contraception and hold condom demonstrations in class under a scheme meant to promote 'healthy' lifestyles
Campaigners claim the Healthy Schools Programme is being used to impose 'permissive' sex education without a national debate, the Daily Mail reported.
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Launched in 1999, it had its central funding cut this year, but is still being promoted by local authorities.
In a survey of all 152 English councils, the Family Education Trust found one in five councils told primary schools that decided not to teach sex and relationship education that they would not be eligible for 'Healthy Schools status'.
Norman Wells, director of the Family Education Trust, said it was "very concerning" that primary schools were still being leant on to provide it.
"Primary schools that make a principled decision not to teach sex education should not be stigmatised and denied a sought-after award for that reason," he said.
Northamptonshire county council supported giving pupils as young as 12 the opportunity to practise putting a condom on a demonstrator device in the classroom.
And South Tyneside believed it would be 'good practice' to give free condoms to pupils older than 14 for such lessons.
Overall, 8 percent of councils believed teaching pupils as young as 12 and 13 how to use freely supplied condoms would be in line with the guidance.
Six percent of councils said it would not be possible for secondary schools to get Healthy Schools status if they did not wish to refer pupils to contraceptive and sexual health clinics.
"In some parts, the programme is being used to impose a liberal and permissive type of sex education on schools by the back door," Wells added.
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