100 organisations ask Labour to abandon Tory revised guidelines on RSHE

No. But no teachers are asking children to draw "dicks" at school.
They might be asking them to draw anatomical diagrams.

It's just biology

What an odd take on such a clear responsible post from a parent.
Do you see unwanted dick pics sent to women as "photos of the reproductive system" as well? 🙄

some huge number of children have seen porn by year 6

Where did you get this from?

"This place is mad"

And yet here you are yet again, complaining about how awful it is....

I filled in the consultation 2 days ago. The age limits are too high for todays world and mean that children aren't going to have the information they need when they need it. E.g. some huge number of children have seen porn by year 6, but the proposal is it's not taught about until y7.

In my opinion the children most at risk are the ones whose parents are uncomfortable with discussions of sex, relationships, homosexuality etc so I don't think parents should have the right to withdraw their children from lessons. It should be compulsory, like maths.

I think the Conservatives made a right meal out of this in their quest to stoke culture wars so am not surprised there is pressure to drop it. The whole approach needs rethinking. I'd go for a more centralised curriculum and stop outsourcing to charities.

🙈
In what sense is getting children to draw the reproductive system like porn??

This place is mad...

Great post, and this is what I and most parents I talk to about this think.

Parents are fed up with the 'rights' driven agenda (as well as nonsensical unscientific gender ideology) in schools pushed by organisations such as those listed and some teachers which is completely inappropriate for children and overrides - in many cases - safeguarding law and practice.

They're tired of having to complain and have their complaint upheld - I've had to do this twice in the last two months. A lot of parents don't have time. I was right in both cases - upheld by headteacher, but we just want RSE / PHSE to be safeguarding driven in the first place, not have to pick up the pieces all the time.

IMO it's entirely inappropriate to introduce the concept of porn to pre-pubescent children. They have no frame of reference for it and it's developmentally inappropriate. Who decides what porn is anyway? Some would say the practices of the school of sexuality education (getting kids to draw dick pics) veer very close. Are they the RSE provider that had people working there who also ran a business selling sex toys, or am I thinking of a different RSE provider?

And yes, all resources including lesson plans should be shared in their entirety. Of my children's schools, one school has done this now, the other still getting there. If they care about children's wellbeing, why on earth would they make it more difficult for parents to safeguard their children? Sharing resources so parents can have meaningful discussions is part of that.

They aren't qualified. This is not their area. As you say, they might have some views based on their experiences with those they work with but that's it.

This is, however, an area that should not be given over to ideology or a system of belief(s) - as we know.

Being feminist is a form of a belief. We cannot replace one scope creep with another. This must be about what is age appropriate, and best for children.

Not what is best for the VAWG sector, or any other sector. But what's best for children.

This feels like the EHRC and their creeping into "balancing rights". Great. But we are dealing with the safeguarding of children here. That must always be first and foremost. "Balancing rights" is how you end up with a certain male teacher pushing guidance in schools. Enthusiastically taken up, this kind of adult thinking about what adults want has created the conditions for mixed sex toilets, alleged rapes awaiting trial, and daily indignity for girls.

Could VAW be worried about family member sexual abuse of a young child, meaning the child needs to know it is being perpetrated on them even if it is before the suggested appropriate age?

This is from,
Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Analysis Launched
news.npcc.police.uk/releases/vkpp-launch-national-analysis-of-police-recorded-child-sexual-abuse-and-exploitation-csae-crimes-report-2022

• There were around 107,000 offences reported in 2022 – a 7.6% increase compared to 2021, nearly quadruple what it is was 10 years ago. Evidence continues to suggest many crimes remains unreported.
• Around 75% of CSAE offences related to sexual offences committed directly against children, andaround 25% relate to online offences of Indecent Images of Children.
• The crime types regarding CSAE are changing. For example, historically Child-on-Child abuse accounted for around third of offences. The data in the report suggests that today this is just over half.
• CSAE within the family environment remains acommon form of reported abuse, accounting for an estimated 33% of reported contact CSAE crime. Parents and siblings were the two most common relationships featuring.
• Group-based CSAE accounts for 5% of all identified and reported CSAE ranging from unorganised peer group sharing of imagery, to more organised complex high harm cases with high community impact.
• Reported CSAE is heavily gendered, as expected, with males (82% of all CSAE perpetrators) predominantly abusing females (79% of victims). Sexual offending involving male victims are more common in offences involving indecent images and younger children.
• The number of recorded incidents of Online Sexual Abuse continues to grow. It accounts for at least 32% of CSAE.
• 52% of all CSAE cases involved reports of children (aged 10 to 17) offending against other children with 14 being the most common age. This is a growing and concerning trend involving a wide range of offending. Whilst some include exploratory online sexual behaviours, some of the most prevalent forms include serious sexual assaults, including rape

These organisations represent their own agendas, but where is the power of parents? As a progressive radical parent who has always been forthright in speaking to my children about any of the issues PHSE covers, I can honestly say that all the grossly inappropriate experiences we have faced have come from school. My eldest D was exposed to pornographic content on YouTube accidentally through an unsecured computer in a lesson in year 4 (really!). The extremely well known secondary school they both attend refused to share RHSE content with me for 4 years, and finally said this was because they are following the advice of the local authority to
not engage in this with parents. Since the former govt took action on this, they have complied and share the curriculum but not lesson content. I have asked for this because both my daughters have come home utterly indoctrinated. The info shared in the parent consultation (statutory) had several serious and ideologically driven mistakes. We have parent activists on the governors who are connected to at least two of the charities listed and who are open about their ideological commitments. The school is excellent but honestly the harm that we have experienced just through PHSE/RHSE alone is something I can never forgive.
These organisations perhaps include people who mean well, but they have no idea of the impact on children of consistently and insidiously invading boundaries. The ultimate effect is that girls like mine are less able to recognise harm and to protect themselves, because they have been taught by teachers they respect that everything is normal and all that matters is consent.
I have seen teacher after teacher prioritise their own values and happiness over what any caring parent considers sensible and basic. I mean for example, sharing content on sensitive topics in RHSE/PHSE with all families, and recognising the difference between what is fact based and what is politically and ideologically driven.
Absoluetly every complaint I have ever made has been upheld by the Head Teacher, so I am not coming from an extreme or vexatious place. But honestly it’s exhausting and I’ve had enough.
i am not a social conservative, but I am a feminist and a mum. Also, I know when I smell a rat or if I see what looks like grooming of children to lower their boundaries.

What's strange is that the 2nd largest group of signatories is women's groups in the VAWG sector.

And even allowing that some are genuinely well qualified to work with and provide support to women who have suffered male violence, not sure how qualified they are to comment on this.

They may have accummulated anecdotal information about how what is happening in schools, but they aren't experts in education.

Added to which I haven't seen any of these groups for instance ever having asked for feedback from service users about what is or is not taught in RSHE being part of the problem of male violence, rather than what is happening in pupils homes and community.

I suppose part of me is worried that they have signed this as much to show support for the teaching of gender identity!

• The End Violence Against Women Coalition
• Refuge
• Women’s Aid Federation of England (Women’s Aid)
• Rape Crisis England & Wales
• Everyone’s Invited
• Action Breaks Silence
• Advance
• Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid
• Bold Voices
• Beyond Equality
• FORWARD
• Imkaan
• IKWRO – Women’s Rights Organisation
• IRISi
• Jewish Women’s Aid
• Juno Women’s Aid
• Kindling Transformative Interventions
• Latin American Women’s Aid
• Latin American Women’s Rights Service (LAWRS)
• LMK Let Me Know
• Middle Eastern Women and Society Organisation (MEWSO)
• Our Streets Now
• Rights of Women
• Solace Women’s Aid
• Surviving Economic Abuse
• Survivors Of Abuse
• Tender
• This Ends Now
• Violence Against Women and Girls Research Network
• Woman’s Trust
• Women’s Budget Group
• Roj Women’s Association
• White ribbon UK
• Agenda Alliance
• Standing Together
• Respect
• Savana

What's strange is that the 2nd largest group of signatories is women's groups in the VAWG sector.

And even allowing that some are genuinely well qualified to work with and provide support to women who have suffered male violence, not sure how qualified they are to comment on this.

They may have accummulated anecdotal information about how what is happening in schools, but they aren't experts in education.

Added to which I haven't seen any of these groups for instance ever having asked for feedback from service users about what is or is not taught in RSHE being part of the problem of male violence, rather than what is happening in pupils homes and community.

I suppose part of me is worried that they have signed this as much to show support for the teaching of gender identity!

• The End Violence Against Women Coalition
• Refuge
• Women’s Aid Federation of England (Women’s Aid)
• Rape Crisis England & Wales
• Everyone’s Invited
• Action Breaks Silence
• Advance
• Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid
• Bold Voices
• Beyond Equality
• FORWARD
• Imkaan
• IKWRO – Women’s Rights Organisation
• IRISi
• Jewish Women’s Aid
• Juno Women’s Aid
• Kindling Transformative Interventions
• Latin American Women’s Aid
• Latin American Women’s Rights Service (LAWRS)
• LMK Let Me Know
• Middle Eastern Women and Society Organisation (MEWSO)
• Our Streets Now
• Rights of Women
• Solace Women’s Aid
• Surviving Economic Abuse
• Survivors Of Abuse
• Tender
• This Ends Now
• Violence Against Women and Girls Research Network
• Woman’s Trust
• Women’s Budget Group
• Roj Women’s Association
• White ribbon UK
• Agenda Alliance
• Standing Together
• Respect
• Savana

So before we even get to whether the research leading to these statistics is valid... you're saying that because 1 in 10 pupils see porn by age 9, the other 90% should be exposed to it too?

I'm pretty sure the 90% of parents ensuring their children aren't in the 10% aren't going to be very keen on this idea.

This sort of statistic means that there will be many classes where none of the children have been exposed. Why introduce it to them?