SSHA

Society of Sexual Health Advisers

Unite the union
  • About us
    • JOIN SSHA
    • Code of Professional Conduct
    • National Organising Professional Committee
    • National Organising Professional Committee Structure
    • Constitution and Rules
    • Council Reports
    • NPC ACCESS ONLY
  • News
  • Regions
    • London
    • North East, Yorkshire & Humberside
    • Ireland
    • Scotland
    • South West
    • East Midlands – VACANT
    • North West
    • South East
    • Wales
    • West Midlands
  • Resources
    • I Want To Be A Health Adviser
    • SSHA Manual
    • Conference Presentations
    • Competency Framework for Sexual Health Advisers
    • WeSSI: West Sussex Sexual Health Structured Interview
    • Research
    • Unite – Union
    • Publications
  • Jobs
    • Current Jobs
    • Sample Job Descriptions
  • Links
Home » Sexpression: UK petition launch

Sexpression: UK petition launch

June 1, 2014 By SSHA Leave a Comment

SIGN THE PETITION HERE!

Here is the petition by Advocacy Co-ordinator Jack Fletcher:

At present, there is no statutory SRE in the Scottish Education system. I feel very strongly that this is an area that needs vast improvement and that legislation should be passed for comprehensive high quality SRE to be taught as statutory in schools at primary and secondary level, with age appropriate measures taken towards content.

This is a priority because:

  • Although teenage pregnancy has fallen greatly in recent years, the rates in Scotland are still one of the highest in Europe;
  • Sexual transmitted infections are still a huge problem due to lack of contraception use;
  • Homophobia is rife in schools and this is an issue that needs effective confrontation, of which education is key. Homophobia leads to self-harm, depression and reduced attainment in the individuals education capabilities, an issue that is epidemic in schools as shown by the many reports by Stonewall Scotland;
  • Consent is a massive area of ambiguity and this only adds to sexual violence, rape and verbal harassment this is not treated with the concern it deserves.

The current provision is not enough to equip Scottish young people with the right information to tackle these issues. Current outcomes are for ‘Learners develop an understanding of how to maintain positive relationships with a variety of people and are aware of how thoughts, feelings, attitudes, values and beliefs can influence decisions about relationships, and sexual health. They develop their understanding of the complex roles and responsibilities of being a parent or carer.’ This is a very broad outcome that leaves too much room for subjection and misinterpretation when teachers are implementing lessons. These are broken down to focus on the following:

  • respect and caring for self and others
  • respect for individual differences
  • ways to express and deal with feelings and emotions
  • ways to keep safe
  • positive and supportive relationships

The outcomes and proposed directions for teaching are good, but Scotland should be striving for excellence in its provision of education. For this, the outcomes need to be broadened to include many more important aspects of SRE and for outcomes to be clarified so that SRE in Scotland can be more uniform and consistent, an area that is seen by the government to be lacking. The document referenced highlights some worrying statistics:

  • one quarter (24%) had no SRE trained staff, and in 52% of schools the staff currently responsible for SRE delivery were not trained;
  • less than 5% – 13/299 primary schools did not formally offer SRE when it should be 100% coverage across Scotland;
  • denominational schools predominantly expressed views that contraception should not be discussed even if raised by pupils (76%), and 70.6% were unwilling to discuss STIs;
  • when prompted, the children could remember other aspects of SRE, such as health promotion and anti-bullying events, but had little understanding of the
  • role of the informal curriculum in developing positive relationships;
  • case studies showed that schools initial fears about parental complaint went unrealised.

SRE helps students to learn about the emotional, social and physical aspects of growing up as well as relationships, human sexuality and sexual health. 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. The Family Planning Association also believe that it is ‘vitally important to educate people about sex and relationships, to ensure that they have all the information and advice they need to explore, develop and express their own sexuality safely.’

Parents are a key component to providing comprehensive SRE but many parents find this area hard to discuss with their children and I feel it is the responsibility of the Scottish Government to provide this information as it does for many subject areas vital for the health and wellbeing of young people.

I hope you consider my thoughts and proposal that would align Scotland with current International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) framework for SRE. Scotland can join many other countries in Europe that already have SRE in place in their education: Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Netherland, Norway, Poland and Sweden; to name a few.

Sexpression:UK is the only youth organisation delivering high quality comprehensive SRE in our local areas. We deliver non-judgemental information in a small group discussion format. Feedback revealed that 80-90% of our pupils ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they felt better prepared to make decisions in the future regarding their sexual health and relationships. Education is key to empowering the children and young people of Scotland to making healthier choices in their lives. Scotland should be following other European nations in providing statutory SRE, with guidance documents such as by the Sex Education Forum, Brook and PSHE Association are great in explaining the importance of comprehensive SRE.

Without schools providing reliable information many young people will turn to other resources on the internet which can have incorrect information. They also turn to friends for information and this can pereptuate myths of sexual health and relationship ideals, but also add to peer pressure issues such as ‘sexting’. SRE does not make people more promiscuous, but actually have less partners and more likely to use contraception in their first sexual encounter, which is also at an older age than those that do not receive SRE. The Scottish Government is denying children the right to comprehensive education that is needed for all the relationships they encounter in their lives. As a result of more widespread education, Scotland should also see a reduction in sexual harassment cases and in the burden of sexual health issues on the NHS. Parents need to be involved in SRE too and a basis of knowledge gained from school is crucial to making sure no child is left without knowing information crucial to their personal and inter-personal development. With the passing of the Equal Marriage Bill, we should be teaching about LGBT issues and creating a more inclusive society.

SIGN THE PETITION HERE!

Email your local MSP, MP, councillor, education council or anyone else asking for their support here.

List Of Supporters:

(Please email advocacy@sexpression.org.uk if you want to be added to the list)

  • Medsin UK
  • Campaign 4 Consent
  • Ban Revenge Porn
  • Dr Anatole S Menon-Johansson: Clinical lead for the sexual health department at Guy’s & St Thomas’ Trust, clinical director of Brook and founder of SXT Health CIC.
  • Estonia Medical Student Association
  • Gender Education UK
  • Gay Men’s Health Scotland
  • British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS)
  • Condom Monologues
  • Finnish Medical Student’s International Committee
  • No More Page 3
  • Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association
  • Dignity Alert Research Forum (FGM campaign)
  • Rape Crisis Scotland
  • Young Minds Vs. Sexed Up
  • Let Toys Be Toys
  • Zero Tolerance
  • Student Stop AIDS Campaign
  • IPPF European Network
  • Everyday Victimisation & Blame
  • Faculty of Sexual &Reproductive Healthcare of the Royal College of
  • Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
  • National AIDS Trust
  • Brook Charity
  • BMA Scotland
  • I Heart Consent

Filed Under: Latest SSHA News Tagged With: 1 heart consent, Anatole Menon-Johansson, ban revenge porn, bma scotland, bpas, british pregnancy advisory service, brook, campaign 4 consent, condom monologues, consent, dignity alert research forum, estonia medical student association, everyday victimisation & blame, faculty of sexual & reproductive healthcare, fgm, finnish medical student's international committee, gay men's health scotland, gender education uk, homophobia, ippf european network, let toys be toys, medsin uk, NAT, national aids trust, no more page 3, obstetricians and gynaecologists, rape, rape crisis scotland, scottish education system, scottish secondary teachers association, sexed up, Sexpression, sexual violence, sre, STI, stonewall scotland, student stop aids campaign, sxt, verbal harassment, young minds vs, zero tolerance

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

About SSHA

The Society of Sexual Health Advisers (SSHA) is a UK national organisation with approximately 300 members out of an estimated 350 sexual health advisers in the country. It provides an opportunity for members to meet and work towards further professional development.

Recent Posts

  • Helping People to Reduce Sexual Health Risk: A Motivational Interviewing Approach February 28, 2023

Useful Links

  • BASHH
  • HPV Action
  • NAM
  • Public Health England
  • Public Health Scotland
  • Terence Higgins Trust
  • UNITE the Union

Copyright © 2023 · SSHA - Society of Sexual Health Advisers

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT