Make LGBTQ+ sex education compulsory within the national curriculum.

In the national curriculum (primary, secondary & post-sixteen), sex education currently exists. However, it only focuses on the nature of heterosexual sex & relationships. I feel that it is necessary to also implement sex education for homosexual students, so that they too can feel safe and secure.

Many people may associate sexually transmitted infections with EITHER homosexual sex OR heterosexual sex. However, this is not reality.

For example, HIV can be contracted via both vaginal AND anal sex. At the end of 2014, 54,100 heterosexuals & 43,000 gay and bisexual men contracted the virus in the UK.

(Approximately, 1 in every 20 gay and bisexual men contract HIV).

Common STI's such as chlamydia, herpes & gonorrhoea can be contracted by vaginal, anal & oral sex (lesbian, straight or gay).

We want all young people to feel that relationships and sex education (RSE) is relevant to them and sensitive to their needs, whatever the nature of their emerging sexuality. This is why improving the access to high quality RSE is a key priority of this government.

Sex Education is currently compulsory in maintained secondary schools and any school teaching it is required to have regard to the Secretary of State's 2000, ‘Sex and Relationship Education guidance’. The current guidance highlights, for example, that ‘Pupils need also to be given accurate information and helped to develop skills to enable them to understand difference and respect themselves and others and for the purpose also of preventing and removing prejudice’.

Schools also have a duty under the Equality Act (2010) to ensure that LGBT pupils or the children of LGBT parents are not singled out for different and less favourable treatment from that given to other pupils. They should check that there are no practices that could result in unfair, less favourable treatment of such pupils. The Education Act (2002) places duties on schools to offer a balanced and broadly based curriculum that prepares all pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life. Schools also have a duty to address homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying.

We believe that it is for schools to tailor their RSE programme to reflect the needs of all their pupils. Schools have a duty to publish details of their sex education policy, so that parents can engage with this information.