To ask the Minister of Education to detail (i) what plans he has for improving sex education in schools; (ii) how sex education in schools would be done; (iii) his assessment on the benefits of improving sex education in schools; and (iv) what discussions he has had with the Minister of Health to improve sex education in schools.

The delivery of appropriate and informed teaching in Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) is a priority area of work for my Department. Over the last number of years my Department has provided earmarked funding to the Council for Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) to support the production of RSE resources and guidance materials. In June 2019 CCEA launched its online RSE Hub to facilitate access to these resources.

This year my Department provided additional funding to CCEA to enable further resources and guidance materials to be developed. This approach provides teachers with the appropriate resources and support to increase their competence and confidence in teaching this area of the curriculum. Providing quality teaching, supported by age appropriate information and guidance material for all children and young people will enable them to make informed decisions, and develop healthy and supportive relationships.

The statutory curriculum for Personal Development and Mutual Understanding (PDMU) at primary level and the Personal Development strand of Learning for Life and Work at post primary level, includes high level prescribed content for RSE at each Key Stage. This is a minimum entitlement that all children must legally receive. Schools and teachers have the flexibility to decide the topics and approaches that best suit the needs pupils and it is a matter for schools to decide which, if any, of these resources they use to inform the development and delivery of an RSE programme.

I have not had any meetings with the Minister for Health on the content of the RSE curriculum; however, in developing resources for the RSE Hub, CCEA has actively engaged with a wide range of professionals, including colleagues in the Department of Health.