Education Act 1996

Sex education

403 Sex education: manner of provision

(1) The local education authority, governing body and head teacher shall take such steps as are reasonably practicable to secure that where sex education is given to any registered pupils at a maintained school, it is given in such a manner as to encourage those pupils to have due regard to moral considerations and the value of family life.

(2) In subsection (1) “maintained school” includes a maintained special school established in a hospital.

404 Sex education: statements of policy

(1) The governing body of a maintained school shall—

(a) make, and keep up to date, a separate written statement of their policy with regard to the provision of sex education, and

(b) make copies of the statement available for inspection (at all reasonable times) by parents of registered pupils at the school and provide a copy of the statement free of charge to any such parent who asks for one.

(2) In subsection (1) “maintained school” includes, in relation to pupils who are provided with secondary education, a maintained special school established in a hospital.

(3) In relation to—

(a) a county, or controlled, secondary school, and

(b) pupils who are provided with secondary education in a maintained special school,

section 371 shall have effect with the omission of subsection (3) of that section and of the references to the matters mentioned in that subsection, and section 372 shall have effect with the omission of subsection (4)(a) of that section.

405 Exemption from sex education

If the parent of any pupil in attendance at a maintained school requests that he may be wholly or partly excused from receiving sex education at the school, the pupil shall, except so far as such education is comprised in the National Curriculum, be so excused accordingly until the request is withdrawn.