The Department for Education has published revised statutory guidance for teaching relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) from September 2026.
The has been published after a consultation on RSHE content closed in July last year. Changes include content on helping pupils to identify online misogyny; sexual ethics; and artificial intelligence awareness.
The DfE is proposing to review the guidance every six years, rather than as it previously said in 2019. However, it is still proposing to review the guidance for technical changes every three years, ensuring that it complies with new legislation.
The DfE has introduced some of the changes that were initially proposed but left others out after the consultation.
New RSHE guidance
Here are the main changes and additions that schools should be aware of:
More online safety and online misogyny content
The revised guidance contains more content on online safety, including tackling online misogyny.
For secondary schools, this includes sections on staying safe online, spotting fake social media accounts or those that use AI, and understanding exaggeration and more extreme language online.
It also includes understanding that indecent images are a crime; as well as additional guidance on deepfakes, pornography, online scams, how data is used and AI chatbots.
Within this, the guidance focuses on misogyny and incel culture online, and how to spot these and understand how they influence pupils’ understanding of sexual ethics.
Jonathan Baggaley, chief executive of the PSHE Association, welcomed the increased emphasis on “51 content that reflects the complexity and reality of the online world”.
Oak National Academy announced today that it has released to support teaching on online safety and misogyny for pupils aged 5 to 16.
Oak will also develop additional lesson materials, to be available this autumn, to help schools deliver other areas covered by the new RSHE guidance.
Age limit proposal not carried forward
Under the previous government, the introducing age limits for teaching certain topics.
Responding to the consultation, the DfE says it has decided not to introduce age limits on certain topics in the guidance, but that content must be age-appropriate.
“On balance, we think it is important not to restrict schools from being able to use their professional judgment over when topics should be taught for the benefit and safety of pupils,” the DfE says.
The department adds that schools should consult parents on the content and ensure that they are able to see materials used in lessons.
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT school leaders’ union, welcomed the decision not to include age limits.
“Schools already work hard to ensure that teaching is age-appropriate, and this approach gives them the vital flexibility to respond to their own community and the needs of pupils in their schools,” he said.
LGBT content
The DfE says 64 per cent of those who responded to the consultation disagreed with proposed changes to content on LGBT in the curriculum, adding that this has been taken into account.
The guidance continues to be clear that all pupils should learn about the Equality Act and protected characteristics, such as sexuality and gender reassignment, the DfE says.
The revised content encourages primary schools to include same-sex parents in teaching about families. At secondary schools, LGBT content should be integrated into RSHE.
The DfE is set to publish specific guidance on gender questioning children this summer, but in the meantime the updated RSHE guidance states that pupils should be taught about biological sex and gender reassignment, and that gender reassignment is a protected characteristic that should not be discriminated against.
It adds “schools should be mindful that beyond the facts and the law about biological sex and gender reassignment, there is significant debate and they should be careful not to endorse any particular view or teach it as fact.”
Sexual harassment and sexual violence
The DfE says it has strengthened content on sexual harassment and sexual violence “on the basis of evidence about the harms that young people are exposed to or at risk of”.
Secondary school students should learn what constitutes these, that sexual harassment and violence are unacceptable, and it is never the fault of the person experiencing it, the guidance states.
The draft proposals in the consultation included new content on stalking, revenge porn and upskirting, as well as more content on financial sexual exploitation, strangulation and suffocation.
The DfE says additional content recognises that sexual violence is often gendered, but “that schools should not treat boys as the problem and should recognise that they, too, can be victims of sexual violence”.
Openness with parents
The draft consultation had said that parents should be able to see content their children were being taught, and that schools should not agree to any contractual restrictions on showing parents this content.
The revised guidance states that “schools must consult parents when developing and reviewing their RSE policies”, and says schools should show parents a representative sample of resources.
Parents cannot veto curriculum content, but schools should “respond positively” to requests to see material.
The revised guidance also retains the requirement not to agree to any contractual restrictions on showing content, which the guidance states would be “void and unenforceable”.
Mental health
As part of teaching on health and wellbeing, pupils should understand that “worrying and feeling down are normal, affect everyone at different times, and are not in themselves a sign of a mental health condition”, the guidance says.
The DfE says it wants to clarify that these may not be signs of mental health problems if transient but they may be if persistent and severe.
Information has also been added to the primary curriculum on building resilience, coping and emotional regulation.
Suicide prevention training
The DfE says it has retained content on suicide prevention, but made some further amendments to the wording so that it is clear schools should consider how to safely address this by consulting mental health professionals and putting in place evidence-based training for staff first.
Mr Whiteman said the NAHT is concerned this has not been accompanied by a commitment to fund training for staff.
Concerns over implementation
The DfE says it is “considering how best to support teachers to deliver the content” before it becomes statutory in September 2026.
Mr Whiteman said the government’s curriculum and assessment review, due to report in the autumn, must address the fact that the guidance adds new content without more curriculum time.
Mr Baggaley said the PSHE Association will be creating guidance, training and resources to support members implementing these requirements.
Other additions
The new guidance also includes new content on loneliness; gambling; antimicrobial resistance; healthy behaviour during pregnancy; personal safety on roads, railways and in water; vaping; menstrual and gynaecological health; polycystic ovary syndrome; heavy menstrual bleeding; parenting; brain development; virginity testing; and bereavement.
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