Overcoming the ignorance of basic sex education
Intended for healthcare professionals
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Overcoming the ignorance of basic sex education

Lucy Emmerson Co-ordinator of the Sex Education Forum, National Children’s Bureau, London

Are schools doing enough to prepare children for adulthood?

Another academic year is underway, and schools in England can again choose whether or not to teach sex and relationships education (SRE). The evidence in favour of making SRE a requirement in all schools is stacked higher than ever. One girl in four starts her period before she has learned about it, and 38% of boys do not learn anything about wet dreams before they experience them (Sex Education Forum (SEF) 2016a), which shows that even biological aspects of SRE are falling short.

Nursing Children and Young People. 28, 8, 13-13. doi: 10.7748/ncyp.28.8.13.s15

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