Relationships Education is now compulsory in all primary schools in England and Relationships and Sex Education is compulsory in all secondary schools, as well as Health Education which is compulsory in all state-funded schools.

This latest DFE document - 'Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education' contains information on what schools should do and sets out the legal duties with which schools must comply when teaching Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education.

The SRE policy is the starting point for good SRE in schools and a key requirement for gaining Healthy Schools status . (Core theme criteria 1.5)

However having a policy is not enough on its own. It needs to be up to date, well known to the school community and in practice.

Having a policy will help to:

be clear about what you are doing and why
make clear links to your school's values
provide a means of communicating to the wider school community
provide a secure framework for staff to work in
ensure inclusion, and
provide something against which you can monitor and evaluate your SRE

SRE Policy Guidance - A step-by-step guide to updating your school sex and relationships education policy - This Sex Education Forum guidance is designed to support schools in reviewing and updating their
policy on sex and relationships education (SRE). It explains the current requirements for SRE based on legislation and provides a step-by-step process for updating a primary or secondary school SRE
policy.