Call for compulsory sex education

Sex and relationships education should be compulsory in secondary schools as ministers are failing to take action to protect children and women, a damning report has claimed.

The report from the End Violence Against Women (EVAW) coalition said while there was good work in some areas of government, in other areas its pledge to prevent abuse against women and girls was "virtually meaningless".

EVAW coalition, whose members include Amnesty International and Refuge, also commissioned a poll that found nearly nine out of 10 UK adults wanted "sexual consent and respectful relationships" to be taught in secondary schools.

The report comes in the wake of disturbing cases involving abuse against women and girls, including disgraced broadcasters Jimmy Savile and Stuart Hall, as well as grooming in Rochdale and Oxford and the murder of Tia Sharp.

EVAW coalition co-chair Professor Liz Kelly said: "Following the Savile and Rochdale scandals, we are in a watershed moment for our understanding of the scale of abuse of women and girls.

"Our poll shows that, when asked, a large majority of people in the UK want schools to provide sex and relationships education that deals with consent and respect. The Government has indicated resistance to this - it needs to catch up with public opinion."

Professor Kelly called on the Government to commit to making sex and relationships education a statutory obligation in all schools.

The EVAW coalition report, entitled Deeds or Words?, found the Department for Education was failing to take action to protect children and shape positive attitudes to women. It said experts warned that failings in both the Department for Education and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport were undermining work in other departments, including the Home Office, Department for International Development and Crown Prosecution Service.

The report also found that despite concerns about use of pornography and sexual offending by boys and young men there was no obligation for schools to teach young people about sexual consent and respectful relationships.

A Department for Education spokesman said: "Sex and relationship education is already compulsory in maintained secondary schools. Our guidance explicitly states that children must learn about 'how to recognise and avoid exploitation and abuse'. Teachers must also cover the concept of sexual consent and teach pupils to respect themselves and others. We supported the thisisabuse campaign and made it accessible to teachers. We are also working hard to tackle child sexual exploitation, sexual bullying and the sexualisation of childhood."