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Relationships, sex and health education (RSHE): current requirements

Get a summary of the requirements to teach relationships and sex education (RSE) and health education, in place until September 2026. Find out what you’re expected to cover, and details on parents' right to withdraw their children from sex education.

Last reviewed on 18 June 2024See updates
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Contents
  1. Your school's requirements
  2. Pupils can't be withdrawn from required subjects
  3. How Ofsted will assess RSE 
  4. Your role in relationships and health education
  5. Expectations for what pupils should know
  6. Using RSE to take positive action 

The DfE has updated the statutory relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) guidance:

  • You must follow the new guidance from September 2026, but you can begin implementing it earlier if you wish (this is laid out on page 4 of the DfE's consultation outcome, and was confirmed to us by a DfE representative)
  • The old RSHE guidance is still in force, and you can choose to follow it until 31 August 2026

This article sets out the requirements of the current guidance still in place. Find out the requirements of the new guidance in our other article.

You can see a summary of the headline changes to the guidance here.

Your school's requirements

All schools with a primary phase (including all-through and middle schools) need to provide:

  • Relationships education
  • Health education

This is set out in the DfE's statutory guidance. 

Sex education is not compulsory

It is down to your trust or school to decide whether