Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) review

Role: consultant

Lead consultant: Anna Sewell, Anna Sewell Implementation Ltd

Funder: Warwickshire County Council

Dates: December 2010 - March 2011

Background

Warwickshire County Council (WCC) commissioned a review of Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) in Warwickshire secondary schools with a view to improving the future quality of delivery across the county.

What did we do?

Eight secondary school participated. At each school: a bespoke SRE audit tool was completed, the SRE lead was interviewed, a member of the senior management team was interviewed, interviews/focus groups with relevant teaching/non-teaching staff were conducted (e.g. citizenship lead, governor responsible for SRE), and focus groups with pupils were conducted (126 pupils participated across all schools).

What did we find?

All schools had an up to date SRE policy and different approaches to SRE in terms of strategic direction and integration into wider school structures and planning. There were some key issues across schools which restricted the amount of time that could be devoted to developing SRE (e.g. few had a defined job description with SRE responsibilities clearly documented, there was limited development time for teachers of SRE). The budget available for SRE was very limited. All schools measured SRE learning outcomes (knowledge-based). Consultation with pupils and parents on SRE delivery was very limited.

Impact

A full report was delivered to WCC which set out key recommendations to enhance the quality of delivery (e.g. provide example SRE job descriptions to schools, provide ready-made presentations and resources that schools can use for delivery of SRE). A workshop was subsequently held by WCC with experts in the field of youth, health, education and SRE within Warwickshire at which the findings were discussed and used to inform a strategic plan.