The Irish government has asked a regulator to draw up guidance for teaching about LGBT issues in relationships and sexuality education (RSE). The Republic of Ireland’s Education minister, Richard Bruton TD, this week announced a review of the RSE provisions in all schools.

Teaching about sex and relationships has been mandatory in Irish schools since the 1990s, but a committee in the Irish Parliament recently warned that the guidance is badly out of date and requires redrafting. In response, Mr Bruton this week wrote to the National Council on Curriculum and Assessment to ask it to draw up new guidelines.

Moninne Griffith, Executive Director of BeLonG To Youth Services, said: “We are delighted that Relationships and Sexuality Education is being reviewed to reflect the needs of young people in Ireland today, including our LGBTI+ young people. For too long information about same sex relationships, safe sex and LGBTI+ matters has been taught in just a small minority of classrooms in Ireland.

“Our young LGBTI+ people have been calling for improvements to sex education for many years now. They are frustrated with the lack of information available to them and eager to see significant improvements. With this review process, we hope that the implementation of RSE will be mandatory for all schools, and that schools will receive the encouragement and support they need to talk about sexuality and relationships. Read more via Pink News