When the government announced plans to introduce compulsory relationships and sex education across all schools two years ago, this was cautiously welcomed even from within the right-wing Orthodox community. Initial proposals suggested religious sensitivities would be taken on board. But as more detail became apparent, apprehension set in.
For Jewish schools outside the Charedi sector, the new RSE policy issued by the Department for Education this week will pose no problem. The Chief Rabbi’s own guidance on how schools should treat LGBT+ pupils, published last year, showed the central Orthodox community was already ahead of the game.
But making RSE part of the statutory curriculum will be a challenge for those who think any discussion about sexuality should be the prerogative of parents, not teachers.
Strictly Orthodox leaders have been especially keen to ensure their schools would not be forced to teach about same-sex relationships.
Chinuch UK, one of the Charedi groups busy lobbying over the past year, believes — on the basis of talks with the DfE — it has mitigated the effect of the new policy on faith schools.
According to Chinuch UK, secondary schools will be able to make LGBT issues part of sex, rather than relationships, education — which would be significant because there is a possible opt-out for children from sex education, but not relationships education.
So, while a school will have to cover LGBT awareness as part of its sex education teaching policy, in practice the whole pupil body could effectively opt out of sex education.
It is by no means clear, however, whether the education authorities would buy this. When I put it to the DfE, a spokesman emphasised the RSE guidance states that by the end of secondary school pupils should know, for example, “how stereotypes, in particular stereotypes based on sex, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation or disability, can cause damage”.
It is also worth noting that the draft legislation published this week specifies that RSE should ensure pupils learn about “marriage and civil partnerships”. It is true that civil partnerships now extend to heterosexual couples (thanks to the efforts of a Jewish couple, Charles Keidan and Rebecca Steinfeld, who took their case to the Supreme Court) but these were introduced in order to recognise same-sex relationships.
A Charedi school wishing to avoid LGBT topics might argue that sexual orientation was an “appropriate” topic only for children older than 16 — and in many such schools, pupils have left by that age. But the DfE - and Ofsted - would have to be convinced this is a legitimate position.
Alternatively, conservative religious groups could try to amend the guidance in Parliament by securing a greater freedom of opt-out.
Some of the small print may yet be rewritten. During a parliamentary debate on Monday, several MPs, including Ivan Lewis of Bury South, called for greater clarity on the distinction between relationships education and sex education, and on the areas where parents could exercise opt-out.
Because if the DfE leaves room for interpretation, Ofsted will fill it — and the inspectorate has hardly endeared itself to Strictly Orthodox schools over the past few years.
