82306 (2024). Shanan Halbert to the Minister of Education

82306 (2024). Shanan Halbert to the Minister of Education: How is the Minister planning to manage unintended consequences against the Rainbow community and Rainbow rangitahi, if any arise, resulting from the findings of the Education Review Office’s review into the Relationship and Sexuality Education guidelines (RSE)?

Hon Erica Stanford: The guidelines are not required for schools to use and so, in many instances, the removal of the guidelines will have no impact for any students. The Education Review Office’s (ERO) recent report on relationships and sexuality education (RSE) found that there is inconsistency in how and when RSE is being taught. It also found that some rainbow students and their parents and whānau do not feel that RSE is meeting their needs. RSE will be strengthened as part of the work currently underway to update the national curriculum, and the findings from ERO’s report will help to inform this work planned for 2025. A knowledge-rich curriculum will provide more consistency in what is taught and when for each year of schooling.