Sexual and reproductive health (S&RH) is a significant health issue for young people with concerns including unplanned pregnancies, rising rates of STIs, increasing incidence of unwanted sex and the impact of social media. Schools, as successful sites for health promotion in S&RH, is affirmed by international research.
Evidence supports teachers being best placed to impact on the sexual health and wellbeing of young people when a comprehensive, whole-school approach is taken linking curriculum and learning within the school environment to the wider school community. Despite strong government direction and excellent curriculum materials many teachers in Victoria remain reluctant to teach in this area.
Family Planning Victoria (FPV) has developed SafeLanding which is an evidence based model addressing the barriers schools face in teaching comprehensive sexuality education. The SafeLanding model and toolkit provides a practical framework for schools to deliver a whole-school learning approach to sexuality education utilising community partnerships.
The model addresses identified barriers to teaching sexuality education including a lack of leadership within schools, inadequate pre-service training, lack of access to professional development and peer support, limited frameworks to engage community input to sexuality education programs, fear of parental criticism and a lack of skills, confidence and tools to address the sensitive and complex nature of sexuality and relationships education. This paper will explore the development and implementation of SafeLanding: a new model for providing sustainable sexuality education in schools.