We have created this briefing for PSHE leads and teachers who are beginning to teach about pornography and its potential harms to young people, or those who are reviewing their existing PSHE education curriculum content given the new emphasis on this topic in the updated 2025 statutory RSHE guidance.
Building on research into the potential impact of pornography on young people, we outline how to effectively address issues relating to pornography through the PSHE curriculum, including:
This will help you address the new statutory requirement for secondary schools to teach that 'sexually explicit material, e.g. pornography, presents a distorted picture of sexual behaviours, can damage the way people see themselves in relation to others and negatively affect how they behave towards sexual partners' as part of statutory Relationships and Sex Education at secondary.
We also explore the key role primary educators play in laying the foundations for secondary teaching by covering personal safety, respect in different types of relationships and media and digital literacy.
Also included: a research briefing for educators, written by Dr Elly Hanson. This briefing will provide an overview of key research into the potential impact and harms of pornography.
