Anger over booklet for children that advises on oral sex

Daily Telegraph ^ | June 10, 2005 | Sarah Womack, Social Affairs Correspondent

[NCjim]

Children as young as 13 are being advised on oral sex, anal sex, orgasms and being good in bed in a booklet published by the fpa, formerly the Family Planning Association.

Entitled Love, Sex and Relationships, the booklet is aimed at 13- to 16-year-olds, although the legal age of consent is 16, and is being distributed to schools and youth groups.

It comes as figures show a rise in the number of girls aged 13 to 15 getting pregnant, and a huge increase in the number of sexually transmitted diseases. Anne Weyman, the fpa's chief executive, said the booklet gave clear, impartial advice to young people who wanted more information about emotions, sexuality and relationships.

But Norman Wells, director of Family Youth Concern, the campaign group, said: "Publications like these are normalising under-age sexual activity."

The booklet advises teenagers how they can tell when they are ready to have sex and contains cartoon characters saying: "I like to touch myself" or "I like to dress up as a girl" and "Does my crotch look big in this?" In the section on oral sex, it says: "Many people enjoy it; others aren't interested. Often called a 'blow job' when done to a man and 'going down' when done to a woman."

Another section, on anal sex, says: "Many gay men never have anal sex. You can be straight, gay or bisexual. Some people enjoy it; others aren't interested."

Posing the question "How can I be good at sex?", it says: "No one is born sexually experienced and most of the fun is in learning. Talk to your partner. Ask what they like."

Miss Weyman said: "Young people are getting a huge amount of information about sex all the time. They need accurate information before they become sexually active.

"This booklet does not encourage them [to become sexually active]. Quite the reverse. It says that many people wait until they are over 16. It talks about not being pressured. It says knowing about sex doesn't mean you have to do it.

"Young people read magazines that are for people much older than them. They do not live in a vacuum.

"Thirteen-year-olds don't have sex, generally speaking, but they do need information for when they are older."

The booklet includes information about condoms and where to obtain the emergency contraception pill.

The problem of teenage pregnancy was highlighted last month by the case of three sisters in Derby who became pregnant at the ages of 12, 14 and 16. In Lambeth, south London, one in 10 schoolgirls gets pregnant every year.

Beverley Hughes, the children's minister, said she was virtually powerless in trying to solve the problem and said parents should discuss sex more openly with their children.

A spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills said: "It is up to teachers to use their professional judgment to decide which resources best support the school's sex and relationship education programme.

"Our guidance makes clear that only suitable materials that are age-appropriate should be used."

[concordKIWI]

Too much information, too early