Giving voice to student consent through parent survey

This was sparked by a petition by former Sydney student Chanel Contos, which led to thousands of young people sharing their stories of witnessing or experiencing, sexual harassment, abuse and violence amongst young people.

In response to the voices of young people, the heads of the three education sectors signed a Statement of Intent. In this Statement, the NSW Department of Education committed to a number of actions - including partnering with parents and carers to improve consent education.

In NSW Public Schools students learn about consent and how things like pressure from others, drinking alcohol or taking drugs can change the decisions that people make.

They also learn how to solve problems and how to act online.

In high school, learning about consent changes to include sexual consent as students look at the types of relationships they might have during their life.

There is now an opportunity for parents and carers to have their say by completing a short survey.

This anonymous survey is available in 10 languages other than English and will take less than 10 minutes to complete.

It is part of a collaboration between the NSW Department of Education and the Federation of Parents and Citizens Associations of NSW (P&C) to strengthen students' understanding of consent and prevent sexual violence among young people.

The results will be shared through NSW Department of Education and P&C websites.

They will help the Department plan how we can better support consent education at school and at home, and understand the kinds of resources parents and carers would find helpful in having important conversations with their children.

Visit the Department's webpage for frequently asked questions (FAQs) and to find out more about the Statement of Intent or how consent education is taught in NSW Public Schools today.

All families including Aboriginal parents, carers and communities are encouraged to participate.

Take the survey here