This report provides analysis of public feedback on a draft relationships and sexuality education (RSE) framework, developed as part of The New Zealand Curriculum Refresh. The feedback covered the content of the framework as well as the positioning and delivery of RSE programmes. Feedback was gathered from 11 April to 9 May 2025 using an online survey form and from email submissions sent to the Ministry of Education.
The method used to seek feedback was a self-selected survey. Findings cannot be assumed to be generalisable to the wider population. Some interest groups organised large-scale response campaigns, sometimes providing set text for respondents to use. As one example, the survey open-ended responses included 2714 copies of identical or nearly identical text provided by around 1000 individuals, that is, about 15% of all survey respondents.
Survey respondents’ and submitters’ beliefs fell mainly into two broad groups. The largest group (just over half of survey respondents) want to see less RSE content overall or content that was introduced at later ages. Members of this group focused on a smaller range of concerns and tended to offer shorter comments. Some of the areas they commented on, such as the inclusion of “radical” content such as “gender ideology”, are not discussed in the RSE framework. The main areas this group wanted RSE to focus on more were:
- the role of parents
- family values
- the best age to introduce topics (aligned with legal requirements such as the age of consent).
The second group comprised the full range of respondent types and around one-quarter of all survey respondents. Members of this group supported comprehensive RSE, and some made supportive statements about the previous RSE guidelines. They wanted to see a wider range of RSE content that reflected students’ lives, and/or for it to be introduced at an age just before or when students were experiencing this content in their lives. The main areas this group wanted RSE to focus on more were:
- all forms of diversity (gender identities, sexualities, family types, and cultures)
- values such as inclusion, human rights, and hauora
- consent education that becomes more nuanced over time
- relationships, sexuality, safe sex, and dealing with pornography
- content that reflects students’ online lives
- puberty including menstruation (at the time some students start around age 8)
- critical thinking.