Ending violence against women and girls needs action, not words, campaigners say

Pupils aged 16-18 are one step closer to receiving compulsory consent, domestic abuse and relationships lessons – as campaigners claim a win after years of letdowns.

Big Issue Changemaker Faustine Petron has been campaigning for years to get governments to introduce compulsory Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) lessons for 16-18 year-olds.

But years of promises did not materialise. In 2023, the Conservative government said it was “considering” a recommendation by MPs on the women and equalities committee. In 2025, MP Zarah Sultana put forward an amendment which would have made the lessons law.

Now, the government has committed that the minister for skills is “exploring the most effective route” to making the lessons mandatory, as part of its recently-unveiled Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) strategy.

Read more:

• Compulsory domestic abuse lessons for over 16s could help ‘prevent misogynistic murders’, MPs told
• Young people to be taught about consent amid warnings ‘we cannot police our way out of crisis’
• The government’s plan to protect domestic abuse survivors has big gaps

“I have been campaigning on this issue since I was 21, when I began my undergraduate degree. I’m now 25 and completing a PhD, and in all that time I have never seen the government accept or agree that RSE is needed post-16,” says Petron.

“The inclusion of this commitment in the VAWG strategy therefore represents a major breakthrough.”

Patron began the campaign after her own experience of an abusive relationship – taking aim at a gap that meant students stopped getting RSE lessons after year 11, but had to stay in education for two further years.

Part of Keir Starmer’s pledge to halve violence against women and girls, the new strategy also contains a pledge that every student in England will get education on healthy relationships, and includes £20 million in safe accommodation for domestic abuse survivors.

While the plans have been hailed for their ambition, one domestic abuse charity has warned they contain “significant gaps that risk leaving victim-survivors without the protection and support they need.”

But Petron says the government could act quicker if they wanted, by backing an amendment tabled by Baroness Nicky Morgan.

“If the government is serious about its commitment in the VAWG strategy, it should accept this amendment when it comes before parliament later this year. Labour placed eliminating VAWG at the heart of its election campaign and manifesto, and I hope this commitment will be matched with action, not just words,” says Petron.

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