A mum is criticising "inappropriate material'' used in her child's primary school sex education lesson, which she says featured pictures of real and cartoon naked people. Emma Cormie says her nine-year-old daughter was left "anxious" and "stressed" and told her that she and her friend had seen "pictures of a naked man" at school. She says her daughter was referring to the RSHP (Relationships, Sexual Health and Parenthood) education programme, which is taught as part of the Health and Wellbeing area of the Curriculum for Excellence in Scotland.

Mrs Cormie says she was not given prior warning by the school, the identity of which she does not wish to disclose, that her daughter was about to undergo this part of the curriculum. She said: “I absolutely would have wanted a personal email to inform me that this was starting. That way I could have supported my daughter through it. I asked other parents if they knew this was starting and I found out it was put on the school blog but there was no explicit notice given.

“I got sent the official teaching materials from the RSHP. I was just utterly shocked at what I was seeing. It was far beyond any kind of expectation that I had for this subject for this age of children. My whole concern is that my daughter showed extreme anxiety after getting this programme in school. She did not want to attend school the next day.”. According to the Scottish Government the curriculum provides a “comprehensive set of learning activities” for use in early learning settings such as nurseries as well as primary and secondary schools. It covers physical changes, sexual health and sexuality, the role of the parent/carer and positive relationships. But Mrs Cormie believes some of the material is not “age-appropriate”.

She made on Facebook which she included some of the material intended for P7 pupils, aged 11 to 12, which saw hundreds of commenters agree with her. She said: "Does anyone here put their 9-11 year olds to school to learn how to have sex? 'I have major major safety concerns with this content which is part of the curriculum for p5s to p7. My daughter and her friends have felt wholly uncomfortable which which proves to me it’s absolutely not age appropriate.

''They haven’t seen the slides pictured yet and my daughter won’t. Are you happy for your child to be exposed to this? They are 5 years younger than the age of consent. I’m awaiting response from the school I want to know who has authorised this content, and on what basis. Is there any evidence that is beneficial for children of this age? 'Learning about body functions and changes is necessary, learning how to have sex at 11 years old is absolutely not in my opinion.

''The sexualisation of our children is a sickness that needs to stop. It’s diseased tentacles running through our institutions, popular culture and of course social media. 'Parents need to check through all this content to see what you feel is age appropriate for your child. 'Our kids get one childhood, innocent childhood a thing of the past. Enough is enough.". Moray Council says teachers in the region have some flexibility in what they teach but added that they are still expected to abide by national guidance. The local authority also says that explicit warning to parents is given depending on the nature of the content being taught. A spokeswoman said: “The level and form of communication may vary, but schools do make efforts to inform parents when sensitive topics are being introduced, ensuring they are aware and can engage in the process. Schools encourage parents/carers to raise any concerns they may have, ensuring that their requests are addressed in a way that aligns with both the family’s needs and the school’s educational responsibilities.”.