This supplement is a gamechanger for life after menopause
This supplement is a gamechanger for life after menopause

Edaein OConnell

Ms Moneypennies giving confidence in a world full of financial jargon
Ms Moneypennies giving confidence in a world full of financial jargon

Fiona Alston

This fish & chips burger was made for long weekends
This fish & chips burger was made for long weekends

Meg Walker

‘I wondered would I ever get my strength back’: Loretta Kennedy on recovery after a brain tumour
‘I wondered would I ever get my strength back’: Loretta Kennedy on recovery after a...

Jennifer McShane

April Guide: 14 of the best events happening this month
April Guide: 14 of the best events happening this month

Sarah Gill

April 2026: The best of streaming, TV and cinema this month
April 2026: The best of streaming, TV and cinema this month

Edaein OConnell

Three exceptional stays less than two hours from Dublin
Three exceptional stays less than two hours from Dublin

Dominique McMullan

Seven of the best restaurants in Galway
Seven of the best restaurants in Galway

Edaein OConnell

Meet the Galway craftsman capturing seaside finds in cast concrete
Meet the Galway craftsman capturing seaside finds in cast concrete

Michelle Hanley

Erris Burke: A week in my wardrobe
Erris Burke: A week in my wardrobe

Sarah Finnan

Image / Agenda / Image Writes
premium
AGENDA

‘Puberty is a gift from God’: Ireland’s new Catholic sex education is not good enough


Audio
by Lynn Enright
03rd May 2021

Read time: 7 mins

Getty

"The news about the Flourish programme highlights the fact that the provision of sex education in Irish schools is not yet good enough."

When it comes to sex education, children and teenagers don’t need prayers; they need to be able to talk about consent, gender identity, LGBTQ+ relationships and internet porn

To live in Ireland, with its contradictions and its paradoxes, is sometimes baffling. We are a young country and in young countries, inconsistencies are perhaps to be expected but still, they occasionally catch me off guard. In 2019, for example, the country voted overwhelmingly in support of free, safe, legal abortion – and yet still women are forced to travel to the UK to access abortion care if they are terminating pregnancies for medical reasons....

You have reached a premium article.

For unlimited digital access to the stories worth paying for, subscribe now to IMAGE from just €4.99 a month
Subscribe