Talking relationships,babies and bodies with young children: the experiences of parents in England

Parents often find themselves ill-prepared for the moment at which questions of a sexual nature arise, or when children display signs of playful behaviour that can be interpreted as sexual. How these behaviours and questions are dealt with establishes the foundations on which children begin to interpret relationships, their bodies, those of others and the sexual world in which they live. In this study, the views and experiences of dealing with early childhood sexuality education, along with the ways in which communication had occurred, were collected from 110 parents in London and southern England during focus group discussions and analysed using thematic analysis. Parents who had chosen to communicate with their children reported a range of justifications as to why childhood sexuality communication was considered necessary and had, indeed, occurred. Six key themes were identified: communication prompts, the need for truth, the threat of ignorance, exposure, healthy and positive relationships and openness. Findings reveal that many parents are making strategic decisions about how to discuss relationships and sexuality with their young children. By highlighting the central trigger points for early parent-child sexuality communication, findings can be used to aid the development of relevant practice responses to support less confident parents to communicate effectively.