Health and Citizenship Education Committee (CESC) in France

The Health and Citizenship Education Committee involves all members of the educational community and the local partners of the primary or secondary school (local government, police, justice and associations). Chaired by the school head, the committee is active in citizenship education, drawing up the plan for the prevention of violence, proposing initiatives to support parents in difficult situations and combating social exclusion, defining a health and sex education programme aimed at promoting safe behaviour. The CESC brings together a variety of measures, with the aim of preparing pupils to act and to live together, with respect for equality between women and men and to make choices and exercise their citizenship rights.

The Health and Citizenship Education Committee (CESC) is a body for reflection, observation and monitoring who designs, implements and evaluates an educational plan with regard to prevention, and to citizenship and health education, which is integrated into a primary or secondary school action plan.
This holistic, unifying process brings more consistency and clarity to the establishment's policy. It achieves this by reinforcing the educational role of every primary school, lower and upper secondary schools and by connecting with teaching and with the various extensions of school life, including: the Secondary Student Council (CVC); High school Student Council (CVL); sports associations; and, the "maison des lycéens" (high school social, cultural and sports association), etc. In this way, the CESC aim to better prepare pupils to life through society education, while helping them to develop responsible attitudes and behaviours towards themselves, others and the environment.
It is a body that unifies processes and various types of action. It coordinates their individual and complementary contributions, thus creating an interdisciplinary approach to citizenship. Further, it paves the way for the implementation of these processes and for the creation of the necessary partnerships.
The CESC brings together a variety of measures, with the aim of preparing pupils to act and to live together, with respect for equality between women and men and to make choices and exercise their citizenship rights.
The CESC:

• 1. Contributes to citizenship education;
• 2. Prepares a prevention plan against violence;
• 3. Suggests actions to help parents in difficulty and to combat exclusion; and,
• 4. Establishes a health and sex education and prevention of risky behaviours programme.

The areas concerned
Within a continuous educational journey from primary to secondary school, the following areas are covered, in a holistic approach:
Citizenship education programme and civic education programmes;
Prevention of violence (bodily harm, or violations of human dignity whether related to child protection, racist or anti-Semitic acts, sexist or homophobic behaviour, sexual violence, or initiation practices);
Health education, including reference to responsible behaviour in the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, including AIDS;
Sex and relationship education;
Prevention of high-risk behaviours, including addictive behaviours (combating smoking and alcohol abuse);
First aid training;
Education to safety and risk;
Road safety education;
Sustainable development education.

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