TODAY’S parents face an even tougher time than most generations when it comes to the practical education of their children.

Do they scare them to death about the dangers of predatory paedophiles and risk making them over-anxious about possible dangers and wary of even playing outside? And how much sex education – and when – should they be having?

These are tough lessons to consider and learn for any parent today and, as a grandmother now, I really don’t envy them.

These modern dilemmas were thrown into the spotlight last week with the terrifying media coverage of 15-year-old Kayleigh Haywood from Leicestershire who was groomed online for just two weeks before she was held hostage, raped and killed.

What happened to Kayleigh is a frightening modern parable of evil people manipulating today’s technology and youngsters’ developing emotions. Within 24 hours of connecting on Facebook, one of the men involved was already making sexually suggestive posts.

Grooming, especially on social media, is a parent’s nightmare and the wealth of mobile gadgets on which this can happen can create a muddling world for any adult. Even tech-savvy parents may not be able to keep up with their children’s “lives” online, and all the potential dangers that can be posed there however many times you may stress this to them.

Of course, another worrying area surrounds the whole matter of sexual abuse at home, and the abhorrent subject of parents who abuse their own children.

So, is it then very useful to give appropriate sex education to children from a very young age, to allow them to better recognise abuse in all its obvious and hidden forms?

Dr Fiona Vera-Gray, a law professor at Durham University and expert on sexual violence, stated in a national newspaper that children should have age-appropriate lessons in nursery and reception class.

Now, parents have to consider sex and relationship education being given to very young children, in order to help protect them by recognising what is and isn’t abuse. I wasn’t kidding about the tough choices parents have to make.

It’s only a personal opinion but I do think children need to have greater awareness of suitable behaviour, both from their parents and other adults and with each other. A better understanding of what forms a healthy relationship – even if they’re too young to articulate that idea – is vital to arm them against adults with their own agenda.