Victoria's major provider of religious instruction has been temporarily barred from delivering lessons at a Surf Coast primary school, following recent revelations in The Sunday Age that inappropriate ''biblezines'' were given to students.

Torquay College principal Pam Kinsman confirmed last week that the weekly 30-minute religious lessons by chaplaincy organisation Access Ministries would be suspended throughout term one, pending the outcome of an inquiry.

The Education Department has launched a formal investigation to determine how 17 copies of the magazine Refuel 2 - which intersperses New Testament text with such dating advice as ''How to attract godly girls'' - was given to students.

''The department is taking this matter very seriously,'' said a spokesperson. ''An external organisation is actively investigating a range of matters and will table a report for the department's and minister's consideration in April.''

Access Ministries has said that it did not approve of the biblezines, which include such advice as urging people who think they are gay never to act on their feelings. Dr Evonne Paddison, chief executive of the Christian organisation, said at the time that the materials were supplied by churches as a graduation gift, in place of traditional Bibles, and that students were asked to return them on the day.