Children in private junior schools will no longer have to be explicitly taught about gay marriage, cohabiting couples or same-sex families, according to guidance that critics have described as a government U-turn.

The watering-down of the requirement in independent primary schools for children to be taught about alternative lifestyles, such as learning about gay and transgender people, has been greeted with alarm this weekend.

The change is contained in guidance on the standards by which independent schools are inspected, which was put out for consultation in March by the education secretary, Damian Hinds.

Alan Smithers, professor of education at Buckingham University, said: “Whether or not young children should be taught about LGBT issues and gay families in schools has been a battleground for ages.

“This