Children as young as five could be taught about "gender equality" as part of a Government campaign to tackle domestic violence.

Lessons on equality and domestic violence will be included in personal, social and health education, which from 2011 will be a compulsory part of the curriculum.

Before they can qualify, trainee teachers will have to learn about gender awareness and domestic violence.

Officials will produce new rules for teachers on tackling "sexist, sexual and transphobic bullying" in the classroom and schools will be marked by inspectors on how well they are teaching children about preventing violence aimed at women.

Schools minister Vernon Coaker said the lessons would be appropriate to the age group being taught.

"The appropriateness of what you do with someone who is five years old is totally different in terms of content and how you will be taught to someone who is 15 or 16," he said.

"You can teach (younger children) about not bullying people and how names can hurt people."

But campaigners said using school time for the lessons would distract from children's progress in academic subjects.

Margaret Morrissey, of the Parents Outloud campaign group said: "The Government should stop interfering with parents bringing up their children and focus on teaching children to read, write and all those things they need to get a career.

"This political correctness is turning our children into confused mini adults from the age of five to nine. This has nothing at all to do with academic learning."