On trans guidance for schools, the Government has again hobbled itself by its refusal to legislate

Dec 19, 2023 by Jill

by Henry Hill, Conservative Home:

Yesterday morning, the Times reported that the Government’s much-delayed update to guidance on how schools should handle children who identify as trans will be much more whimper than bang: “Schools ‘do not have duty’ to let children change gender identity”, reads the headline.

Basically, it will be up to individual schools to decide their own policies on such matters as whether to use a pupil’s preferred identity, or to inform their parents that they are “socially transitioning” – that is, starting to live as a different gender without any medical intervention.

Where the new guidance does get anywhere close to prescribing how the Government feels headteachers ought to handle the issue, it’s completely toothless:

“The guidance will urge schools to proceed with caution and allow pupils to identify as another gender only in limited circumstances, but this is likely to be seen as unhelpful by head teachers unless it is categoric about scenarios. Schools will be told to take particular care with younger children amid concerns that social transitioning could have a more significant impact.”

It goes on to report that: “Ministers believe that the guidance will stop some schools from taking an “affirmative” approach…”. How many is “some”? No idea.

Read here