School pupils allowed to change gender under new trans guidance

Pupils will be allowed to change their gender at school, according to guidance published by Bridget Phillipson.

The guidance, published on Thursday, confirms teachers must consult parents and proceed with “caution” when dealing with a child’s request to transition socially.

Sex Matters, the women’s rights campaign group, criticised the guidance, saying it would encourage “a dangerous fairy tale” and put pupils at risk.

The guidance, the publication of which was delayed, states that before allowing a child to transition socially, schools must consider any clinical advice the family has received and consult parents, unless there is a genuine safeguarding reason not to.

While pupils will have their preferred pronouns respected in the classroom, children older than eight will still have to use facilities in line with their biological sex.

Toilets, changing rooms and any overnight residential trips will remain single-sex spaces.

Social transitioning involves children living as their chosen gender without any medical intervention through measures such as changing their names, pronouns and clothes

The guidance, which addresses how to deal with gender-questioning children, says no child should be made to feel “unsafe” through mixed-sex sports, toilets, changing rooms and dormitories.

It was issued amid continued criticism of the refusal by Ms Phillipson, the Education Secretary, to publish separate guidance to businesses on single-sex spaces.

Ms Phillipson said: “Parents send their children to school and college trusting that they’ll be protected. Teachers work tirelessly to keep them safe. That’s not negotiable, and it’s not a political football.

“That’s why we’re following the evidence, including Dr Hilary Cass’s expert review, to give teachers the clarity they need to ensure the safeguarding and wellbeing of gender-questioning children and young people.

“This is about pragmatic support for teachers, reassurance for parents, and above all, the safety and wellbeing of children and young people.” 

The guidance for schools on how to deal with gender-questioning children is backed by Baroness Cass, whose review warned that children who thought they were transgender should not be rushed into treatment they could regret.

Her review, published in 2024, recommended that families be able to see a medical professional such as a child psychologist or paediatrician as quickly as possible if a primary school child wants to socially transition.

She concluded that under-25s should not be rushed into changing gender, but should receive “unhurried, holistic, therapeutic support”. She said “life-changing” decisions must be properly considered in adulthood, noting that brain maturation continues into the mid-20s.

Her review also said that children’s wellbeing and safeguarding must be at the centre of every decision and schools cannot take a one-size-fits-all approach.

Lady Cass welcomed the new schools guidance, saying it ensured “proper accountability” for teachers.

“The safety and wellbeing of the child must be at the heart of any decision when a young person is questioning their gender. Schools, parents and government share this fundamental responsibility,” she said.

“The updated guidance is practical and reflects the recommendations of my review, giving schools much-needed clarity on their legal duties so they can support children with confidence.”

However, Maya Forstater, the chief executive of Sex Matters, said allowing children to transition socially at school was encouraging “a dangerous fairy tale”.

She said: “Schools are still being left with the idea that they can facilitate ‘social transition’ – which remains undefined – and that they should negotiate this on a case-by-case basis.

“They are being encouraged to think that children have a ‘birth sex’ as well as some other concept of sex. This has no basis in law or reality, and undermines safeguarding.

“It should be clear by now that allowing children and parents to think that a child who starts their education as a girl can graduate as a boy or vice versa is a dangerous fairy tale.”

“Putting this guidance into the statutory framework makes clear that schools have the same legal duties towards all children, and it ensures that the guidance can be updated.

“The guidance gives non-negotiable red lines for every school and every child: schools must know, record and be able to refer to each child’s sex, and must not allow any child to use opposite-sex toilets, changing rooms or dormitories on school trips.”

This gives teachers confidence to support gender-questioning children

By Baroness Cass

I welcome the Government’s decision to embed this guidance within the statutory Keeping Children Safe in Education framework. This gives it real weight and accountability, whilst taking a principles-based approach that empowers teachers to make evidence-based decisions for each individual child. 

This isn’t about prescriptive directives. It’s about giving teachers the tools and confidence to navigate complex situations thoughtfully, with proper safeguards in place – including clear boundaries around mixed-sex sport, toilet facilities, sleeping arrangements on trips, and accurate record-keeping. 

Social transition is not a neutral act, and I am clear that caution is needed. We don’t yet understand the impact of socially transitioning a child at an early age, but some of the evidence suggests that it might change the trajectory of an individual’s development. 

This guidance reflects the core message of my review: that supporting gender-questioning children cannot be one-size-fits-all. Each situation requires careful consideration of the child’s wellbeing, their age, their parents’ views, any special educational needs, and how it affects others around them. 

Our children deserve better than being rushed towards life-altering decisions based on rigid ideas of what boys and girls should be like. They deserve the freedom to be themselves – and teachers deserve the clarity and support to help them do so safely. 

This marks a break with the paradox we’ve seen based on extreme positions where gender has become its own political football.

Of course, boys and girls are different, and that difference starts from infancy. Boys are more likely to play with trucks and engage in rough-and-tumble play, and girls are more likely to play with dolls. 

However, “more likely” doesn’t mean “always”, and some girls prefer football to dolls, whilst some boys enjoy dance instead of rugby. 

This is normal variation, but within the current societal anxieties about how best to support children who do not quite “fit the mould”, some parents may search the internet and be left wondering whether their child is transgender. 

Parents may react in different ways. Some may shut it down entirely, while others may think that the right approach is to socially transition their child and bring them up as the opposite gender. 

The Government’s approach is sensible. And it provides clarity to schools and teachers on the front line in managing these sensitive and important issues. They can play a important role by creating an atmosphere where gender stereotypes are challenged and all children and young people feel they belong, regardless of who they are. 

And school staff are not alone. The new guidance gives schools what they need to support a child questioning their gender. It rightly emphasises that early clinical advice and parents’ views should be sought wherever possible, particularly for younger children, to help identify what is just children trying out new ways to express themselves and when extra support is needed.

[Source: Daily Telegraph]