Lonely road: Why school is hell for transgender pupils
According to figures provided by the Gender Identity Research and Education Service (Gires), one in 1,000 school children suffer from gender dysphoria – roughly one pupil for every high school – though not all of them will seek gender reassignment surgery.
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More seriously, around half of all transgender teenagers will make a suicide attempt before they turn 20. In February, 10-year-old Cameron McWilliams was found hanged in Doncaster. The inquest revealed he had expressed a desire to be a girl.
In this highly volatile atmosphere, schools must somehow act in the best interests of their most vulnerable pupils. As Bernard Reed, trustee of Gires, says: “Schools think it is so rare that they don’t take it seriously, but when a trans child comes into a school, the effect can be seismic.”
The Home Office acknowledges the problem of transphobic bullying and has commissioned Gires to produce information for schools explaining gender variance, its medical, legal and equality aspects, which will be displayed in the Crime Reduction section of the Home Office website.
Press for Change has just produced a “toolkit” for further education and sixth form colleges, consisting of 21 five-minute lessons aimed at leaders of education institutions. It was commissioned by the Learning and Education Council, the trade union Unison and the Centre for Excellence in Leadership.
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Pushing for reform of UK medical protocols is a major focus for Press For Change, but the organisation is also disturbed by the lack of protection for trans pupils in school. Goods and services regulations just introduced by the Government’s Equalities Office do not address transphobic harassment in schools as they specifically exclude education.
