Telegraph: Teaching union opposes schools having to tell parents if child changes gender

@Gettingmadderallthetime

I believe that parents have found it impossible to challenge schools through the courts on all this as their child, with all their vulnerabilities, would be at the centre of any challenge. Parents understandably won't expose their child to the stress of a court case. Thus schools carry on oblivious to the illegality of what they're doing, listening to fake Stonewall law with most of the other agencies still in thrall to transactivism.

As the EHRC have exposed, so much of the "legality" of applying gender reassignment to to children is as a result of the failure of the original law makers to apply safeguarding and children's rights to what was and is an adult ideology. They probably never anticipated that the random assortment of activists, paedophile adjacent groups (the Eunuch group in WPATH, the Mermaids scandal etc) would ever be able to focus this issue on children below the age of consent.

@Caaarrrl 'I'm seriously considering changing unions at this point. The NEU has the highest membership among teachers, but absolutely does not represent the views of any teachers that I know.'

Leaving and taking as many colleagues with you as you can sounds like a great idea. There was no dissenting voice at this conference by sound of it, so NEU reps are all in on this, or scared to dissent.

Was this is the union that refused to support Kevin Lister in his tribunal case? I realise his case had deficiencies other than his GC views, but no NEU member who has GC views can expect this union to stand for them if they end up in a similar situation. Leaving sounds like a good idea, especially as they plan to spend union dues campaigning against guidelines that GC teachers will have wanted to support (IANAT but this is how I understand it).

If we expect parents who have transed their children to be the most vigorous opponents of what they perceive as anti-trans changes in emphasis in schools and elsewhere, then teachers and teaching-leaders who have pushed for transing against parental wishes/without parental knowledge and without regard to safeguarding will want to double down in the same way. This is what we are perhaps seeing here?

I wonder whether this union has taken any legal advice?
Can a parents group take a union to court.

Given the lack of tracking on these kids over the last few years I'd be interested to see exactly where that of nugget of information came from that she's stating!

Remember this is just delegates at a conference. It doesn't necessarily represent what the members generally think. That said, teachers are often very captured on this issue and will have been coached in their views by the like of SWall

Think I will go and research edept. I don't agree with Unions getting involved in issues beyond teaching and have been shocked at some of the issues that the Neu have said about Gaza as well as the issues posted above. Regardless of my personal opinions on what is happening in the middle east, I don't feel my Union should be making comments on them. They need to stick to the issues specifically related to those working in Education. I do think teachers should be (as best aa they can) politically neutral.

I think most teachers join a union for protection against malicious complaints and allegations, not for political reasons.

That’s why Edapt works so well, most of the time. I joined myself when I did a bit of supply after I retired.

@Caaarrrl

Completely agree with you. They don't speak for me.

It’s so stupid, schools can’t actually keep the secret transing of kids quiet, they are constantly ‘outing’ them due to names on dinner money accounts or using the gendery-pronoun on parents evening.

Plus good luck keeping 1500 kids and their parents sworn to secrecy in the era of WhatsApp groups.

I don't know. But I'm going to investigate. It's a shame that the actions of the NEU make people outside of the profession think that we are all behind this type of thing. No one I know in teaching believes in all this rubbish that the union is spouting. I think most teachers join a union for protection against malicious complaints and allegations, not for political reasons. I bet most of them don't even pay any attention to all of and are unaware of the union's total capture by TRAs.

I agree. I only changed last year to be able to strike :-(

Edapt is a sort of “non-union” union.

A family member, considering training to be a teacher and working as a cover supervisor for experience, got very good support and help when the school treated her badly. She’s staying with Edapt into her training and beyond. It doesn’t get involved in politics.

https://www.edapt.org.uk/?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIrMyXuaythQMVkJpQBh1L6AD3EAAYASAAEgLZTfD_BwE

Me too. Are the NASUWT any better on this issue?

It’s the majority as lots of teachers swapped in order to be able to strike. I’d say it’s 85% NEU in my school.

It is the biggest union - with maybe about 60/70% of teachers as members. Most members, though, are not radicalised and most do not even vote when it comes to strike action - but do feel obliged to go out, anyway.

I’ve just looked at the website for JLU. They have a School Diversity Week coming up in June 24-28th. Some of you may be interested to know this 🫣

The NEU is the new formulation of the old NUT - and in both incarnations has always been the union of endless political agitation. During Covid they were calling for longer, harder lockdown in schools, and after Covid they've been out on strike several times, and intend to again, if they get enough votes .The plan is to disrupt the start of next year's school year with more strikes.

They've gone full on 'TRA' and also full on 'boycott Israel' etc. If I was still a teaching I'd steer well clear. There are other unions who main interest is in providing support to their members when really needed, rather than this endless radicalised politicking.

Flawed as they are, the new guidelines when they're finally published will give parents back up in challenging schools. They're unequivocal that schools should not be socially transitioning primary children. No mixed sex changing rooms / sleeping accommodation.
My guess is that Ofsted having now reverse ferreted from their Stonewall days will be forced to go into schools where transactivists are keeping secrets from parents. It's such an evident safeguarding fail. Most of these parents will not be a danger in any way to their children. Adults removing a parent's ability to protect their child by keeping such an huge secret from them should face gross misconduct charges.

I couldn’t agree with you more @ResisterRex

Part of this is reactive. You can bet that if a Labour government introduced similar guidelines urging caution, these teachers would be praising them for their common sense.

I hope the government make the guidelines law and/or there’s legal action taken against some teachers.

What percentage of teachers in the UK are members of the NEU, just out of curiosity?

As a parent, I find their stance on the outside organisation Just Like Us very concerning.

This Mail article was linked elsewhere yesterday. They say that children (presumably girls) who don't feel comfortable with boys in their changing rooms can shove off somewhere else:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13277255/Academy-trust-primary-school-teachers-breaking-law-pupils-trans-changing-rooms.html?ico=topics_pagination_desktop

It tells parents that in a scenario where their children is concerned about changing with a transgender pupil, the child who 'feels uncomfortable around the trans person' would be offered 'an alternative changing arrangement'.

The policy, which contradicts previous legal rulings which stated that gender critical views are protected by law, has now been removed by the Academy after a member of the public claimed it breached equality laws.^

Further, they claim that physical differences can be managed in PE. I'm not sure what these deluded ideologues are on:

It reportedly states that there should be 'few , if any, issues regarding participation in the sports of their true gender' when pupils are taking part in PE classes.

It also adds that any physical advantage afforded to a male pupil should 'be managed properly within the lesson context rather than by preventing young transgender people from participating'.

Pasting what I said in another thread

The fact that people who are too stupid to see the link between a catastrophic rise in misogyny and thousands of young girls trying to identify out of womanhood and the inherent sexism is an ideology that says if you like pink and make up and
being subservient you must be female are in charge of teaching in this country makes me want to scream into the void for eternity!

@MissScarletInTheBallroom 100% spot on.

This is tantamount to the NEU dismissing the basic principles of safeguarding school children. As for voting to be affiliated to Just Like Us: they don’t care who spouts ideological nonsense at children.