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Original poster

Use the changing room you feel comfortable in

61 replies

TheRozzers · 10/09/2026 22:26

DD has just started Secondary school. On PE days the children are told to wear their PE kit to school so they don’t have to get changed.

DD had PE today. There are boys ans girls changing rooms and the teacher told them all to use the changing room they feel comfortable with.

As the girls were already in their PE kits there was no actual changing in the changing room, it was just where they gathered before the class and left their bags.

This probably isn’t a hill to die on but it irritates me that girls have to be in their PE kits all day and can’t have their own private space in order to accommodate boys who may want to access the girls changing rooms.

Should I take up with the school or leave it?

OP posts:
TediousTim · 10/09/2026 22:41

Did they mean, because everyone is already in kit there's no need to separate, just put your bags wherever?
Every school should be aware of the changing room situation.

FriedGold32 · 10/09/2026 22:40

When I was a 15 year boy and the oft discussed question of what superpower you would want came up, being invisible so you could spy on the girl's changing room was a regular answer.

Now it's school policy.

ALovelyPinkUnicorn · 10/09/2026 22:37

SmallandSpanish · 10/09/2026 22:31

Yes I would take it up with the school. I’m not sure this is even allowed these days. The equality act has specifically said sex is biological not gender. what are they teaching the kids about boundaries if they flout this?

It’s that girls have to beeee kind handmaidens, and that certain sections of males will use that mandate to ride roughshod over them. There’s a poster @SingleSexSpacesInSchools
who is well versed in this matter

Original poster
TheRozzers · 10/09/2026 22:34

PE was the last lesson today but it isn’t always. It was a male PE teacher and those were his exact words according to DD.

OP posts:
ErrolTheDragon · 10/09/2026 22:34

It may not be an issue in yr 7, but many older girls ought to be wearing proper sports bras for PE - they shouldn’t be expected to wear them all day FFS.

And IME the changing room teenage girls will ‘feel comfortable’ changing their bras in is one without teenage males in it.

Hoardasurass · 10/09/2026 22:32

Yes you need to take this up with the school as they are breaking both the law and education department rules.
Add to that they are breaking every safeguarding rule out there

SmallandSpanish · 10/09/2026 22:31

Yes I would take it up with the school. I’m not sure this is even allowed these days. The equality act has specifically said sex is biological not gender. what are they teaching the kids about boundaries if they flout this?

Soontobe60 · 10/09/2026 22:30

This absolutely Is a hill I would die on! I’d be straight in there tomorrow asking them what the hell they think they’re playing at. Do not be fobbed off - changing rooms in schools legally have to be single sex.

AimsAndObjectives · 10/09/2026 22:30

TheRozzers · 10/09/2026 22:26

DD has just started Secondary school. On PE days the children are told to wear their PE kit to school so they don’t have to get changed.

DD had PE today. There are boys ans girls changing rooms and the teacher told them all to use the changing room they feel comfortable with.

As the girls were already in their PE kits there was no actual changing in the changing room, it was just where they gathered before the class and left their bags.

This probably isn’t a hill to die on but it irritates me that girls have to be in their PE kits all day and can’t have their own private space in order to accommodate boys who may want to access the girls changing rooms.

Should I take up with the school or leave it?

There are boys ans girls changing rooms and the teacher told them all to use the changing room they feel comfortable with.

Were those the actual words used, or have you paraphrased?

parietal · 10/09/2026 22:30

is PE the last lesson of the day or do they have to spend the day in sweaty clothes after PE?

in general, I think 'wear PE kit all day for PE lessons' is a reasonable principle to save time and fuss on changing (regardless of who uses which changing rooms) but only if kids go home straight after PE to be able to change sweaty clothes.

Yewlez · 10/09/2026 22:27

There's a case in Brighton going on about this very issue. I would look that up and use it to write to the school

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