Child in my class is trans

[theresheis]

Looking for some advice. I'm a long time lurker and whilst I have read lots of the posts surrounding the issues of trans rights and consider myself firmly in the gender critical camp I am not fully up to speed with the current legal situation surrounding the trans debate.

I am a primary school teacher and I teach eight-year-olds. I have a boy in my class who at home is going by a girl's name, using female pronouns and wearing girl's clothes. This has not happened at all in school and he has not spoken to his peers about this. His mum spoke to me recently and said she had taken him to the GP. She is supporting him but seems to be not overly pushing it. She is a single mum and she is somebody who I would describe as vulnerable.

His mum now has another GP appointment next week without the boy. I am wondering whether the GP is likely to signpost a charity which will advocate a transition?

I would like to know where I stand as his class teacher if it comes to it am I required to call him she/her etc?

I would say that none of the staff in the school would be aware that all of these issues and broadly would support his transition.

I have told the head that I am not prepared to tell the rest of the class that he has become a girl or ever was a girl. He looked pretty shocked and said he would go away and research this issue. Where could I suggest he looks?

Sorry quite a long post! Hope I've posted in relevant section.

Some interesting & importing research, where the very staunchly misogynistic far right Trump. Bannon et al, is driving this misformation directed at equally Trans Children & Parents & those in contact with them in positions of responsibility. It´s also being used to dupe & co-op feminists...

This conflation of gender critical people with the far right is ridiculous. One only has to look at the people involved to see it does not stand up to scrutiny. Oh yes, they're all right wing, religious zealots, except for all the ones who aren't.

And no one is duping feminists. You do realise many of them, in fact many of the people posting on this thread, are scientists and academics who are more than capable of critically evaluating evidence? You are guilty of an attitude that is typical of TRAs (MRAs): assuming that because this is a site mostly used by mothers, all it's members are a bit dim and easily swayed by appeals to emotion. That couldn't be further from the truth.

Just presenting facts & reply to question & request best I can, equally debating the issues that are used to influence & misinform Teachers etc making the correct & legally correct decision in the best interests of their pupils

Teachers are professionals and should be able to read and consider a range of resources, based on their professional expertise with regards education and child development.

It's very noticeable the lengths that many adult transwomen are going to to prevent professionals considering Transgender Trend's school toolkit.

(including a carefully worded parliamentary petition)

Teachers are professionals and should be able to read and consider a range of resources, based on their professional expertise with regards education and child development.

and most importantly their working knowledge of working within Safeguarding and Child Protection frameworks.

I share the concerns of many others on here regarding the fervour with which some of the TRAA lobby and Mermaids press for the medical transitioning of prepubescent children.

Children are extraordinarily susceptible to suggestion - parents who take the 'my boy toddler liked girls' (sic) toys, therefore I'm affirming that he's a girl from now on, etc' line are (in my opinion) creating their child in the chosen image.

Professor Moore, in her talk, raises the possibility of some adults doing this because they want to lower sexual boundaries. It's worrying.

I do not agree with the deletion I've had on this thread. I did not breach the guidelines.

Being transgender is a protected characteristic. There is guidance as to what you must do under the law here assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/315587/Equality_Act_Advice_Final.pdf It also links to further guidance on dealing with transgender pupils.

The protected characteristics under the Equalities Act are:

age
disability
gender reassignment
marriage and civil partnership
pregnancy and maternity
race
religion or belief
sex
sexual orientation

Since we do not yet have self ID, it is unclear to me that in law simply saying "I feel like a woman inside" bestows upon the utterer the protected characteristic of gender reasignment, rather than actually having, or being in the process of obtaining, a GRC.

Certainly, it's unclear to me (in the absence of a test case) whose "protected status" would win out in an instance where a biologically male individual whose only concession to "living as a woman" had been announcing this to his mates on twitter were to take up a provision intended for biological women, thus depriving a woman (protected characteristic of sex) of that provision.

Or TL:DR - here we have another prime example of a plopper asserting that something is illegal when in fact it is not, with the intention of scaring us all into silence.

here we have another prime example of a plopper asserting that something is illegal when in fact it is not, with the intention of scaring us
all into silence.

Yup.

Thank you for my reinstatement MNHQ

Excellent, Fermat

Only the other day, I had to remind HR at my place that it’s sex not gender which is the protected characteristic

1. The Equality Act (EA) already protects transgender people's rights. This does not require a Gender Recognition Certificate. The GRA hasn't and won't change this. Look it up if you don't believe me. The kid's rights are protected under the EA.

1. Transgender Trend's schools pack breaks the EA.

1. Teachers are required by the Teachers' Standards to treat children with dignity and respect. This teacher isn't doing that.

1. The OP's patronising comment on the fact the parent is a single mum manages to pathologise and offend millions.

1. The Equality Act (EA) already protects transgender people's rights. This does not require a Gender Recognition Certificate. The GRA hasn't and won't change this. Look it up if you don't believe me. The kid's rights are protected under the EA.

If someone has a GRC, they should be treated as their 'acquired gender' for most purposes, but some exemptions still apply. Without a GRC, the situation is much less clear, but it would be easier to exclude someone who is transgender from single-sex services and facilities. The child would still be protected under the protected characteristic of gender reassignment - so they could not be discriminated against for being transgender. This does not mean that they have to be treated as their 'acquired gender'.

2. Transgender Trend's schools pack breaks the EA.

Can you quote what it says that 'breaks the EA'? (thought not)

No it doesn’t spanna. Did you read Fermats post? a child cannot and for goodness sake should not have the protected characteristic of gender reassignment

a child cannot and for goodness sake should not have the protected characteristic of gender reassignment

Are you sure?

(1)A person has the protected characteristic of gender reassignment if the person is proposing to undergo, is undergoing or has undergone a process (or part of a process) for the purpose of reassigning the person's sex by changing physiological or other attributes of sex.

www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/section/7

Would the 'proposing to undergo' bit not apply to a child who has told everyone that they are the opposite sex and has changed their name etc?

I think that’s really dangerous territory to be honest, oldcrone- to my mind, that’s an irrevocable act and decision that really ought to only be taken by an adult.

It was not drafted with minors in mind, so am lairy of assuming it does or should apply.

It was not drafted with minors in mind, so am lairy of assuming it does or should apply.

But does that mean that someone under 16 who is gay but underage, couldn't have the protected characteristic of sexual orientation?

spannablue to clarify I mentioned the fact that she is a single mother was because I was trying to communicate that she has very little family support.

I also described her as vulnerable for other reasons that I would not want to discuss on this forum. I was attempting to get across that school would be a critical point of support for her. To be clear - she is a vulnerable adult with wider professional involvement with the family.

I assumed this was relevant to what kind of advice and resources she would be able to access. Perhaps this wasn't clear.

I am a single parent myself and grew up in a single parent household. I do not patronise or "pathologise" single parents.

Please point to where I have demonstrated that I am acting in a way that treats any of my pupils with anything other than dignity and respect.

I care very deeply about the children in my class.

Thank you to those people who have suggested resources. I have downloaded the relevant materials and in true teacher mode have a highlighter at the ready!

it’s late for me and i’m too tired to look up the exact timeline, but it’s my belief that the ea was drafted with the assumption of the gra provision of having a gra needed to trigger the protected characteristic of gender reassignement. That was only ever for adults, because nobody thought at that time of transgender children as being a class that needed protection. The world looked very different then, and we can’t use today’s understanding of terminology as is didn’t exist.

It all Highlights the need to untangle the interplay between the ea and the gra, though, and establish in law what the difference between transgender being the protected characteristic versus gender reassignment.

it’s my belief that the ea was drafted with the assumption of the gra provision of having a gra needed to trigger the protected characteristic of gender reassignement.

That's not clear from the wording in the Act, but as you say, nobody was thinking of trans children at that time, so it may not have been considered. The 'proposing to undergo' bit is particularly vague. I remember a discussion on here a while back where someone interpreted that that could be as trivial as telling your mum or your friend.

I'm fairly sure it doesn't say anywhere that you need a GRC for that protected characteristic. In fact, I think you're protected if someone assumes you to be transgender when you're not.

No, I agree that there is a lot of scope for interpretation. It doesn’t spell out needing a GRC. For me this makes it important to have an impact assessment of the equality act in the course of any amendment to the GRA as it is liable to lead to a reinterpretation of protected characteristics in th EA

OP, you demonstrate that you are acting in a way that treats your student with a lack of dignity and respect by planning to misgender her and by undermining the process her mum is supporting her with. Who made you the expert on someone else's identity?

The resources you're proposing to use break the EA. Their approach is also playing with fire.

Regardless of what you want/believe, according to properly scientific, international, publicly funded, peer reviewed research, your plan to misgender this child is likely to increase her propensity for suicidal ideation.

If you doubt this, before you experiment with a child's mental health, do some due diligence. Get access to an academic library, and read a good range of the literature.

SophoclesTheFox

I agree, there's too much room for interpretation - the way the protected characteristic of gender reassignment is handled by the EA is not clear at all - which is why we see what is happening now in schools, changing rooms etc.

What does seem clear is that the PC of gender reassignment means that you cannot be discriminated against for being transgender, but it doesn't mean that you become legally the opposite sex. That only comes with a GRC. And even then, there are some exemptions which can apply.

The resources you're proposing to use break the EA. Their approach is also playing with fire.

I've already asked you to quote the part of the Transgender Trend material that 'breaks the EA'. Are you having trouble locating that part? Does it exist?

Can you explain what you mean by 'playing with fire'? Random scaremongering is not particularly useful.

Regardless of what you want/believe, according to properly scientific, international, publicly funded, peer reviewed research, your plan to misgender this child is likely to increase her propensity for suicidal ideation.

Source for this 'scary' statement?

If you doubt this, before you experiment with a child's mental health, do some due diligence. Get access to an academic library, and read a good range of the literature.

If you're so well-informed, perhaps you'd be so kind as to provide some links to some good articles.