Email help

[SarahTancredi]

I have just discovered my childs school has a certain organisation as a contact on their website so I am spending today writing an email explaining why it should be removed.

Any suggestions of info I should include ( I have some thanks to you all) but it doesnt hurt to make sure I haven't forgotten anything.

Can someone also please confirm if I am correct in thinking that children cannot change their birth certificates r official documentation so are still legally their birth sex?

Tia

You're correct. Children cannot get GRCs so cannot legally change sex

Thank you!

They can however acquire the protected characteristic of gender reassignment that means schools should refer to them as chosen name and sex. They haven’t legally changed sex but should be treated as if they have (but access to toilets and changing rooms of the opposite sex isn’t a legal right).

The protected characteristic of gender reassignment means treating them no worse than others of their sex. Which for these children, means birth sex not target gender. They should be protected from bullying & etc.

Brilliant. That's really helpful thanks!!!

Hi Sarah

I checked mine last week and they also have the same including a certain company currently beloved by Starbucks

I also want to do an email this week and had some advice from Safe Schools Alliance (namely stuck to facts and avoid direct criticism of them).

Can I ask if you could either let us see your wording or would you mind PM me a copy so I can see how you've expressed it? Your past posts on this entire subject have been very clear and articulate so I'm sure your email would be too.

Hi langs

Well ha I'm.mot that great on emails.

It's going to be difficult to not appear to be too critical when the issues around them.are very much things they have said in the public eye. Such as weaponising suicide and pushing for affirmation only even if means advising teachers to not tell.parents..

Would it be too.much to include screen shots?

I think screenshots would be helpful actually.

Phew.i have some that I was planning on attaching

Are we not able to name the organisation now or why the cloak & dagger?

Can you link to Janice Turner's great article at the weekend?

My school is in the back of beyond & hopefully protected by our backwardness but still watching with interest. Good luck OP

Ok so the links worked. However the pictures dont come up. How do I sort that?

They can however acquire the protected characteristic of gender reassignment that means schools should refer to them as chosen name and sex.

This should only be done after discussion with parents. GIDS recommend caution around changing a child's name and referring to them as the opposite sex:

"The decision to move to a full social transition (e.g. changing the child’s gender identity in school) requires careful thought and preparation, and needs to be done in a way that does not limit options for further exploration by the child."

“It is worth thinking what it might mean, subjectively, for a young child to be seen and known in a particular gender role, while still managing the fact that their body does not match their experience of themselves. We hear from families that socially transitioned children often experience great distress at any mention of the physical body. This can cause problems later, when there needs to be a full discussion of potential physical interventions and what they mean for the young person’s body.”

gids.nhs.uk/parents-and-carers

Conflicting advice then, OldCrone, transgendertrend advise that not referring to chosen name and pronouns would be discrimination as other pupils can choose a preferred name.

I’ve heard of this being done without parental consent.

transgendertrend advise that not referring to chosen name and pronouns would be discrimination as other pupils can choose a preferred name.

I’ve heard of this being done without parental consent.

That's interesting. I'll have to have another read of their guidance. As for names, informally a child should have the right to choose the name they are known by, but in terms of changing the name for 'official' purposes, such as on the school register, I think this would need the parents to be involved. There is a parent on here who said her child's name was changed at school without her knowledge or consent, although her other child who was also a pupil there was made aware. Her child was living as 'trans' at school, and this hadn't been discussed with her at all. I think she eventually got an apology from the school about their mishandling of this.

The parts I quoted from GIDS are about 'young children'. I'm not sure what age group this means, perhaps primary school age. They are expressing some caution about a very young child who might think that if they wish for it enough, and everyone supports them, that they will magically change sex. Everyone acknowledging that they have changed sex already (by using opposite sex pronouns) can lead to problems for the child if they change their mind.

Have a look at the Safe Schools Alliance, they have lots of good info and some template letters x

Well it took hours as I'm used to writing emails on the phone and adding the screen shots and re sizing everything was almost beyond my capabilities.

However email is now sent I will update if there is a reply. Lucky it took me so long actually, as more evidence to submit was gathered thanks to MN.

I dont see how they can read it and still feel it's a good idea to link.

I've just done the same today, after finding out my daughters school is now a Stonewall champion. I used a few different templates from Safe School Alliance.

I hope you get a favourable response OP, I'm worried the Head will just instantly label be a hompphobic bigot despite not once mentioning any concerns about the LGB education (as this genuinely doesn't bother me at all). It's just the ridiculous lies spouted by Stonewall, Mermaids etc that have me so worried.

Thank you.

I hope you do too.

I've included some very dubious tweets and screenshots. There is something very seriously wrong if they can look at it and think all is good.

I really wanted to go after stonewall as well however I figured trying to do 2 might be a bit ambitious and given the history of some undeniably good work is still carrying them through I need to make sure that when I email I have undeniable proof .

Well I got a response....

Asking who my child was as they couldn't find me on the system. (I used an alternate email address)

I'm not sure this is a good thing or not.

I mean surely they could either read email, agree and remove the link.

Read and ignore and leave it up.

So why do they need to know who I am?

Because you could be just some random troublemaker rather than a concerned parent.

parents can be trouble makers too though cant they.

Proving I had a kid there only means she comes in for stick which obviously I dont want.

I didn't expect a response . More for them to just look at the information presented, maybe look onto it themselves then decide whether or not to remove the link.

To be fair, the head of safeguarding, well that's their job anyway isnt it. To look into this stuff before they send kids in whatever direction?

I would have thought they would he more concerned someones had to do their job for them rather than determining whether information already public and accessible comes from a parent or someone else.

Yes but parents require a considered response, troublemakers targeting schools don’t.

If it’s the group I’m thinking of, remember the Lottery reviewed them and still gave them funding.

Well I dont need a response tbh really. I just want them to consider the info.

Hopefully they spent a few mins on Google themselves.

We all know the response would be the usual inclusive nonsense that missed the point anyway. Teachers cant afford to say what they really think if theres even a minuscule chance the convo could end up on the local face book.page.

If it's made them.think about it even for a few mins that's something I guess

OP - I think it's reasonable for a school to know that you are a parent. I'd tell the Head of safeguarding and maybe share your concerns that your child might be targeted and get a guarantee that this will not happen?

Re the issue of naming. GIDs are absolutely right to urge caution but I read the Transgender Trend advice more as ensuring that vulnerable children are protected? They should never be at the centre of adult arguments about this. Women and men are challenging all the adults currently using children as tools to justify their own choices / fetishes but in a school if the discussions have been had and it's been agreed with parents etc, then even those adults who may not agree with it should abide by the decision.

One of the issues I raised was the advice given that sleeping and changing accommodation should be assigned based on gender identity as opposed to sex which is a massive safeguarding issue for all concerned and goes beyond names.

I referred them to the toolkit on the web site in the hope they would see the issue..

Who knows

I do realise that due to anonymity of the email that I wont get any reassurance or response. But I do feel I.have presented enough to alarm them.

What they do with that is up to them whether they know me and my dd or not safeguarding policies arent based on whether or not someone.puts their name to an email but by universally accepted rules put in place by multiple agencies so theres a chance I hope..