Primary school u-turn on mixed sex toilets

[WhereTheFuckIsTheGin]

www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/news/19576980.primary-school-forced-u-turn-gender-neutral-toilets-parent-backlash/

Apologies but I've name changed as this is my home town, am a fairly regular poster of around 9 years but thought you lot of vipers would be interested in this.

Glad to see the reaction from parents forced a u-turn, and glad to see the majority of the comments on the article.

@Jaysmith71

Why is there a separate Transgender Policy at all? This is covered under safeguarding, isn't it?

Something to do with 3rd party orgs that seem to be approaching primary schools would be my bet.

Our secondary school has just announced they are making some of the toilets gender-neutral, with a plan to move to almost all gender-neutral eventually.

I'm relieved to read of other cases where the decision has been overturned.

Thanks to this board I felt well prepared to put my thoughts down in a strongly worded email to the school, and also to speak up on the parents FB group where I am very much not in the minority!

Yes talk to other parents. I found that weren't at all interested but obviously in other schools that's not been the case!

I wouldn't go in all guns blazing. Give the office a ring/ email and say you have concerns about the toilet changes and want to discuss them with a member of staff involved in the project/ the head.

Get your questions down. Mine were voyeurism, children's comfort, sanitary facilities. If yours is relabeling traditional blocks then that's just a no no obv.

She addressed them well and in that particular situation it put my mind at rest. (I do get told off for that when I post it but at this primary school and with the way they did it I was reassured.

Anyway get your questions get your answers. Take it from there.

'although the individual in question may have the body of a boy, they are in every other respect a girl'

This is just nonsense. What other way is there to be a girl if you have a boy's body?? And surely someone reading this would go huh? I don't understand but f it's in an official document then it must be correct...

....It’s not like Asda or McDonald’s have gender-free toilets so why do the school think it’s acceptable.”

Except they pretty much do. This is why 'No one agrees with this board" they aren't aware that it is happening.

The policies are all written by The White Horse Federation which covers 32 schools thewhitehorsefederation.org.uk/our-schools Some of which are secondary schools.

The board of TWHF is very white male for a sector with many women working in it. The trustees/members has a better mix of sexes (still very white) thewhitehorsefederation.org.uk/about-our-trust/governance

This federation is where the transgender policy is coming from

So fed up of this absolute rubbish. It's good to see when there is pushback but it's exhausting all the time. And so depressing

Yep. Are we going to have to have this same bloody fight with how many schools, now? It happens every time. The school make a daft change to unisex toilets, massive parental outcry, school forced to change back. What a damn waste of everyone's time, effort and energy.

@WhereTheFuckIsTheGin waves - this is also my home town! I was pleased to see that this had made some national papers - the more light that is shone on these ridiculous moves the better.

Remember when there was a fuss in the rightwing rags about teacher training, and all the time spent on studying child development rather than the practicalities of classroom management?

Maybe now we are seeing the fruits of that campaign, with senior teachers who do not know what kids are like.

@Whitefire

....It’s not like Asda or McDonald’s have gender-free toilets so why do the school think it’s acceptable.”

Except they pretty much do. This is why 'No one agrees with this board" they aren't aware that it is happening.

Do you have a source for the claim that Asda and Mcdonalds have gender free toilets? My local Asda do not have gender free toilets for customers. There's no such thing as a gender free toilet in UK law.

How awful.

I was at an event at the weekend and the toilets were labelled “urinals” and “stalls”. The women were complaining that men feasibly had two choices, and the men were heartily relieved they did not need anything more than a wee, as if queuing at the stalls they might as well have had a sign saying “I need a poo” round their necks.

Supermarkets I know all have Ladies and Gents, and some manner of disabled toilet and/or baby changing, open to either sex.

You have to conclude that the people leading these schools are stupid. How can you read that sentence about some boys being girls apart from their bodies, and take it seriously? And what matters about changing rooms other than bodies, anyway?
The reason the human species has fucked up the earth - in some ways so intelligent, and in others so so stupid.

"although the individual in question may have the body of a boy, they are in every other respect a girl"

What other respects are those?

How has this sort of thing been allowed to get anywhere near schools?

You have to conclude that the people leading these schools are stupid.

Or they could be so overwhelmed with govt paperwork dedicated to the premise that you fatten a pig by weighing it more often, so they are relieved and delighted when a 'reputable' outside body offers to take care of something for them.

@NiceGerbil

From that schools policy page

'Organisations that exist to provide support to pupils, staff and parents
The Laurels Gender Clinic www.devonpartnership.nhs.uk
Offering ongoing support to people with Gender Identity issues through the NHS
Schools out www.Schools-out.org.uk
There are lesson plans, items about LGBT History Month (February), Transphobic bullying and info
for teachers.
The Intercom Trust www.intercomtrust.org.uk
South West charity that provides local professional community support and advocacy for LGBT and
Non-Binary people and their families, and training and consultancy on LGBT and NB issues.
Gendered Intelligence www.genderedinteligence.co.uk
A community interest company that delivers arts programmes, creative workshops, mentoring,
training and youth group sessions to Trans youth (under the age of 25).
Gender Identity Research and Education Society www.gires.org.uk
National body that examines the science around gender and Transgender individuals produces a
wide range of resources for schools and other public bodies, including a toolkit on combating
Transphobic bullying and an e-learning package.
Mermaids www.mermaidsuk.org.uk
National charity that connects and supports young Trans people and their families
LGBT Consortium www.lgbtconsortium.org.uk
A national membership organisation focusing on the development and support of LGBT groups,
projects and organisations so they can deliver direct services and campaign for individual rights.
Provide a directory of agencies across the UK
The Beaumont Society www.beaumontsociety.org.uk
National society that supports mainly M2F Trans people and their families and friends
International Lesbian and Gay Association www.ilga.org
ILGA - International Lesbian and Gay Association information on international LGB&T issues'

Why is the Beaumont Society, an organisation for crossdressing men, listed under 'Organisations that exist to provide support to pupils, staff and parents'?

I was wondering that, OldCrone.

"although the individual in question may have the body of a boy, they are in every other respect a girl"

What other respects are those?

Ladybrain. Transgender ideology is based around the idea that girls have delicate pink frilly brains which are suited to feminine pursuits like needlework and making themselves look pretty. Boys have blue manly brains which are suited to doing maths, science and sport. So a boy who likes feminine things should change with the girls so that his pink feminine brain feels happy that it is with other pink feminine brains. (Whether the girls all identify as having pink feminine brains is irrelevant because they're female so they don't count as real humans.)

Good news thank you OP. One down, how many more to go before sanity prevails?

I said that they 'pretty much do' meaning that as it stands a male could potentially use the female toilets and any challenges could be met with cries of transphobia.

Beaumont Society seem to have a section for 'transgender youth' on their site, now. Perhaps undergoing a bit of a rebrand?

Oddly, there is a section for 'MtF' but I could see nothing for 'FtM' and nothing for 'non-binary'.

Male to Female (MTF)
MTF people are assigned male at birth, but wish to present as female on either a temporary or permanent basis, depending upon the degree of their dysphoria.

'Typically, this group of the gender spectrum tend to be more visible in society, where they are often referred to as trans-women, transgender women or transwomen. Here in the Beaumont Society, we advocate that the label transgender shouldn’t be confused with that of transsexual. Although this definition is by no means universally accepted, we support parliament’s use of the term transgender, considering it as an umbrella term that includes all types of gender variant people (See 2015 Commons Select Committee report).'

I can't make head or tail of that paragraph, frankly.

Oh, beg your pardon, Beaumont DO have a section on 'FTM', it's just not in the top highlighted section of the webpage. My mistake.

www.beaumontsociety.org.uk/female-to-male.html

@TheMediumPlace nice to see a fellow Swindonian!

I actually went to the school in question many years ago (when it was separate infants and juniors) cannot imagine this rubbish would have got anywhere with those who were running the school then, mind you the sanity hadn't disappeared at that point!

I'm going to speak to Justin Tomlinson about it when I contact him about my own DC school and will try and update!

Do check out their equalities policy. It is also totally misrepresenting the Equalities Act:

sex (including transgender);

The Beaumont Soc stood out to me too. How odd. To state support for "mainly M2F" means they are openly hostile to and campaign against F2Ms, in TRA logic, doesn't it? (See LGB Alliance)