Trans inclusion toolkit for schools

[jeansnothappening]

I've just been reading my local authority's trans inclusion toolkit. There are lots of parts that I have issues with and I'm checking it all against Safe Schools Alliance info and planning to write to them. I found this part (see bold) particularly chilling. Seems to be saying that parents who don't affirm a child's new gender identity represent a safeguarding risk for the child:

"It is understandable that some parents and carers will struggle with their child questioning their gender identity and this may involve a long process to become more accepting of this change.
...The vast majority of parents and carers do their best to work alongside their child and can be reminded that a change of name, pronoun or dress does not necessarily mean their child will follow any particular path into the future.
...However, the duty of care for schools is with the child and educational settings need to accept that in some cases school may be the only place the child feels safe to be themselves...
If a setting has a significant concern about the child’s wellbeing and or safety in relation to how the parents or carers are managing the exploration of the child’s gender identity it may be necessary and advisable to follow safeguarding procedures

In Scotland multiple families have been reported to social services by schools for not affirming their child's gender identity. Their was an article in the times(I think) a couple of months ago

Dreadful isn't it OP? It's a very powerful tool used to silence parents from challenging things like breast binders, ability to consent, future infertility, lifelong drug usage etc for their children. Of course parents would have concerns about their child's welfare and it's sinister to try to silence that.
It's very telling how much of this ideology can only be implemented by threats, public shaming and intimidation. Misusing safeguarding principles like this is yet another example.

Thing is, a neutral observer can see that this is an over-reach.

When my daughter’s school referred us to social services last year, that was the exact wording they used- they lifted it from the Allsorts guidance. I tweeted about it here:

twitter.com/rogdmum/status/1436210726822162432?s=21

@rogdmum yes it's from the Brighton guidance, which seems to have been written by Allsorts. What happened after they referred you? (if you don't mind me asking). So sorry you've had to go through this

@jeansnothappening read the Twitter link. Tells you there what happened.

rogdmum

jeansnothappening Fortunately social services (after interviewing us and our daughter) agreed with the mental health professionals who have assessed her and felt that affirmation was not appropriate for her. Social services said they felt the school was causing division. School chose to disregard this - after being the ones to report us!- and we are now in the middle of a formal complaint to school about their whole handing of the situation.

It’s been a horrific experience and the resultant stress of the referral had a near catastrophic impact on our daughter. She is now aware that the school decided to ignore all the advice we were given and instead reduced her to a scenario in a “trans toolkit”. She’s pretty pissed off about that.

All these trans toolkits, as far as I'm aware, follow the template of the Allsorts one. It is extremely problematic.