School Curriculum - A personal win

[InterestingUsernameTBC]

18 months ago I first asked for a copy of the resources my child's new secondary school would be using for teaching gender identity in PSHE. I asked one main question - What are you doing to protect the children in your care from becoming part of the growing numbers of detransitioners harmed by gender identity affirmation?

After numerous emails, a couple of phone calls and several in-person meetings I have now had confirmation of the new PSHE curriculum.

Resources are drawn heavily from Transgender Trend. It is made clear that not everyone believes in, or considers they have, a gender identity. Cis and queer will be taught as controversial terms which should not be applied to others. Gender will be taught as social and cultural expectations placed on individuals because of their sex. Gender identity will not be casually slipped into other subjects as impartiality on the subject will be impressed on all subject teachers.

And what I'm most pleased with - No child will be able to self-declare a trans identity. Any child questioning their 'gender' will be referred to safeguarding for appropriate clinical referrals to be made.

A big thank you to the posters on this board for providing information and links and giving me the confidence to challenge this and showing how important it is.

And a reminder that we can all make a difference by speaking out. I have been a lone voice on this matter with the school and it has taken ages but I have had a huge influence that will have impacted not just the 1500 pupils attending the school now but future intakes too, and all the staff who will now feel empowered to speak up, whether they are full-on gender critical or just a little concerned about things.

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Wow, well done!

I would raise a glass to you, in celebration, but it’s a little early in the day. So I am toasting your success with my mug of coffee! Well done, OP.

Well done for taking a stand. Hopefully adolescence for the teens at your school will be a little clearer and easier now.

Fantastic, thank you.

This is wonderful. Well done. And thank you.

Brilliant! 👏👏👏

Well done. I find that heartening - let us hope for sense to prevail across education.

What an incredible achievement Interesting! And to have done that all on your own. Tenacity, knowledge, and courage can pay off. 💪🥂

What a breath of fresh air! Well done

Superb result. Let's hope the school shares their policy and curriculum with others

Fantastic. Parents really need to keep banging on about this.

That's a great question to ask, I might steal it. I have been wanting to write to the school for ages but couldn't settle on what to ask specifically so I get a reply. Well done!

Lovely news👏👏

Well done. Just shows what a difference one person can make. Who knows how many children you may have saved from surgical mutilation and lifelong medication and side effects? 👏👏👏

OP that's absolutely wonderful. A huge well done.

Brilliant. I hope to be able to say similar in a few months!

Congratulations @InterestingUsernameTBC I can imagine doing it was very lonely, frustrating and hard work but it has paid off due to your tenacity. Thank you.

That is absolutely fantastic. Well done for your perseverence and courage. Amazing!

You are a hero! There will families in your area who do not need to go through the trauma of finding their teen has self-identified without the knowledge of their parents. Teenagers who now do not undergo unnecessary, invasive hormone treatment and surgery because of your work. Maybe babies born and families made because individuals were not sterilised in their late teens/early twenties.
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Well done! Congratulations!!
Don't forget to follow up to make sure that promises are fulfilled and that there is no backsliding.

Wow, well done. Your framing of your first question is a great way of challenging the ideology.

Can you say why you think was the most effective evidence/resources you gave please @InterestingUsernameTBC ?
Were there any particular ones that seemed to be taken most seriously by the school? ( Although I'm sure it was cumulative from your months of dogged effort of emails, meetings etc). Just wondering if there was one or two pieces that felt like they provided a turn around, or that you recommend people inspired her can start with?

(I think your opening question on detransitioners was a stroke of genius btw)

Thanks for all the congratulations everyone on this thread.

And thanks for the questions DameMaud.

The thing that made the most difference was finally getting to speak with the head of the PSHE curriculum. Before that it was the deputy head who was a bit a stumped when I challenged his assertion that he was male and identified as a man. I asked if he did indeed identify as a man or if he just understood that a male person is a man. And the other representative was the mental health lead who was very concerned about the 40% suicide stat peddled by Stonewall and was quite happy to talk to young people about transition being an option.

The PSHE lead was very interested in what I had to say, noted down all the resources I referred to and from subsequent conversations actually seems to have followed them up.

Things that I relied on were:

The Forstater judgement to show that non-belief in gender identity is protected. I shared my non-belief and I pointed out that they need to protect pupils who don't believe too. (Alison Bailey judgement wasn't out at this point)

Stephanie Davies-Arai being awarded British Empire Medal for services for children. Made it super easy to recommend Transgender Trend for resources.

Detrans Voices for stories from detransitioners.

Pointing out the safeguarding issue with children being encouraged to use opposite sex pronouns and the impact that has on parents/carers when risk assessing activities with friends like sleepovers or hanging out at the park. I could see this register with the deputy head, like a light switched on.

The new NHS guidelines were not available when I spoke with the school but the PSHE lead had looked that up independently. That's where his decision to not transition anyone in school came from.

And I updated him on the Mermaids scandal to warn off signposting there.

There's loads of good stuff to refer to now.