Please help! Gender not sex on a school 'protected characteristics' poster, just spoken to the Head!

[Vebrithien]

Good morning,

I started this thread before Christmas

www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/4684558-today-i-found-my-bravery?page=1

The overview is that my DD's primary school is displaying posters by No Outsiders, which are supposed to show the 9 protected characteristics, but shows gender, not sex.

The (male) deputy head I mentioned it to, before Christmas, has not got back to me. The posters are still there.

I summoned up my courage this morning, and spoke to the Headteacher. She seemed surprised, as I said I'd already mentioned it to one deputy head, and that I'd picked up on it due to my school expecting Ofsted, and reissuing our equality training.

The Head said that it was surprising, as No Outsiders were an organisation whose specialism was equalities.

I replied that the EA2010 says sex, not gender. I also mentioned that there were some concerning resources produced by them, including an assembly where a dad wants to offer violence to children who do not accept his trans child. (I know no more than this)

The Head is going to talk to her other deputy head, whose responsibility this is, and to try to put us in contact.

Where do I do from here?

Can any one help me with evidence? What particularly is dodgy about No Outsiders?

Is there anything that states that schools mustn't misrepresent the EA?

Is there any DofE (or whatever it's called now) guidance for schools on the resources they used or how they represent the EA?

And, how should I go about finding out if the school uses other No Outsiders resources?

Please help, I want as much evidence as I can.

Still shaking with adrenaline from speaking to the Head!

Safe Schools Alliance have replied already, below is their message. Need to think about how I word my reply to the school, and then move onto a complaint. My MP is fully TWAW, and has written to me to dismiss my concerns about the GRR and men in women's prisons.

Hi Veb,

We too are horrified by this response, both from the school and No Outsiders.

He knows he is causing grave offence with these posters - he has previously blocked both ourselves and others on twitter for pointing this out.

He clearly knows that this is a contentious political issue from his response.

If you feel able we would suggest making a formal complaint safeschoolsallianceuk.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/How-to-complain-to-your-childs-school.pdf and also writing to DfE and Ofsted setting out your concerns. We would also suggest raising this with your MP.

We are enclosing a piece on no outsiders from Transgender Trend www.transgendertrend.com/no-outsiders-queering-primary-classroom/ as can be seen from the research from 2006, this is very clearly a political project.

The school do need to understand that Andrew Moffat sits very firmly on one side of a very contentious political debate. As a school they need to make their own decisions on how they are going to challenge gender stereotypes and teach about the Equality Act. These decisions must be made in the best interests of the children in their care and in collaboration with the community that they serve.

We hope that’s some help.

Kind regards

You know by the time you finally deliver your letter it's going to be a full ream of A4

Thanks for getting back to the OP. I can see from the ops post she's had an official response from you as well. Keep up the good work

This company are deeply worrying, but aren't they all!

Boiled

I would love to, but there are a few problems with this .

1. Since Covid, parents are not allowed into the school building. I've only seen them because the lovely TA who has started running the wraparound care, lets us into collect our children. Most parents will have never been allowed into the school to see it. We drop our children off to an outside classroom door. Other than wraparound collection, I've only seen into the infant school twice in three years.
2. The poster is framed and covered.
3. I'd only be able to access the infant poster, and have seen the poster in the juniors, the one time I was in there. I also don't know what they mean by the No Outsiders plaques.

It helps to know from SSA that Moffat really does know those posters would be considered wrong, so he is playing the deputy head along. She is unwise, especially as a safe guarding lead, to have allowed herself to be drawn in by him.

So as not to be deleted, I’d say he has treated her like a horse he is brushing.

Your other letter was so clear and succinct that it is a shame it has to be re written for new circumstances.

Do you think you should make a formal complaint at once, or begin by saying this is what you feel you must do?

I'm leaning towards a rewrite

1. Originalish message.
2. Link to the TT research on Moffat/No Outsiders. How them asking the question "should I replace it" suggests that they know that the poster is incorrect and misleading.
3. Reminder that schools need to be politically impartial + source.
4. Link to the SSA poster for the EA, as an example of best practice + a comment on how several schools have removed the NO poster.
5. Final comment about how important it is that we teach young children to use clear, defined language, to describe themselves and the world around them.

This is already going to be much longer, so I need to consider how to do this. Everything so far has been on my phone, I have little access to a computer outside of work.

Anyhow, what do you think?

Need to look back to find the poster who's DH/P challenged this in his school, and see if they would share their rough location/LEA with me

Sounds good

Final comment about how important it is that we teach young children to use clear, defined language, to describe themselves and the world around them.

Strong link to safeguarding here. Emphasise that to the max, there may be more on SSAUK in other sections. As dsl this person should be on the ball.

I know several people who have been “peaked” over the last few weeks.

Any head teacher worth his or her status and salary will absolutely have to get on top of the issue asap - otherwise they’re not fit to have the responsibility their job confers on them. The safeguarding aspects have now been made so clear.

There should be zero gender ideology in schools. ZERO.

I don't know whether the updated response to the petition about "Update the Equality Act to make clear the characteristic sex" is of any use as it emphasis the current law discriminates between gender and biological sex. I can't decide if the response would be helpful to the Dh or not though.

It mentions the EHRC too; again I don't know if there's anything there that would be useful to quote?

The key issue here is that it's nit flagged as a specific safeguarding consideration in KCSIE. Though the law does specify separate changing rooms from age 8 I believe. That's based on sex.

The Dh needs it all spelling out

Good luck op, hope you get some good input from Sex Matters and SSA. The response from No Outsiders is utter nonsense and proves that they just write what they feel like on their resources for schools rather than adhere to the law. It’s not up to them to replace sex with gender in legislation, and to do it because it works better with gender reassignment proves that they’re changing it to affirm gender ideology with no thought for the actual protected characteristic of sex and why it is present in law.

I used to be a clerk to governors / Heads PA in a massive secondary in London. My kids’ primary school asked parents to check out their new website back in 2019 and I noticed they had some statements about inclusion with some odd new ‘protected characteristics’ and some actual ones missing so decided to have a look at their policies. They had swopped sex for gender (of course) and added gender identity, immigration status and affluence/poverty, not just on the website as statements but also in their published equality policy.

I sent an email to the school office which was forwarded to the Head immediately who replied within minutes that she’d look into it. I never got a further response but the statements on the website were changed and the policy was updated at the next committee. Wish you had had a similar response.

Good luck op, next step contact governors/chair of governors/clerk to governing body, equality/inclusion statements and policy will be assigned to a certain committee which will also have a chair. Even if the actual equality policy is properly worded they’re not upholding equality and inclusion by displaying posters that leave out one protected characteristic. Hopefully, they’ll be more helpful.

Oh dear!

Dropped DD at school, the DepHead was at the normal playground exit I use.

So I went out a different exit. Daren't speak to her in person today, I'll lose my rag.

Tells self it isn't cowardice, it's strategy?

I'm not surprised; I'd feel the same. You shouldn't have to be put in this situation.

I've tagged you on another thread; I think you can bash AM over the head with KCSIE with the specific parts relating to the EA. He wrote all his stuff way before the latest KCSIE.

If schools are now teaching the EA in order to address the parts in KCSIE where they're trying to reduce bullying and increase inclusion of anyone with a protected characteristic, they must include sex.

From what I understand of NO, that's its main aim. And I like some of the books they use for things like disability and race etc. but the other parts are actively excluding girls and could be seen to encourage approaches that reduce their rights and inclusion or even put them at risk (male y6 who says he's a girl sleeping with girls on a residential.)

As another poster has said on the thread, KCSIE was amended due to everyone's invited in sept 2022.

Sexual violence is sex based.

Some of the assaults listed in everyone's invited occurred in primary schools. We were told this in our sept safeguarding briefing.

Tells self it isn't cowardice, it's strategy?

It was wise to avoid her.

You know, I think this is one of the things that riled me so much about the message yesterday.

Since I spoke to the DepHead on the 11th January, Parliament has blocked the Scottish GRR, and the headlines this week have been about the outroar when sex and gender have been conflated (rapist in a woman's prison).

Surely, most normal people would think "oh, Veb pointed out there is a conflict between sex and gender, and it's been in the news, perhaps we'd better treat carefully?"

But no, they double down.

Have you checked all their policies on their website?

Do they use sex or gender?

My own school had used gender when they meant sex. That's explicitly spelt out as sex in KCSIE. I had to point it out.

I missed Herbert's post, fully agree that if they've not got it right at policy level they won't be able to understand it at teaching level.

They're not upholding their safeguarding duties

Vebrithien · Today 09:23

Tells self it isn't cowardice, it's strategy?

No, it was the sensible thing to do, because if you lose your temper, you'll forever be in the wrong and may be banned from the school.

A different reason, but I had a dispute with my daughter's previous head and after writing a letter of complaint to the governors, he still called her a bully and they fobbed me off. I refused to acknowledge him after that, as I knew I'd blow up.

Context (apologies for digression): a lad targeted her for months, running over to her and putting his face right up to hers, twisting his face and growling. The head saw her stick her tongue out, as he did it, called her a bully and asked the boy if they should put her in time out.

Their PHSE online policy states that they use Jigsaw resources - has anyone else heard of this?

They quote that it is informed by the EA.

One thing under "pupils should know" is:

that marriage represents a formal and

legally recognised commitment of two

people to each other which is intended to

be lifelong (Marriage in England and

Wales is available to both opposite sex

and same sex couples. The Marriage

(Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 extended

marriage to same sex couples in England

and Wales

How are they proposing to teach this, if they do not use the term sex?

😬 yikes, I'd look at the SSAUK jigsaw sections too then.

Are they just using the NO poster or are they running the full programme?

safeschoolsallianceuk.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Parents-Guide-to-external-PSHE-RSE-providers.pdf#page28

There's a bit about Jigsaw here www.transgendertrend.com/teaching-gender-ideology-schools/

Some issues, not as bad as many other providers.

Looks like it is only the No Outsiders posters and "plaques"

5. Final comment about how important it is that we teach young children to use clear, defined language, to describe themselves and the world around them.

This is very important.his unwillingness to use sex on the pretence that children will be embarrassed etc is disingenuous. He should know that young children must be told there are two types of humans. They cannot tell someone of sexual advise if they have no correct words to describe the attacker.

at the very least If when questioned an abused child describes their penised attacker as a woman it then discredits all of that child's evidence.