Secondary School mixed sex changing rooms complaint: Update from school (again)

[TangenitalContrivences]

Hello everyone - Have just received a further update from my daughters (14) secondary school (Brighton) regarding my complaint - which is at stage 2 - go to governors complaint, and my further email to the school asking them to comply with the EHRC interim guidance.

I'll copy both responses below, redacted.

I would very, very much appreciate specific feedback to include in my responses to the school, it's been people here (and elsewhere) who have helped me put together really powerful letters that have clearly rattled the school.

However - there is still a male in the female changing spaces at this school. Therefore it is mixed sex.

(link to the last discussion if you want context https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/5309038-secondary-school-complaint-about-mixed-sex-changing-rooms-update-school-response-and-request-for-help-writing-the-escalated-complaint-to-governors )

it’s not the point, how many.

pretty sure schools aren’t supposed to demonstrate breaking the law. Nor gaslight kids into thinking fantasy is reality

this is an excellent point.

If a boy is saying they are trans and has been allowed to use the girls toilets to date then a risk assessment will have been completed which is what they would show Ofsted if challenged about it....

😂I doubt it. They won't have done one that considers the sex-based rights of girls for sure.

"As if they've done a risk assessment"

Of course they have. It's one thing saying trans women are really men wanting access to female spaces to assault them and I imagine it's quite different when you have say a 12 year old boy who is well known to pastoral staff, safeguarding teams , counselling teams who the school also have a duty of care to ( as well as other pupils) .

Is it really your belief that school allow any boy / or girl who says they are trans to use whatever toilet they like out of some idealogical zealotry?

Well, at least it's not my belief that juvenile female humans are merely partially-sentient props for the validation of male humans, and not deserving of consideration, privacy, dignity and safety.

So it's OK to break the law if you're only doing it for a a couple of people who are likely (and very sadly 😞) feeling distressed and confused about all the emotional and physical changes that happen during puberty... Erm.

Perhaps Lance Armstrong should have been allowed to get away with doping because it's sad that he had cancer?

Have you missed the thread title? The school has a male child changing with the girls. Toilets would be bad enough, changing rooms is beyond atrocious.

If they had done a risk assessment it would have concluded that forcing teenage girls to take their clothes off in the presence of a teenage boy was likely to be distressing for them

Are you aware that even in a prison context, the risk assessment that was done when deciding whether to place transgender male prisoners in the female estate only focused on the transgender male prisoner and not on the female prisoners?

"Well I happen to know the school far better than you and in fact - have two kids there. So 😙"

Yet you are still guessing at the number .....

So how many are transgirls AND permitted to use the girls toilet?

Yes. It’s pretty clear from the schools response, and the fact that they use that toolkit, as do other Brighton schools.

Hopefully it's helpful for the OP 🤞

Equally hopefully it's not been lost in amongst all this sudden burst of activism that's promoting reasons to break the law!!

I know the school Walkden and I can confirm OPs estimate is spot on. This is central Brighton after all 😂

OP I will DM you.

Ofsted has enforcement powers for safeguarding failures.

The EHRC has enforcement powers for breaches of EA 2010, which this is. However individuals can't apply but it looks like organisations can. Maybe SSA or Sex Matters could apply to EHRC regarding this breach of the law in Brighton, with one school as an example?

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Bolding mine. I've looked at the strategic plan and yes, wanting to uphold rights based on sex in schools fits.

That letter is a thing of beauty. Kudos Sir!

Presumably because the school has assessed their safety is not at risk having done a risk assessment of the two trqnsgirls/ boys.

How, exactly, would they assess the risk posed by individual boys?

'Seems like a nice chap'?

'Hasn't done anything so far'?

'Gets top grades in maths?'

(Even if they did, it would be irrelevant because that wouldn't override the rights of the girls. My DP is low risk - I can vouch for him, and he has no history of any crimes of any sort - but he doesn't get to use women's loos, because he's a man.)

And girls have the right to change away from even the nicest boys. Because puberty and periods is hard enough without being forced by your school to undress in front of boys. Dignity.

What about the Muslim girls? Thrown under the bus like all the others. Stuff their religion and requirement for sex segregation.

The school does not have the right to override existing law because the adults (with a political agenda and attempt to gaslight children) think those boys are low risk. It's not their decision to make. Teachers and governors are acting WAY outside of their competence and role and should be sacked.

Ofsted has enforcement powers for safeguarding failures

Interesting. Does this apply to schools as well as residential care settings @thenoisiesttermagant ?

"The school does not have the right to override existing law because the adults"

As previously stated I don't say they do but they have misinterpreted it ( which to be fair even the Scottish government did). The school have set out their position that they will implement the full guidance and awaits it's publication

Who exactly do we expect to enforce this breach of the law in the meantime?

But why are they awaiting the guidance? The law is already clear.

If they really must have guidance because they're incapable of reading the judgment there is already interim guidance. Why are they choosing not to follow the interim guidance?

Literally yes.

that’s exactly what the Brighton Trans Inclusion Toolkit says

and every school in Brighton is a card carrying supporter of the whole thing.

Well the safeguarding lead will have done a risk assessment and unlike public toilets it's not "boys" in general but a specific boy who will have been risk assessed on their "case by case basis".

Except that when you say "this specific transgirl (boy) can use the girls' changing room", you are, in fact, saying "the girls' changing room is a mixed-sex space", aka boys in general are indeed allowed in.

Why though? The interim guidance has been published and is extremely clear. The school now KNOWS it is breaking the law and putting children at risk, knowingly ignoring safeguarding. Why?

Schools are (in my experience) followed up in some way after a safeguarding issue is raised with Ofsted. It will depend on the issue of course - it may just be phone calls for clarification or may end up with an inspection (remember the school where the teacher called girls bigoted for challenging a child claiming to be a cat?) . LA's and Trusts are often contacted following a referral to Ofsted.

Obviously having been a Stonewall champion Ofsted were politically compromised but now that they've dumped Stonewall and the adults have presumably returned to the building, picking up an evident safeguarding breach like girls being compelled to undress alongside teenage boys becomes more likely.

Who exactly do we expect to enforce this breach of the law in the meantime?

This is a very good question.

Ofsted possibly, if their special safeguarding powers cover schools.

There does seem to be a game of "accountability pinball machine" going on here. The school, the DfE, the local authority etc etc likely all using their flippers to bounce the ball between themselves.