Supporting transgender pupils in schools: guidance for education authorities and schools – revised

A whole-school approach

In this section:

• Staff learning and confidence
• Policies and procedures
• The learning environment: trans-inclusion and visibility
• Responding to concerns
• Involving young people

This section considers a whole-school approach to supporting transgender young people and creating a transgender-inclusive environment.

Whatever a school chooses to do, it should make it clear to young people, staff and the wider learning community that it is an inclusive environment for everyone, including transgender people.

Staff learning and confidence

School staff have a key role in creating an inclusive learning environment.

No one expects all staff to be experts in transgender inclusion. However, all staff are expected to actively ensure that all young people including those who are transgender are accepted, respected and supported. GTC Scotland guidelines specify that all teachers should treat all young people with respect and provide the best learning environment they can (see page 10).

Many teachers have already received training in transgender inclusion and are actively supporting transgender young people across the country. Details of the support which organisations can provide to individual schools on supporting transgender young people and LGBT awareness and inclusion is provided in the Additional Resources section. It may also be useful to ask the local authority to provide joint training for all schools in the area.

Policies and procedures

School policies and procedures help to make the school's approach to supporting transgender young people clear and consistent. They can increase confidence in your school's approach. For example, transgender young people will be able to see a commitment to making them feel supported and included.

Equality policy

An equality policy is useful both for framing your school's approach to inclusion and for sending a clear message to staff and young people that your organisation is transgender inclusive. The equality policy should:

• Make direct reference to the Equality Act 2010 and all relevant protected characteristics^[72]: disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, and pregnancy and maternity’
• Show the school's commitment to reducing inequality, improving opportunity and fostering good relations between different groups

Where possible policies should also outline unacceptable behaviour relating to each protected characteristic, including examples of transphobia, biphobia, homophobia, sexism, misogyny, racism, sectarianism, islamophobia, and so on.

Anti-bullying policy

An anti-bullying policy demonstrates that your school has taken steps to prevent and address bullying and harassment. The policy supports young people and the wider community to feel safer in school environments, and provides guidance for schools staff on how to deal with incidents. An anti-bullying policy should:

• Reflect the key messages outlined in ‘Respect for All’ Scotland's National Approach to Anti-Bullying^[73]
• Include specific content on prejudiced-based bullying (including transphobic bullying)
• Identify procedures to respond to homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying.

Scotland's anti-bullying service, respectme^[74], works with adults involved in the lives of young people to give them skills and confidence to support young people who are bullied and those who bully others. It provides practical support for schools and local authorities, including free training:

For more information on bullying go to page 13.

Environment: trans-inclusion and visibility

Research shows that LGBT young people would feel safer and more supported in education if their identities were reflected in the life of the school. Understanding equalities and diversity is also important for all learners, allowing them to appreciate and respect the diverse range of people whom they will meet and interact with in their lives.

“Talking about transgender people’s experiences so that the topic becomes more normalised and better understood, so that people have more awareness. Young people need to know more about what gay and transgender mean. They should be hearing about transgender lives and experiences.” Young Person

The curriculum

Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence is based on a set of core values, including that the curriculum must be inclusive, must be a stimulus for personal achievement and must, through broadening of experience, be an encouragement towards informed and responsible citizenship.

The Experiences and Outcomes in the curriculum are designed to allow teachers the flexibility to include different contexts and themes based on what their learners need to know, that is age and stage appropriate. It may be helpful to share this information with parents and carers. As transgender identities are discussed more and more in society, it is important the curriculum reflects that, and enables learners the opportunities to explore this topic.

In 2017, Education Scotland published guidelines on what it expects to be covered through Health and Wellbeing^[75]. It notes that learners working in Level 2 and higher should be able to 'demonstrate an understanding of diversity in sexuality and gender identity'.

Additionally, young people notice the things that schools don't mention^[76]. Excluding transgender voices, identities and topics in schools, even unintentionally, when young people already know about them, can send out a negative message.

The best approach is to ensure transgender identities and experiences are explicit within subject- specific experiences and outcomes.

“Had I known more about trans identities I would have been more comfortable around trans people who I met both in and out of school.” Young person

Posters and displays

Transgender identities should be included alongside other identities in classroom/school displays. This is to ensure transgender young people feel respected and included in their learning environment, examples are provided below.

Schools could also harness their young people's creativity, and ask them to design posters to show that:

• the school has an inclusive approach to people of all gender identities;
• everyone is treated with respect, and
• the school will challenge gender stereotypes^[77].

Role models

Highlighting positive role models, which include transgender people, as part of age and stage appropriate learning can be helpful for transgender young people. Some examples are:

• Aydian Dowling – fitness instructor and trans man. Finalist in the US Men's Health Ultimate Man contest and featured in Men's Health magazine
• Lana Wachowski and Lilly Wachowski – film-makers. Both siblings are trans women
• Jin Xing – Chinese ballerina, contemporary dancer and trans woman
• Rachael Padman – stellar evolution (formation of stars) and trans woman
• CN Lester – classical musician and non-binary^[78] person
• Juno Dawson – author (young people's fiction and non-fiction) and trans woman

The focus on these individuals should be in relation to their contribution to their field, as a stimulus for lessons.

Resources produced by Time For Inclusive Education include Icons: Who Made LGBT History^[79] and Moments: That Shaped LGBT History^[80] and may support the approach outlined above.

Responding to concerns

When dealing with concerns, whether from young people, parents or staff, the most effective approach is to communicate a consistent and accurate message. Their concerns may be based on misconceptions or misinformation, and it may be possible to reassure them.

• School staff concerns: If school staff raise concerns about an inclusive approach, the management team should make it clear that, the school has obligations to support all young people, and has a duty of care to ensure the safety, health and wellbeing of all young people, including transgender young people.
• If a teacher wants to know more about their professional responsibilities, their union, the GTCS or, where applicable, the local authority can provide this.
• Parent and carer concerns: Parents' and carers' concerns should be taken seriously. If parents or carers of another young person at the school raise a concern, it can be helpful to meet with them to discuss this further. In general, the school's response should be framed in the context of equality for all young people, while being mindful of the school's confidentiality policy.

See more information on Confidentiality and Information sharing on page 32. There is legislation on personal data and sharing information. More Information on Data Protection Law is on page 55.

Next steps can include:

• Take time to listen to their concerns
• Explain that school has an inclusive ethos and is committed to equality and inclusion
• Address any misconceptions they may have
• Identify whether any additional arrangements or actions are needed to meet the needs of all young people.

Whatever a school chooses to do, it should make it clear to young people, staff and the wider learning community that it is an inclusive environment for everyone, including transgender young people and other young people, where all are respected.

If an issue is raised, it is important to respect the rights of all young people, including transgender pupils and others, while ensuring that all legal requirements are met.

If the decision is that the rights of a young person, or a group of young people, should be restricted (i.e. they are asked to use a separate facility) that decision can only be made where the legal requirements are met. It is always preferable to seek mutual agreement from those involved to all arrangements.

Involving young people

One of the best ways to encourage inclusion is to involve young people directly and support their engagement and participation, in a way that suits the young person. It is an opportunity for them to learn and gain support; it allows them to influence the school culture; and helps the school make the right changes and improvements for their young people. Their involvement and participation needs to be relevant and focused.

Some methods which schools in Scotland have used include:

• inviting young people to participate in or lead working groups on equality and inclusion
• conducting learner-voice surveys to capture young people's views about how well the school supports LGBT inclusion, identify young people’s experiences and allow the schools to identify success and improvements. These should be anonymous
• setting up an LGBT and allies group, in school to create a safe space for LGBT young people, their friends and anyone questioning their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. The group may also be interested in leading and developing initiatives which support an inclusive ethos. School staff may wish to support young people with this.

Many schools in Scotland run extra-curricular groups to include and support young people with sexual orientation and/or gender identity.

“I was in S6 when I was introduced to a teacher who was helpful, very kind and I started talking to him and he opened up an LGBT lunch thing where I could go and be who I wanted to be.” Trans young person

Involving parents and carers

The Scottish Schools (Parental Involvement) Act 2006 provides the legal framework for the formal involvement of parents and carers in the life and work of the school and their engagement in their children’s learning. The Act^[81] is about improving parents’ involvement all aspects of school life as well as their engagement in their own child’s education and in schools more generally.

Parental involvement is about parents and teachers working together in partnership to help young people become more confident learners. All the evidence shows when parents, carers and other family members are effectively involved in their children’s education, the outcome for their children is better.

Communication between parents and carers, school staff and young people – based on positive, honest and constructive relationships are essential to supporting young people and their learning, in dealing constructively with challenges arising, and matters related to young peoples’’ relationships with others, the young people’s identity, or potentially changing identity.

It is important to recognise that some parents may be separated but should be involved in their child’s learning unless there are specific and already established reasons why this should not be the case. In the circumstances where parents are separated schools should:

• use their already established methods for ensuring communication and engagement with both parents
• recognise that parental separation may complicate matters for the young person and the school, and make appropriate arrangements to continue to engage parents and the young person. Strong relationships with parents will support positive engagement.