The Education Minister has rejected calls to revoke the Government’s trans inclusion guidance for schools following a public petition that attracted over 1,000 signatures.
The petition calls for trans guidance in schools to be revoked under parents have been fully consulted.
It was set up by islander Jean Lelliott after the Children, Young People, Education and Skills department published updated guidance for schools and educational settings in March.
She believes the guidance “isn’t fit for purpose and may negatively impact our children” by giving “credibility to gender assertions by children ignorant of their meaning.”
The petition also claimed that the guidance risks sidelining parental involvement and allows unsuitable reading material into schools and libraries.
In a detailed response published yesterday, Education Minister Rob Ward defended the guidance, saying it would not be withdrawn and remains “an important resource for schools”.
However, the Minister confirmed the document will remain “subject to future review”, with the wellbeing of children and young people at its core.
Clarifying the document’s scope, Deputy Ward emphasised that the guidance is designed solely for staff use and only comes into play in the instance a child discloses thoughts around their gender identity.
“This will be a very small proportion of the school population, and most children and families will not be affected by the guidance or need to use this guidance,” he said.
Addressing the petition’s concerns over parental exclusion, the Minister called the interpretation “out of context”.
“The guidance continually foregrounds the vital role of partnership working with parents,” he said.
Several passages from the document were cited, including: “As a key principle, educational settings will want to work in close partnership with parents and carers.”
The Minister acknowledged that in “exceptional circumstances” related to safeguarding, staff might have to limit the information shared with parents – but stressed this would be rare and carefully assessed.
Parents have a right to know what actions schools are taking in support of their child, and the guidance fully supports this
deputy rob ward, education minister
Crucially, any request from a pupil for a school to facilitate social transition – such as using a different name or pronouns – would automatically trigger a structured process involving attempts to engage parents, or escalate to safeguarding services if necessary.
“We won’t be ‘outing’ [a student] to anyone on the sole basis of their identity,” said Deputy Ward.
“Parents have a right to know what actions schools are taking in support of their child, and the guidance fully supports this.”
Responding to claims that the guidance endorses the inclusion of “unsuitable” books in school libraries, the Minister stated that only three titles are recommended – and solely as professional resources for staff.
“There is no recommended reading for students contained within the guidance,” he said, calling the petition’s claim “inaccurate”.
Kaye Nicholson, CEO of equality and diversity charity Liberate, previously said that the inclusion guidance for teachers provides “practical advice on how teachers could respond to a young person who raises questions over their gender identity at school”.
“Young people under the age of 18 cannot access any medical treatments (including puberty blockers) nor surgeries,” she explained.
“For parents and carers concerned that they wouldn’t be told, as with many other topics we would encourage parents and carers to engage in educating themselves about these matters from reputable sources, and facilitating open, respectful discussions in a safe home environment.
“In fact, the guidance states that teachers are encouraged to talk to young people about whether they’ve told others, and this forms part of the holistic approach to ensuring that the young person has adequate support.”