A row over the inclusion of a gender-neutral toilet has erupted in a brand new Welsh primary school with some parents concerned it will result in the “forced sexualisation” of children. Ysgol Corn Hir, Llangefni, Anglesey only opened its doors for the first time yesterday (April 17), but has already found itself at the centre of controversy.
The £10m state-of-the-art school has replaced a same-name facility built in the 1980s that had outgrown its intake. Questions about the new toilet had been raised prior to opening after an online “sneak peek” of the new school raised a few eyebrows with a picture showing a toilet for binary, non-binary and disabled users. Some people labelled the loo sign as “ridiculous” but many others applauded the move.
Despite concerns about how the toilet will impact pupils, Anglesey Council explained the toilet is for adults only, and that pupil loos will still have separate male and female provision.
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A spokesperson told North Wales Live: “The toilets located in the new school’s main reception area are for adult visitors only. Pupil-designated toilets throughout the school are partitioned into separate male and female sections, with shared handwashing facilities.”
Nevertheless, one mum named as 'C Parry' said she was concerned for the “welfare of my child”. Writing to North Wales Live, she said she’d attended a preview day at the school earlier this month.
“Many of us were shocked to see separate trans toilets, with big trans signs, in a school for 4 to 11-year-olds,” she said. “This extreme approach by Anglesey Council will take away the innocence of our young children and amounts to a forced sexualisation of our kids by the council.”
Although the toilets are for adult users only, they are located in the school reception and some parents worry about the message it conveys. “These are children with impressionable minds,” said one woman. “We don’t need children to be thinking about stuff like this in a school environment.”
Despite this, many others saluted the efforts being made by the council to embrace all identities. As one person pointed out: “Do gender neutral or trans people not work in primary schools?” Another added: “As long as they still offer single-sex toilets, I don’t see a problem - aside from disabled people having to wait even longer for an accessible toilet.”
A non-binary female dismissed the notion that gender-neutral facilities would push the idea of gender self-identification into schools. “It’s not out there to make kids uncertain,” they said. “It’s there to let the already uncertain ones know that there is a choice and that they will be accepted no matter who they want to become.”
However the gender-neutral symbol has ruffled feathers amongst the non-binary community as it appears to depict a “half-and-half” person. The toilet sign at Ysgol Corn Hir does not use symbols designed by the council – similar signs can be bought online.
Gender-neutral toilets can be reassuring for some transgender men and women who fear discrimination in binary toilets. But Rachel Dee, president of The Beaumont Society, a self-help body for the UK’s transgender community, called on Anglesey Council to reconsider its approach.
“It is disappointing that the school has decided to do this,” she said. “It just shows the lack of thought by many people towards transgender people male or female.
“It is indicative of the general negative attitude towards the trans community generated by government and media. I hope that the school involved will have a re-think in the very near future.”
Last year the UK Government said new offices, schools, hospitals and entertainment venues will in future be expected to have separate male and female lavatories, rather than gender-neutral facilities. In a further move that has alarmed the non-binary community, this week it was reported that UK equalities secretary Kemi Badenoch is considering challenging the Equality Act to redefine gender as ‘biological sex’.
This would enable single-sex restrictions against trans people and could result in trans women being barred from single-sex spaces and events, including hospital wards and sports.
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