Parents of teenage girls at a boarding school are worried that an 18-year-old transwoman is sharing the same boarding house as their daughters, MPs heard on Tuesday.
Caroline Johnson, MP for Sleaford and North Hykeham, said she has been contacted by parents in the past week who are “concerned” about the situation at the independent school, which was not named.
Speaking at the education select committee, Will Quince, Minister for Children and Families said that as a father of two daughters he also “probably wouldn’t be overly happy with the situation” and described the issue as “a minefield.”
He said schools need to use their common sense, and that the duty to protect and safeguard children should overwrite anything else.
Pressed by committee chair Robert Halfon on what he meant by “anything else”, Mr Quinn said: “As in the number one priority of any school and anyone in society has got to be the protection and safeguarding of children above anything else. I think in my view that’s a reasonable position for anyone to take.”
Dr Johnson called for government guidance for schools to help them address the rising number of children who identify as transgender.
She said: “The number of children who identify as transgender is increasing and schools need to strike a balance of ensuring these children can be cared for properly and that their needs are properly met. They also need to balance this with the needs of the wider school population.
“I have been contacted as a member of this committee in the last week by parents who are concerned about the presence of an 18 year old transwoman in the boarding house of their teenage daughters.
“So what guidance does the department provide to schools on managing these situations in a sensitive way that provides for the privacy dignity and wellbeing of all the students?”
Mr Quince said: “This area is a bit of a minefield if we are being honest and we are working very closely with the government equalities office to formulate our guidance in this space.”
He said this particular situation is slightly more complex because it is an independent school which is not covered by Ofsted. Instead he advised parents to speak to the headteacher, governors and the Independent Schools Inspectorate.
Responding to Dr Johnson he said: “There are two competing priorities. The first is the 2010 equalities act and the importance that all children and young people must be treated equally, and where there are protected characteristics they are recognised.
“But at the same time any school has legal obligations, a duty to safeguard and protect and promote the welfare of all children. And on the face of what you have just said, as a parent, and particularly a parent of two young girls, I probably wouldn’t be overly happy with the situation you described.”
Dr Johnson said schools do not want to get caught up in legal wrangles, and called for detailed guidance to help them navigate the “minefield.” Mr Quince said he would raise the issue with the schools minister, but added: “But at the same time you can give all the guidance in the world that sets out the legal position, but you need schools to firstly use their common sense and follow the law as it stands at the moment, and I would suggest that the duty to protect and to safeguard should probably overwrite anything else.”
