Attorney General Suella Braverman stated that schools are not legally required to accommodate the gender preferences of their students.
Suella Braverman stated that it is legal for schools to prohibit biologically male students from wearing girls’ uniforms or participating in girls-only sports.
Former Tory leadership contender asserts that schools can refuse to use a student’s preferred opposite-sex pronouns.
She wrote in The Daily Telegraph that schools should only recognize a child’s gender choice if it differs from their natal sex “on the opinion of an impartial medical practitioner.”
She went on: “Many schools and teachers assume, erroneously, that they are required by law to handle children who doubt their gender according to the child’s wish.
“I want to clarify that it is permissible under the law for schools to refuse to use a child’s preferred opposite-sex pronouns.”
Her remarks were made in advance of a Wednesday Policy Exchange lecture on equality and rights.
Ms. Braverman states that it is also legal for schools to prohibit a biologically male student from wearing a girls’ uniform or participating in girls’ single-sex sports, while single-sex institutions can deny transgender students admission.
She also cautioned teachers and schools that if they permit pupils to “socially transition” to the opposite sex without the knowledge or approval of their parents, they may be “in breach of their duty of care to that child.”
She emphasized that mixed schools have the legal authority to prohibit biologically and legally male transgender students from using the girls’ restrooms.
Ms. Braverman stated, “There is also a separate need to offer single-sex restrooms in schools, the violation of which is illegal.”
“Regarding children who question their gender, we should always be kind. However, we should never let our compassion blind us to the harm that can be caused to children by mistaken affirmation.
“True diversity and equality are in jeopardy when we segregate everyone into distinct groups and then stifle opinions that may contradict group identities. This is not what democracy is about, nor is it required by law.”
