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Metro
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Metro
Labour's school guidance is Section 28 all over again for LGBTQ+ people
'Schools should avoid materials that could encourage children to question their gender.' That line comes straight from the government's new Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) guidance, due to come into force next year. While to most this might even seem like a reasonable quote, for trans people like me it reads like a common right-wing talking point – that young people in the UK are being indoctrinated into questioning their gender by woke teachers. It is a grim echo of the sentiments of Section 28. It's not just a red flag – it's a blaring siren. For those who don't remember or weren't directly affected by it – Section 28 was a law introduced by the Thatcher government in 1988 that banned schools from 'promoting the teaching of the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship.' In practice, it meant teachers were forbidden from talking about LGBTQ+ people, and many have spoken of feeling forced to remain in the closet. Under Section 28, support for LGBTQ+ people in schools simply vanished, and silence and shame became policy. I didn't grow up in the UK, but my partner did. They lived under Section 28, they protested against it at the time, and they're still living with the consequences like so many of their generation. The shame that was distilled into people because of Section 28 is impossible to put into words, and that generation still bears the scars from it – I see it in my partner. With thousands of members from all over the world, our vibrant LGBTQ+ WhatsApp channel is a hub for all the latest news and important issues that face the LGBTQ+ community. Simply click on this link, select 'Join Chat' and you're in! Don't forget to turn on notifications! And now, it seems to me that the Labour Government is dragging that same legacy into the present, this time targeting trans and non-binary youth. It tells schools not to teach that everyone has a gender identity. It says teachers should stick to teaching about 'facts' about biological sex and be cautious with not endorsing 'any particular view'. Take it from a trans person – these are common dogwhistles. This isn't about safeguarding or protecting students. This is about painting transness as a politicised, contested issue, rather than a lived experience of countless people across the world. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The idea that gender identity is too controversial to even mention in classrooms sends a devastating message to young LGBTQ+ people. It tells teachers to retreat into silence, for fear of saying the wrong thing. Yes, there are some parts of the guidance that seem positive on paper: more comprehensive detail on consent, online harms, pornography, misogyny, incel culture, and deepfakes. These are important issues, and young people deserve clear, honest education about them. But you cannot promote healthy relationships and consent while denying a whole group of young people the right to self-understanding and visibility. This seems to me to be about politics, not safety. Labour wants to appear 'sensible' and 'balanced' on these so-called culture war issues, as shown in their abandonment of trans people and their rights. Keir Starmer has U-turned on supporting self-ID for trans people altogether. Now, his party seems to want to embed that same lack of support and integrity into school policy. But queer and trans people know what happens when silence is the policy. We've lived it. Now Labour is flirting with a new version of that same trauma – and we have to fight back. To parents, I encourage you to ask questions. Ask schools how they intend to support your trans children. Ask them how they intend to make sure they don't feel shame about who they are. Ask them how they will protect them from bullying, as even this guidance points out is wrong For teachers – know that you are the ones who can make a real difference to the lives of vulnerable students. When I came out as trans at 17, my school counsellor was one of the first people I ever told. Her unquestioning support meant everything to me – she never made me feel ashamed for who I was. That was the first time I truly felt accepted by someone. That's I want the young people who will be affected by this to remember – that you are loved. You are supported. You are valid. You have every right to explore and define who you are. No one can tell you otherwise. Labour may think this guidance will earn them political points. And it might. But at what cost? History will remember this time as a dark time for the UK. We already know how this story goes. We already know the harm it causes. And like before, we will fight for what's right. We will fight for love, acceptance and compassion. More Trending Over 100,000 people showed up for Trans Pride London last weekend. That wasn't a celebration – it was a protest that sent a strong message. We are here. We are not going anywhere. Not now. Not ever. No guidance, legislation, or political posturing can change that. The trans community is proud and resilient – we've weathered worse, and we will weather this too. Because this isn't about whether we exist or not – we evidently do, proudly. The real question is: how will the Labour government choose to treat us? And just like with Section 28, history will remember the answer. Do you have a story you'd like to share? Get in touch by emailing Share your views in the comments below. MORE: I was burned by 'check-in chicken' – heed my warning MORE: Britain's stance on Palestine is becoming increasingly embarrassing MORE: Watch this terrifying film tonight – it might change your life
South Wales Argus
7 days ago
- Health
- South Wales Argus
Education training experts back suicide prevention in school
The move comes as the government makes the topic compulsory following the efforts of the 3 Dads Walking campaign, who each lost a daughter to suicide. The successful campaign has led to a change in the Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) curriculum in England. Dr Richard Anderson, head of learning and development at High Speed Training, said: "This new curriculum will empower young people to have open and honest conversations about mental health. "It is vital to support schools, teachers, and parents in this crucial endeavour." The added curriculum will be introduced in September this year, becoming mandatory by September 2026. Dr Anderson added: "By raising awareness and encouraging open, honest discussion, we can break down the stigma, reduce risk, and ultimately, save lives." The announcement coincides with Samaritans' 24/7 Day, which highlights the charity's consistent support service for those struggling.
New Statesman
23-07-2025
- Health
- New Statesman
Schools need more sex education, not less
Illustration by Chris Rogers / Getty Images The grand total of my sex education when I was at school in the Noughties went like this: in Year 6, the girls and boys were split up, and the girls were made to watch a graphic birth video; in Year 8, we carried 'flour babies' around school for a week; in Year 9, we received a self-defence lesson in which the male instructor told us not to wear our hair in a ponytail because an attacker could grab it; and in Year 10, the school nurse demonstrated how to use a condom while we all giggled hysterically. It was entirely focused on the mechanics of sex and the risks it posed to our life outcomes and health. There was no discussion of consent, no suggestion that sex could or should be pleasurable. And there was no mention of the internet and the ways it was already shaping our early, faltering romances. My peers and I learned far more about sex outside the classroom – from playground gossip, chat rooms, TV and porn – than we ever did within it. And yet this is the sort of sex education the last government wanted to return to. In May last year, the then education secretary, Gillian Keegan, published draft revised guidance for Relationship, Sex and Health Education (RSHE), which proposed age limits on what children could be taught. Children, it said, would not be informed about puberty before Year 4 (when they are aged eight to nine), sex before Year 5 (nine to ten), sexual harassment or pornography before Year 7 (11-12) or STIs before Year 9 (aged 13-14). There are basic biological problems with this chronology: girls could start their periods before learning what it is (one in four girls already reports that this is the case); pupils could be offered the HPV vaccine before learning what an STI is. But setting all this aside, it is deluded to believe that children are not exposed to everything Keegan wished to protect them from, and much more, beyond the school gates. So, the new RSHE guidance, released by Bridget Phillipson's Department for Education on 15 July, is a welcome relief. While it incorporates some sensible Tory proposals, such as teaching children about the prevalence of deepfakes, age restrictions have been removed. There is greater emphasis on tackling misogyny and incel culture, which Phillipson described, in the aftermath of the Netflix drama Adolescence, as 'a defining issue of our time'. To the previously planned content on stalking, revenge porn and upskirting, Labour added financial sexual exploitation, strangulation, and 'personal safety in public spaces, recognising that sexual harassment and abuse are never the fault of the victim'. Schools will have the flexibility to teach in late primary about sexual imagery online 'where this is an issue in their school'. Keegan's ban on sex education for children aged nine and under received much media attention at the time, thanks largely to the efforts of Miriam Cates, then the Tory MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge, who coordinated a letter to Rishi Sunak raising concerns about the appropriateness of RSHE content. Cates, who lost her seat last July, has since said the subject should be 'scrapped' altogether. Children, she told the Commons, employing some bad-faith hyperbole, were being taught 'graphic lessons on oral sex, how to choke your partner safely and 72 genders'. (This last was a reference to news reports about a school on the Isle of Man, which is not part of England and therefore falls outside the Department for Education's remit.) It may indeed seem inappropriate to teach children about strangulation during sex. We instinctively feel that they should not have to know about such things – not yet, not ever. And yet it is necessary that they do. No one wants to have to prepare a small child for the possibility that another child or an adult might try to touch their genitals, but they should know that such an act would be wrong and that they should report it. If a child brings to their teacher a question about, say, a pornographic video that has been shared with them, that teacher should be allowed to sensitively discuss with them what they have seen. Children must be prepared for the world as it is, not as we might wish it to be. Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe This is the world as it is: one in ten children has seen pornography by the age of nine, according to the Children's Commissioner, Rachel de Souza. The same research found that nearly half of 18- to 21-year-olds have experienced a violent sex act. More than a third of girls at mixed-sex schools have experienced sexual harassment at school, and, according to the teacher survey app Teacher Tapp, one in eight secondary-school teachers say a student in their school sexually assaulted another pupil in the last autumn term. Pornographic deepfakes are a growing problem; in June 2024 a girls' school alerted authorities that deepfake images and videos depicting its pupils were circulating a nearby boys' school. Despite the UK's overall falling birthrate, pregnancy rates among the under-20s are rising; so too is the prevalence of STIs. 'All children,' as Baroness Strange put it in a debate in the Lords on sex education in 2000, 'have a right to their childhood and their innocence.' Yet it is not schools that threaten their innocence, but technology, which moves at such a pace legislation cannot keep up. Children should be given every opportunity to bring to a trusted adult – whether a teacher or a parent – what they hear and see in the dark corners of the playground or the internet. The alternative is not that they are protected from inappropriate content, but that they are left to process and navigate it alone. [See also: Kemi Badenoch isn't working] Related
Daily Mirror
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
Major update on school curriculum as kids to get new lessons on misogyny and AI
Bridget Phillipson said kids are being 'bombarded by manipulative content online', as she vowed for them to be taught how to 'separate fact from fiction' Children will get lessons on the dangers of the online world to help tackle 'an epidemic' of misogyny in schools. Bridget Phillipson said kids are being 'bombarded by manipulative content online', as she vowed for them to be taught how to 'separate fact from fiction'. The Education Secretary is publishing new Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) guidance at midday on Tuesday, which will aim to address a crisis in attitudes towards women and girls among boys and men. The guidance will make clear that RHSE teaching should not focus on negativity, with teachers encouraged to highlight good role models and positive conceptions of femininity and masculinity for youngsters. Asked for examples of good role models, Ms Phillipson told The Mirror: 'For young women, I think the Lionesses have been amazing in demonstrating how sport is something for women too, that it's good to be healthy, to be physical, to be strong and they're not simply male traits. 'For young men, if you look at someone like Gareth Southgate. He was an incredible footballer, then became a brilliant leader in his field, but wasn't afraid of talking about some of the challenges that he'd had to overcome in his own mental health. I think it's a nice balance to demonstrate that all of us can have our ups and downs, but that there are other people out there, including people that have really reached the pinnacle of their careers, who've also been through some of those same challenges too.' Under the guidance, kids will learn about incel culture, as well as about the harms of AI, deepfakes and how pornography links to misogyny. Lessons will also cover healthy sexual relationships, including guidance on reproductive health, unplanned pregnancies and abusive relationships. Sexual ethics teaching will seek to go 'beyond consent', for example, teaching young people that 'yes doesn't always mean yes as factors like peer pressure should be taken into account', the guidance will say. Dating apps will not be included in teaching, however, Ms Phillipson confirmed. Health teaching will be widened to ensure kids have a better understanding of fertility and women's health conditions like endometriosis. Other additions to the curriculum include spiking and methanol poisoning. Mental health teaching will also be expanded, with secondary schools advised to work with professionals on how to discuss suicide prevention in an age-appropriate way. Suicide is the biggest killer of under 35s. While much of the online safety guidance is targeted at secondary schools, teachers will also be advised to support primary school children who encounter harmful material online. Teachers will be given greater flexibility to respond to things that younger children might have seen online or heard from their friends, as long as it is in an 'age-appropriate' manner. The guidance softens Tory rules banning sex education being taught before Year 5, to nine- or ten-year-olds. It however still recommends primaries teach sex education in Year 5 or 6, in line with content about conception and birth. The guidance is clear parents would be able to view all RSHE curriculum materials on request. Ms Phillipson told The Mirror: 'We know that our children are being bombarded by manipulative content online and offline, and it's the responsibility of governments to tackle that and to make sure that young people are able to separate fact from fiction. With the development of deep fake technology, AI, young people are seeing material that we really need them to be able to question and not to take at face value. 'The action that we're taking through the guidance is to better equip young people to understand what's acceptable and what's unacceptable, how to navigate this world, but also to support healthy relationships and to make sure that all young people, including young boys, are supported to develop healthy relationships without stigmatising them.' The Department for Education (DfE) said fresh data shows 'misogynistic attitudes have reached epidemic scale by the end of secondary school'. When asked to think about just the past week, more than a third (37%) of pupils aged 11-19 had heard comments that made them concerned about the safety of girls, and more than half (54%) said they had witnessed comments they would describe as misogynistic. Elsewhere research shows over one in five (22%) of girls aged seven to 10 had seen 'rude images online', and the average age for exposure to pornography is 13. The DfE defines misogyny as a dislike of, contempt for or ingrained prejudice against women.
