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Equality, diversity & inclusion

Provision for transgender pupils

Advice to help governing boards ensure that all pupils’ educational needs and other legal rights are met at all times.

Guidance
02/11/2022

UPDATE: On 19 December 2023, the Department for Education (DfE) published draft non-statutory guidance for schools and colleges about children questioning their gender. The DfE is seeking views on the content of the guidance.

Decisions about how to support transgender pupils can be complex and sensitive, requiring context and child-specific judgments to be made by schools in dialogue with pupils, parents, and professional advisors.

NGA has joined with a range of sector bodies to produce guidance for maintained schools and academies in England on provision for transgender pupils. The briefing was developed to aid members pending the anticipated publication of guidance by the DfE. It should not itself be accorded the status of official guidance.

The starting position in relation to schools’ legal duties towards transgender pupils is, as always, that schools must have systems in place with a view to ensuring that all pupils’ educational needs and other legal rights are met at all times. This guidance provides legal information but does not constitute or include legal advice. It covers:

  • medical perspectives
  • legal definitions and perspectives
  • legal requirements for schools

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Guidance on transgender provision

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