£45K-a year boarding school REFUSES to back down on trans pupils plans
2024/01/22

ADVERTISEMENT

A top boarding school that charges parents £45,000-a-year for their children to stay at the school has refused to clarify its position on pupils after reports suggest they had the option of staying in accommodation that matched their identity.   

Bedales school in Hampshire, which counts stars like Lily Allen and Daniel Day Lewis as alumni have said that they treat all their 'young people as individuals' after they were asked if a trans girl who was born male, could be allowed to sleep in a female dormitory. 

Such an arrangement would clash with updated  government guidance which last year stated trans children must sleep in dorms that match their biological sex.

ADVERTISEMENT

In a statement given to MailOnline, Bedales school refused to debunk claims that their boarding accommodation was making exceptions for trans pupils. 

A spokesman said: 'Normal channels of communication with houseparents are very much open [for parents]  if they want to discuss any concerns.

Bedales School (pictured) has a policy that says trans students should be allowed to stay in dormitories 'according to the gender with which they identify'

ADVERTISEMENT

Taunton School (pictured) has a policy that allows trans students to 'sleep in dorms appropriate to their gender identity'

 'At Bedales, we treat all our young people as individuals, seeking to accommodate their needs accordingly. The school keeps its approach to boarding in line with current guidance and legislation.'

A policy on Bedales website says students who are boarding at the school should be allowed to stay in dormitories 'according to the gender with which they identify'. 

Caroline Ffisk from Conservatives for Women told MailOnline the new policies would at the very least violate the school's 'statutory safeguarding responsibility'.

She explained: 'Imagine working in a school, having a statutory safeguarding responsibility for the children in your care, and even contemplating allowing boys and girls to share sleeping accommodation. 

'Personal exploration and identity is completely irrelevant. 

'Yet this is the power of this corrosive ideology. It shows precisely why the Government must make its proposed gender-questioning guidance compulsory - and embedded into the "Keeping Children Safe in Education" statutory guidance for schools.'

The discovery has sparked concern among some MPs, including Education Secretary  who published the draft guidance last month.

Among the schools with these policies is Taunton School, in Somerset, which charges parents up to £14,970 a term for students to full board there.

Its equality, diversity and inclusion policy claims 'as far as possible, transgender pupils and students should be able to sleep in dorms appropriate to their gender identity'. The Telegraph reports this policy is currently under review.

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan published draft guidance on trans pupils last month. Pictured: Ms Keegan at the Conservative Party annual conference in Manchester in October

Another fee-paying school, Christ's Hospital in West Sussex, has a policy of giving 'careful consideration' to requests from trans pupils to be housed in dormitories 'different to their biological gender'.

However, a spokesperson for the school told the Telegraph: 'Christ's Hospital is respectful of students who may be questioning their gender, and balance this with our duty of care and safeguarding responsibilities.

'No student who is questioning their gender is allowed to share sleeping or changing facilities with others of the opposite biological sex to them.

'While, like all schools, we will be reviewing our policies following the recent publication of the Government's draft guidance, nothing we do currently is outside that guidance.

'

Speaking to the MailOnline, women's rights campaigner Kelly-Jay Keen also slammed the reported policies, labelling them 'deranged'. 

She said: 'What on earth has happened to safeguarding? It seems that this ideology is just a new way to totally abandon safeguarding principles.

'So, you would have a girl in a boy's dormitory.

'I don't use terms like biological girl or female, we know what a girl is and what a boy is.

'A girl in a boy's dormitory is basically at much higher risk of sexual assault.

'And then boys in girls' dormitories! It's just preposterous that we would think about the needs of a single pupil to have their identity validated and put all the other pupils at risk.

'It's absolutely deranged and can only come from a dogmatic ideological cult.'

The policies have sparked concern among top Tories as they appear to clash with government guidance which states 'no child should be allowed to share a room with a child of the opposite sex'.

The draft guidance also says trans students who don't wish to stay in a room with members of the same biological sex should only be allowed to do so after the school has taken its safeguarding obligations into account. 

A source close to Ms Keegan telling the Telegraph: 'Ministers have been clear that single-sex spaces must be protected and this has been reflected in the Government's draft guidance on gender-questioning pupils, which is currently out for consultation.

'

Miriam Cates, Conservative MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge, told the paper that parents who 'spend an awful lot of money' sending their children to these schools would 'probably be horrified at some of the gender ideology in these schools'.

ADVERTISEMENT

"Unexpected Bombshell: Anna's Heartbreaking Discovery of Valentin's Dark Reality Strips 'General Hospital' of Trust💔"
2024/04/10
"Heartbreaking or Heartwarming? The Unraveling of Nina's Secret Daughter Saga in 'General Hospital"
2024/04/10
Missing '1923' actor Cole Brings Plenty, 27, found dead in Kansas
2024/04/08
Yellowstone's Beth played by Jimmy stunt double after painful horse incident
2024/04/03
Iron Man's MCU Phase 6 Villain Upgrade Was Teased 14 Years Ago
2024/03/26
Rihanna celebrates first birthday as a mom of turn as she turns 36
2024/02/20
Kanye West Posts Nearly Nude Thirst Trap Pics of Wife Bianca Censori!
2024/01/31
Where Is Jurnee Smollett-Bell, AKA Denise From 'Full House,' Now?
2024/01/31
The Truth Behind Why Full House Came To An Abrupt End At The Height Of Its Popularity
2024/01/31
The Real Reason Bob Saget Replaced The Original Star of 'Full House'
2024/01/31
Did John Stamos Want Mary-Kate And Ashley Olsen Gone From Full House?
2024/01/31
This 'Full House' Star Went Completely Off The Map After The Show
2024/01/31
'Full House': 10 Times The Show Dealt With Real Issues
2024/01/31
Stranger Things' Breakout Star Is Poised For An Amazing 2024 (Even Without Season 5)
2024/01/28
Stranger Things’ New Mike Wheeler Set Photos Reveal A Harsh Reality After Eddie’s Death
2024/01/28
Stranger Things Season 5’s Biggest Missing Character Is Bad News For Another Fan-Favorite's Return
2024/01/28
Stranger Things Season 5 Set Photos Reveal Eleven's Return & New Locations
2024/01/28
Chandler!!
2024/01/24
“I was so confused and insecure. Because I thought I was beautiful. So many people told me I was beautiful. Who am I? I feel like a vase shattered across the ground, and left there in the alleyway. A chandelier that was cut from the ceiling, and then all the people left the house. I can’t imagine on this day, what it would feel like to recover. Am I allowed to be this sad? Am I allowed to lay on the ground in a heap and wail? I want to have hands again, and legs. I want to smile. I want to believe that I can. But again, I want to be sad for the rest of time. I want to wear my sadness in long strands. I want to lay on the ocean floor and weep stalactites. For a hundred years. A tree has fallen onto my chest. The sky is spinning, and it won’t slow down. I don’t want to feel any of this.” A excerpt of an untitled essay from NIGHTBIRDE The NIGHTBIRDE book “Poems for the dark” should be available for presale soon. We hope Jane’s words make you all feel less alone in your human experience. Photo by Jacqueline Day #nightbirde #poetry #essay #poem #nightbird #agt #itsOk #inspire #hope #faith #cancerJourney
2024/01/23
Ecstatic Dog Emotionally Reunited With Owner After Ten Months Away
2024/01/23