Trans pupils face 'horrendous' hurdles in class

LONDON:

When 9-year-old Adrian came out as a transgender boy, he found acceptance at home but not at his school in the British city of Manchester, which refused to let him live as his chosen gender.

The headteacher would not support Adrian’s transition from a girl to a boy and barred him from the boys’ toilets and changing rooms. He was also bullied by classmates asking “what” he was.

He is one of a growing numbers of children coming out as trans, only to face a school system which divides pupils into boys and girls, from their uniforms to their sports teams.



And with most pupils in Britain heading back to class as the new academic year starts this week, experts fear many schools are ill-equipped or unwilling to cater for trans children despite a sharp rise in the number seeking help in recent years.

“There was nowhere for him really,” said Adrian’s mother who has transferred him to another school and did not want his real name to be published to protect his identity.

“It did have a marked impact ... He would not communicate with anybody and didn’t have any friends. He would just stay by himself in the playground ... and was very sad and depressed.”

Gender experts say there are likely to be tens of thousands of transgender children attending schools across Britain.