EDUCATION unions are calling on the government to provide clear guidance to schools and colleges on how to interpret the law with regard to children who question their gender, following the Supreme Court’s ruling this week on the definition of women under the Equality Act.

The court ruled on Wednesday that the terms woman and sex in the 2010 Act “refer to a biological woman and biological sex.”

This means that transgender women with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) can be excluded from single-sex spaces if “proportionate.”

NASUWT general secretary Patrick Roach said: “Following the Supreme Court judgment, NASUWT has been contacted by teachers concerned about the implications for them and for the pupils they teach.

“[This] will need to be considered carefully, and it is vital that the government provides clarity and guidance to schools and colleges as quickly as possible.”

He added: “Trans rights are human rights and we urge the government to consider what further measures are needed to protect those rights in law and in practice.”

Draft guidance for schools and colleges on how best to support pupils questioning their gender was published by the government in December 2023 when the Conservatives were in power.

It said that parents should not be excluded from decisions taken by a school or college relating to requests for a child to “socially transition,” such as wishes to change names, pronouns and clothing.

The draft guidance said schools and colleges should make parents aware if their child requests a change, except in the “very rare situation” where parental involvement may raise a “significant risk of harm” to the child.

It added that schools “must always protect single-sex spaces” with regard to toilets, showers and changing rooms.

Julie McCulloch, senior director of strategy and policy at the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “School and college leaders require clear, practical guidance from the government on how to interpret the law in regard to children and young people questioning their gender.

“Draft guidance was produced by the last government but is yet to be taken forward in any form by the current one.”

A government spokesperson said schools are required to comply with their safeguarding duties and make arrangements which protect the privacy, dignity and safety of all pupils.