The Welsh Government’s LGBTQ+ Action Plan includes a commitment to providing appropriate national guidance for schools and local authorities to support trans children and young people in education settings.
To support the development of this guidance, the Wales Centre for Public Policy (WCPP) was asked by the Welsh Government to examine the existing evidence base on wellbeing and educational outcomes of different approaches to supporting trans children and young people in education settings, including evidence on outcomes for peers of trans children and young people.
We commissioned the Rapid Research and Appraisal Lab (RREAL) at University College London to undertake a rapid evidence review specifically in relation to four questions:
- What are the wellbeing needs and outcomes for trans children and young people in education settings?
- What are the educational needs and outcomes for trans children and young people in education settings?
- What is the impact of policy and practice approaches to social transition in education settings on trans children and young people in terms of their wellbeing and educational outcomes?
- What is the impact of policy and practice approaches to social transition in education settings on the peers of trans children and young people?
Beyond these specific research questions about the impact of school policy and practice, questions about the potential impact of social transition itself on children and young people’s long-term outcomes are outside the scope of the review.
RREAL used an established, structured, and rigorous search and quality assessment approach to identify, appraise, and synthesise existing published evidence. Additionally, the results of the review have been peer reviewed by four subject and methodological experts with diverse positions and perspectives on the research questions.
Some of the key findings of the review include:
- Trans children were more likely to report experiencing poorer wellbeing outcomes than their cisgender peers, including increased peer victimisation, lower levels of school belonging and poorer mental health.
- Trans children were more likely to report experiencing poorer educational outcomes than their cisgender peers, including having worse academic performance, lower attendance and less aspiration to pursue post-secondary education.
- Trans children identified various wellbeing and educational needs, including willingness from staff to confront ‘transphobic’ bullying, a supportive school climate, and an inclusive curriculum.
- There was limited evidence evaluating specific policy and practice approaches to supporting trans children and young people in education settings. However, the review identified several studies examining relationships between broader school factors and trans children and young people’s wellbeing and educational outcomes. This evidence provides some preliminary indication that ‘affirmative’ policy and practice approaches – for example, those which provide opportunities for trans children and young people to use their chosen name and pronouns at school, or wear clothing or hairstyles that match their self-designated gender – may play a role in several wider school factors associated with improved wellbeing and educational outcomes for trans children and young people.
The review also identified a need for further evidence:
- To establish underlying causal relationships between school factors and trans students’ outcomes. This is because quantitative studies identified in the review generally used cross-sectional designs, meaning that, while statistically significant links were identified, causality could not be determined;
- Exploring the impacts of different policy and practice approaches on the peers of trans students; and
- Exploring the experiences of disabled trans children and young people, and trans children and young people with additional learning needs
The review findings will be considered alongside ongoing stakeholder engagement and wider evidence to inform the Welsh Government’s guidance for schools and local authorities to support trans children and young people in education settings.