A PROPOSED replacement for schools’ guidance on supporting transgender and gender-questioning pupils is “politically driven” and fundamentally incompatible with Jersey’s safeguarding duties, the Education Minister has said.
Deputy Rob Ward issued the strongly-worded statement following a proposition lodged by Deputy Sir Philip Bailhache earlier this week.
Deputy Bailhache is proposing that current trans inclusion guidance be replaced with a document called: “Treating children as children: a safeguarding approach to trans-identifying children and adolescents in Jersey schools”. It was drafted by Stephanie Davies-Arai, the founder of Transgender Trend, which describes itself as “a UK organisation advocating for evidence-based care of gender dysphoric children and science-based teaching in schools”.
Deputy Bailhache said that he had put forward the proposal after having been “approached by members of the Women’s Rights Network Jersey”, who are unhappy with the existing guidance.
Responding little more than 24 hours later, the Education Minister raised “serious concerns about the proposition’s implications for safeguarding practice, professional integrity, and Jersey’s statutory frameworks”.
Deputy Ward reiterated that the government remained firmly committed to “safeguarding, children’s rights, and ensuring safe, inclusive learning environments for all young people”, and defended the current guidance issued to schools in March 2025.
That guidance, he stressed, was “evidence-informed, non-statutory, and focused on pupil welfare”.
By contrast, Deputy Ward said Deputy Bailhache’s proposition would “replace this professional guidance with a document not aligned with Jersey’s legislative frameworks, safeguarding principles, or children’s rights commitments”.
He added: “The replacement document directs practitioners to deprioritise the voice of the child, an approach fundamentally at odds with Jersey’s statutory requirements, international conventions, and modern safeguarding practice.
“Jersey law is clear: children and young people have the right to participate in decisions that affect them, and policies must be rooted in non-discrimination, dignity, and respect.”
Deputy Ward also rejected claims that existing guidance pushes schools into medical or ideological territory and questioned the motivation behind the proposition itself.
“Existing guidance already provides clear standards on behaviour, bullying prevention and collaborative decision‑making with families and professionals and explicitly excludes medical decision-making from the remit of schools.”
The minister concluded: “Safeguarding must be led by professionals – not politics.”
A detailed comments paper responding to the proposition is due to be published ahead of the debate, which is scheduled to take place during the States sitting beginning on Tuesday 24 February.
