Mother sues all-girls school for letting a trans girl attend

A mother is suing an all-girls school in East Yorkshire for allowing a trans girl to attend.

Joanna Donoghue has insisted she had no choice but to sue Beverley High School after they “secretly” admitted a trans girl and her inquiries about the student were repeatedly “shut down”, the Times reported.

Donoghue’s three daughters are all currently students at Beverley High School, and she herself attended thirty years ago, which she called an “important part” of her life. She also previously worked as a teacher at the school.

According to the Times, Donoghue’s lawyers sent a pre-action letter to file a High Court claim for judicial review against the local authority in control of the school earlier this month.

The letter reportedly alleges that the council had acted unlawfully through adopting a “secret” policy that allows transgender girls to attend Beverly High School and potentially other schools.

It goes on to say that the alleged policy means that parents “cannot make an informed decision about whether to send their children to the school”. It also claims that the policy discriminates against female pupils by placing them at a disadvantage.

The letter reportedly reads: “Teenage girls have particularly acute needs for privacy and dignity. During the secondary school years, as they begin to menstruate and their bodies change, it is vital that girls can trust that they are in environments that safeguard their privacy and dignity.”

Beverley High School’s chair of governors declined to comment on the matter, but a spokeswoman for East Riding of Yorkshire council said: “We have been made aware of a query around our admission arrangements and are working to understand the issues, and we will respond in due course.”

Donoghue told the Times that her decision to sue the school was “horrible”. “The fact it is single sex is important to me,” she said. “We know that there’s evidence that girls do better academically in Stem subjects, for example, when they’re in an all-female environment.”

She went on to share how she found out that a trans girl attended the school after overhearing her 15-year-old daughter having a conversation with a friend.

“They were talking about who they were friends with at primary school and my daughter’s friend said: ‘Oh I was friends with’ – and then she said a female pupil’s name – ‘but I was friends with her when she was a boy’,” she said.

She then emailed the school to confirm details about the trans student, but became distressed when the school said that they couldn’t “discuss pupils… for GDPR reasons” and “obligations under the Equality Act”.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.