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LGBT+ Young People

Overview

Recent surveys have found that up to 20% of people under the age of 30 identify as LGBT+, with 12% identifying outside the gender binary as either transgender or gender-nonconforming. Attitudes towards LGBT+ people have also become more accepting in recent years.

However, LGBT+ young people continue to experience disproportionate levels of mental ill health, poverty, homelessness, bullying and abuse, and many do not get the support they need.

Key Facts

  • • Using Trans young people’s chosen name reduces depression by 71% and suicide attempts by 65%.
  • More than half of lesbian, gay and bisexual students have experienced homophobic bullying.
  • 99% of lesbian, gay and bisexual young people hear the phrases ‘that’s so gay’ or ‘you’re so gay’ in school.
  • Only half of lesbian, gay and bisexual students report that their schools say homophobic bullying is wrong.
  • 86% of secondary school teachers say children and young people, regardless of their sexual orientation, experience homophobic bullying.
  • 92% of secondary school teachers believe that school staff have a duty to tackle homophobic bullying.
  • 80% of teachers have not had any specific training on how to tackle homophobic bullying.
  • 83% of trans young people say they have experienced name-calling and 35% have experienced physical attacks.
  • 32% of trans young people say they have missed lessons due to discrimination or fear of discrimination.
  • 52% of LGBT young people have self-harmed, compared with 9% of non-LGBT+ peers.
  • 23% of lesbian, gay and bisexual young people have tried to take their own life.
  • 48% of trans young people have attempted suicide, and 59% say they have considered doing so.
  • LGBT pupils who don’t feel they have an adult to talk to are much more likely to have symptoms of depression than those who do have an adult to talk to.

Good Practice

The public sector Equality Duty requires all schools in England to eliminate discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender reassignment. Schools must promote equality of opportunity and foster good relations. This means schools need to tackle homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying, and need to take proactive steps to support LGBT+ students and promote acceptance, respect and understanding of LGBT+ people and issues across the whole school community. (The Equality Act 2010)

The Department for Education requires all schools to publish information to show how they are complying with this duty. Schools should set and publish specific and measurable equality objectives, for example reducing levels of homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying.

This means that schools must protect any student taking steps to reassign their sex, whether those steps are social (for example changing their name, the pronoun they prefer and the way they dress or look) or include medical intervention (for example accessing hormone therapy or having surgery).

Schools have a duty to promote the safety and well-being of all children and young people in their care, including those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans and those experiencing homophobic, biphobic or transphobic bullying. (Education and Inspections Act 2006)

Ofsted inspectors are explicitly directed to look at a school’s efforts to tackle bullying based on sexual orientation and gender identity. They may also look at how the school supports the needs of distinct groups of students, such as lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans students.

Resources

A toolkit for preventing and tackling homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying in secondary schools.

A toolkit for preventing and tackling homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying in primary schools.

LGBT Facts and Figures.

Mental Health.

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