Stock image of schoolchildren
(Picture: PA Archive)School staff and pupils are being advised to drop using the gendered Sir and Miss in class, according to a leaked lecture to a teaching union.
Dr Elly Barnes, the chief executive of the Educate & Celebrate charity, told a webinar for teachers that instead of gendered terms, staff should be referred to as “teacher” or “headteacher” followed by their surname.
The lecture, entitled Getting the Language Right for 2022, was organised locally by an external body for members of the National Education Union.
Teachers were advised to use terms like “head pupil” instead of “head boy”, “headteacher” instead of “headmaster”, and “parent” rather than “mother”, according to The Telegraph.
Dr Barnes also reportedly stated categories of “male” and “female” should be removed from school application forms and stated that her charity worked with “trans” children as young as three.
The NEU said thousands of teenagers are now identifying as non-binary but they will be investigating whether the lecture was consistent with their policies.
Dr Barnes, who has received Department of Education funding to her charity in the past, sees schools as the frontline in changing attitudes towards LGBTQ+ people.
An advocate for gender neutral uniform, she wants to see the boy and girl categories removed and replaced simply with multiple options for all pupils.
According to the Educate & Celebrate website, one webinar session for unions cost £400 and Durham County Council is listed as a partner.
A NEU spokesperson told The Standard: “An increasing number of teenagers are identifying as non-binary, and education needs to respond to this - but the NEU does not believe that schools can or should adopt gender-neutral language across the board.
“This training came from an external provider and was organised locally. The NEU will review its contents to ensure it is consistent with our policies.”
Educate & Celebrate has been approached for further comment.
