Excluding trans children is pointless cruelty - and Girlguiding has set a dangerous example

She’s told she’s no longer welcome, not because of anything she’s done, but because of who she is.

That is the conversation parents of trans girls in Girlguiding are now being forced to have with their children. How do you explain to a child that a space built on friendship, empowerment, and belonging has decided she no longer belongs?

To make matters worse, Girlguiding insists it “remains committed to treating everyone with dignity and respect.” But where is the dignity and respect for trans girls in a policy that bars them from participating alongside their peers? Words of inclusion mean nothing if they are not backed by actions that include everyone.

Let’s be clear, Girlguiding didn't want to make this decision. They’ve been proudly inclusive of trans girls since 2018. That’s seven years of trans and cis girls learning together side by side. So why are they doing it?

In April, the Supreme Court ruled the definition of “woman” in the Equality Act referred solely to “biological women”. They stated their ruling does not diminish the rights and protections of trans people, but now, this judgement is being used as a bludgeon to pressure organisations.

In this case, it seems Girlguiding have been facing the threat of legal action on the basis that the judgement means trans girls can no longer be regarded as being girls. However, this interpretation of the ruling is hotly disputed by the Good Law Project.

When an institution as large and well-resourced as Girlguiding folds so quickly, it sends a signal to others that excluding trans people is the path of least resistance.

We are already seeing this in the domestic abuse sector, where I work. Some previously inclusive services now feel they cannot support trans and non-binary survivors, not because they want to, but due to wider political pressures. Where are these survivors supposed to turn?

We know what happens to children who grow up deprived of acceptance and opportunities to participate, who face rejection and exclusion. They grow up with low self-esteem, depression, anxiety, and increased vulnerability. They’re far less likely to achieve their potential in education & employment, far more likely to experience ongoing mental health struggles. We see this constantly in the survivors we work with.

And these children are facing rejection of who they are on multiple fronts, whether it’s being told they can’t use the toilet that fits their lived gender at school, being denied medication to halt the irreversible changes of puberty they’re desperate to avoid, or being told they’re now banned from engaging in a positive social activity because of who they are. We already see the effects of this in the individuals we work with, who all too often see abuse as being ‘just how it is for trans people’.

These early years are the building blocks for children’s self-esteem, and this week, trans girls have been told once more: you do not belong. The question we face as a society is simple: do we believe all children deserve to grow up safe, supported, and included - or not? Right now, the UK is signalling loudly that trans children are to be denied the belonging every other child takes for granted.

It doesn’t have to be this way. We can choose compassion. We can choose inclusion. And we can choose a future where every child grows up knowing they are valued, protected, and loved exactly as they are.

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Melissa Dee is the chief operating officer of Loving Me, the UK's only transgender and non-binary domestic violence shelter.

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