This week is Transgender Awareness Week, ending with Transgender Day of Remembrance on Sunday. According to the latest survey conducted by BeLonG To, the LGBT youth organisation, which surveyed more than 1,200 LGBTQI+ students from across the country, 76% of students reported feeling unsafe at school. As one can imagine, feeling unsafe in a school environment is bound to have a detrimental effect on the quality of education a student receives. The survey also states that three in ten LGBTQI+ students missed at least one day of school in the past month because they felt unsafe or uncomfortable. Very worryingly, one in ten LGBTQI+ students are unsure whether they will complete the leaving certificate.

That survey was released today. What can the Government do to enhance and protect those students, the LGBT community in schools, who are feeling unsafe?

We can do a number of things, first through curricular reform but more importantly through an ethos of tolerance within schools creating a safe environment for the entire LGBTI+ community, particularly the transgender community. There are issues. We also need to deal with the bullying issue, which is related. More broadly a whole-of-school approach is key to enabling people to feel safe in schools.