Students at a UK primary school will now be told that boys can have periods too under new sex education guidance.
The advice to teachers was approved by Brighton Council in a bid to tackle stigma surrounding menstruation, The Sun reports.
The report states: “Trans boys and men and non-binary people may have periods”, adding “menstruation must be inclusive of ‘all genders’.”
It also orders that “bins for used period products are provided in all toilets” for children and that trans pupils and students should be provided with additional support from a school nurse if needed.
The council said it was “important for all genders to be able to learn and talk about menstruation together”.
“Trans boys and men and non-binary people may have periods”, adding “menstruation must be inclusive of ‘all genders’.”
The guidelines on tackling period poverty come just a few months after Brighton & Hove City Council issued a Trans Inclusion Schools Toolkit to encourage sensitivity around student gender identity.
In the toolkit, teachers are told to be responsive to the needs of all non-binary and trans children and are reminded that intentionally not using a person’s preferred name or pronoun can constitute harassment.
It also recommends a non-gendered uniform so that children are supportive of all students, regardless of gender.
In 2016, Brighton College was thought to be the first to change its uniform policy so that transgender pupils could wear what they like.
But Tory MP David Davies told the Mail On Sunday it was “insanity” for teachers to be explaining the concept of transgender boys having periods to eight-year-olds.
“Learning about periods is already a difficult subject for children that age, so to throw in the idea girls who believe they are boys also have periods will leave them completely confused,” he said.
A council spokesman told The Sun: “We believe that it’s important for all genders to be able to learn and talk about menstruation together. We recommend including boys in our lessons on periods and opportunities for girls to discuss issues in more detail if needed.
They added: “We are working to reduce period poverty. By encouraging effective education on menstruation and puberty we hope to reduce stigma and ensure no child or young person feels shame in asking for period products inside or outside of school if they need them.
“Our approach recognises the fact that some people who have periods are trans or non-binary.”
This article originally appeared in The Sun and was republished with permission.
Originally published as School teaches ‘boys can have periods too’