Gender-Neutral Toilets: A Qualitative Exploration of Inclusive School Environments for Sexuality and Gender Diverse Youth in Western Australia

Jacinta Francis; Pratishtha Sachan; Zoe Waters; Gina Trapp; Natasha Pearce; Sharyn Burns; Ashleigh Lin; Donna Cross

doi:10.3390/ijerph191610089

Gender-Neutral Toilets: A Qualitative Exploration of Inclusive School Environments for Sexuality and Gender Diverse Youth in Western Australia

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Aug 15;19(16):10089. doi: 10.3390/ijerph191610089.

Authors

Jacinta Francis^{1

2}, Pratishtha Sachan¹, Zoe Waters^{1

3}, Gina Trapp^{1

4}, Natasha Pearce^{1

4}, Sharyn Burns⁵, Ashleigh Lin^{1

2}, Donna Cross^{1

4}

Affiliations

¹ Telethon Kids Institute, 15 Hospital Avenue, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia.
² Centre for Child Health Research, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Hwy, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia.
³ School of Psychological Science, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Hwy, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia.
⁴ School of Population and Global Health, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Hwy, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia.
⁵ School of Population Health, Curtin University, Kent St., Bentley, WA 6102, Australia.

Abstract

School toilets have been identified by sexuality and gender diverse (SGD) students as the least safe spaces in educational institutions. They are sites of verbal, physical and sexual victimisation. Providing gender-neutral toilets in primary and secondary schools may reduce the bullying and victimisation of SGD students, particularly those who are transgender or gender-diverse. This study explored factors influencing the inclusion of gender-neutral toilets in primary and secondary schools in Western Australia. Thirty-four interviews were conducted from May to December 2020 with policy makers or practitioners (n = 22) and school staff (n = 12) in Perth, Western Australia. Interviews were conducted online and face-to-face using semi-structured interview guides. A thematic analysis of the cross-sectional qualitative data was undertaken. School staff, policy makers, and practitioners identified school toilets as sites of bullying and victimisation of SGD youth and expressed support for gender-neutral toilets as an anti-bullying strategy. Perceived barriers to introducing gender-neutral toilets in schools included financial and spatial costs, building code compliance constraints, resistance from parents and students, privacy and confidentiality concerns, and cultural appropriateness. Including gender-neutral toilets in schools may reduce school-based bullying and victimisation, and improve the mental and physical health of SGD youth.

Keywords: LGBTQ+; bathrooms; bullying; qualitative; schools; toilets; transgender.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Bathroom Equipment*
Bullying*
Cross-Sectional Studies
Humans
Sexuality
Western Australia

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Healthway under Francis’ Early Career Research Fellowship [number 33020]. Trapp was supported by a NHMRC Early Career Research Fellowship [number 1073233] and currently an Australian Research Council DECRA Fellowship [number DE210101791]. Pearce was supported by the Australian Government through the Australian Research Council’s Centre of Excellence for Children and Families over the Life Course [number CE200100025]. Lin was supported by an NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellowship [number 2010063]. Cross was supported by a NHMRC Fellowship [number GNT 1119339]. Funding sources were not involved in the study design, data collection or analysis, writing or submission of this manuscript.