KCSIE 2026 Consultation

How to Respond: A Guide for FET Supporters

March 2026

Why This Matters

On 12 February 2026, the Department for Education published a draft update to Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE), the statutory guidance that governs how every school and college in England handles safeguarding. The full document is at https://consult.education.gov.uk/independent-education-and-school-safeguarding-division/keeping-children-safe-in-education-2026-revisions/.

This is not a minor technical update. At over 200 pages, it is the most significant revision to KCSIE in years. Buried inside provisions on grooming gangs, knife crime, and online safety are measures that directly undermine parental authority, threaten religious freedom, embed gender ideology in safeguarding law, and redefine what it means to be a “safe” school in ways that should concern every family.

The consultation closes at 11:59pm on 22 April 2026. Every response matters. The government is counting on public silence. Do not give it to them.

How to Respond

There are three ways to respond:

1. Online (the preferred method): Visit the consultation page at https://consult.education.gov.uk/independent-education-and-school-safeguarding-division/keeping-children-safe-in-education-2026-revisions/ and click the blue “Share your views” button.

2. By email: Send your response to KCSIE2026.consultation@education.gov.uk. You can write a simple letter or email setting out your concerns in your own words, referencing the paragraph numbers in this guide. There is no required format.

3. By post: Write to: KCSIE 2026 Consultation Response, FAO: Teacher Regulation, School Safeguarding and Safety Team, Department for Education, Floor 3 – Riverside, Bishopsgate House, Darlington, DL1 5QE.

What to Expect When You Open the Online Form

The online form has 41 pages and 79 questions. That sounds daunting, but don’t worry. Most questions are simple Yes/No/No opinion radio buttons with an optional free-text box underneath. You do not need to answer every question. Here is what you will encounter:

Page 1 (Questions 1 to 10): About you. Your name, email address, whether you are responding as an individual or an organisation, and what capacity you are responding in. Most FET supporters should select “Individual” for Question 3 and “Parent or Carer” for Question 5. Complete this page and click “Continue” at the bottom right of the page.

Pages 2 to 27 (Questions 11 to 58): The substantive consultation. These are the questions about the actual changes to the guidance. Each page covers a different topic. Most questions offer Yes/No/No opinion options, with a free-text box underneath limited to 1,200 characters (roughly 200 words). You can skip any question by simply leaving it blank and clicking Continue.

Pages 28 to 38 (Questions 59 to 73): Expanding the evidence base. These are broader questions asking for your views on what KCSIE should cover in future. Questions 59 to 61 are particularly important: they are open free-text boxes asking what is helpful, what is challenging, and what is missing from KCSIE. These are your best opportunity to raise any issue in your own words.

Pages 39 to 41: DSL questions and submission. Page 39 (Questions 74 to 79) is specifically for Designated Safeguarding Leads. If you are not a DSL, skip this page. Page 40 is the submission page. Click “Submit Response” when you are ready.

Key tips:

•       Use your own words. Templated responses carry less weight than personal ones. Use this guide for the arguments and evidence, but express them in your own way.

•       Be specific. Reference paragraph numbers. Quote the guidance back at itself. This shows you have read the document and signals a serious response.

•       Be civil but firm. A measured, well-argued response is more effective than an angry one.

•       Free-text boxes are limited to 1,200 characters. That is roughly 200 words. Be concise. Make every word count.

•       Your answers are saved as you go. If you need to take a break, you can click “Save and come back later” at the bottom of any page.

•       If the online form is too difficult, email instead. You can send your response in your own words to KCSIE2026.consultation@education.gov.uk. There is no required format.

Which Questions Matter Most

You do not need to answer all 79 questions. If you are short of time, focus on these. The section numbers below tell you which page of the online form to look for.

Question 19 (Page 5): Misogyny

The question asks: “Do you agree with the proposal to include further references to misogyny throughout KCSIE, specifically to highlight its intersection with harmful sexual behaviour (HSB)?”

Recommended answer: No. In the free-text box, explain that “misogyny” has no legal definition in English law and placing it on an escalatory continuum to sexual violence (as paragraphs 521 and 528 do) could be used to label mainstream religious views about the complementary nature of men and women as proto-violence. Without a clear legal definition, this term is open to subjective interpretation and could be weaponised against teachers of faith.

Question 33 (Page 13): Gender Questioning Children

This is the single most important question in the consultation. It asks: “Does the updated section of the guidance on children who are questioning their gender provide clarity about the considerations schools and colleges will need to take into account?”

Recommended answer: No. Use the free-text box to raise several key points (remember, 1,200 characters maximum, so be concise):

•       The confiding loophole (paragraph 263). A child can disclose gender distress to a teacher and the school is not required to tell the parents, provided the child does not make a formal request for social transition. This distinction is unworkable. Parents must always be informed.

•       Parents reduced to consultees (paragraph 251). Social transition decisions are made “in consultation with” parents, not with their consent. “Consultation” is not consent. Parents must have the right to make these decisions.

•       The protected characteristic trap (Footnote 62). Schools are told to treat every gender-questioning child as holding the protected characteristic of gender reassignment because it is “very difficult” to determine who actually has it. This creates irresistible legal pressure to accommodate all transition requests.

•       Conscience and compelled speech (paragraph 270). The guidance acknowledges staff may have religious beliefs but offers no protection against being compelled to use preferred pronouns. The 2023 Conservative draft explicitly protected teachers from this. Labour has removed that protection.

•       The missing Supreme Court ruling. The For Women Scotland decision confirmed that “sex” in the Equality Act means biological sex. A 200-page guidance on safeguarding and sex-based provisions that omits this ruling is incomplete.

Question 34 (Page 13): Single-Sex Spaces

The question asks: “Do paragraphs 104 to 115 provide clarity for schools and colleges about their legal obligations relating to toilets, changing rooms, and boarding and residential accommodation?”

Recommended answer: No. In the free-text box, explain that paragraph 110 creates ambiguity about “mixed-sex toilets” that should not lawfully exist beyond the self-contained lockable cubicle exception in paragraphs 106 and 108. The School Premises (England) Regulations 2012, Regulation 4(2), require separate facilities for boys and girls aged 8 and over. The guidance should not create ambiguity around a legal requirement.

Question 35 (Page 13): Single-Sex Sports

Recommended answer: No or Not sure. Use the free-text box to argue that the guidance should be clearer: where safety or fairness is at stake, single-sex sport provision should be maintained on the basis of biological sex, consistent with the For Women Scotland ruling.

Questions 54 and 55 (Page 25): Child-on-Child Sexual Behaviour

These questions ask about the restructured Part Five, which places behaviours on a “continuum” from misogyny to sexual violence. In the free-text box, reiterate the concern that placing undefined ideological terms like “misogyny” at the start of a continuum leading to criminal violence is dangerous and could be used to penalise orthodox religious beliefs.

Questions 59, 60, and 61 (Page 28): The Golden Opportunity

These three open free-text questions are your best opportunity to raise anything. They ask:

•       Q59: “What aspects of KCSIE do you find most helpful in supporting safeguarding practice?”

•       Q60: “What aspects of KCSIE do you find least helpful or most challenging?”

•       Q61: “Is there anything missing from KCSIE that would help you safeguard children more effectively?”

Use Q60 to raise the confiding loophole, the parental downgrade, the protected characteristic trap, the compelled speech problem, and the misogyny continuum. These are the aspects you find “least helpful or most challenging.”

Use Q61 to flag what is missing: the Supreme Court’s For Women Scotland ruling, any reference to the significance of marriage and the married family, protection for teachers’ religious conscience, explicit parental consent (not merely “consultation”), and the right of parents to educate their children at home without being treated as a safeguarding risk.

Full Issue Briefing

The following sections provide detailed background on each of the key concerns. Use these to inform your free-text responses. Remember: each free-text box is limited to 1,200 characters (roughly 200 words), so you will need to select the points most relevant to each question.

1. The Confiding Loophole (Paragraph 263)

Raise this at: Q33 and Q60.

What the guidance says: Paragraph 263 instructs that where a child “confides” in a member of staff about their gender but does not make a formal request for social transition, the school is not required to inform the child’s parents.

Why it matters: This creates a safeguarding black hole. A thirteen-year-old girl can disclose profound gender distress to a teacher, and her parents need never know, provided the disclosure is framed as a confidence rather than a formal request. The distinction between “confiding” and “requesting” is artificial. Parents have a right to know when their child is experiencing distress of this kind.

Key argument: Parents must always be informed when a child expresses gender-related distress to school staff, regardless of how the child phrases their disclosure. The only exception should be where there is a specific, documented safeguarding concern about informing a particular parent, not a blanket policy of non-disclosure.

2. Parents Downgraded to Consultees (Paragraph 251)

Raise this at: Q33 and Q60.

What the guidance says: Paragraph 251 states that decisions about social transition should be made “by a school or college in consultation with parents or carers.”

Why it matters: The phrase “in consultation with” is not the same as “with the consent of.” The school decides; the parents are merely consulted. Paragraph 251 should require the “informed consent” of parents before any social transition measures are adopted.

3. The Protected Characteristic Trap (Footnote 62)

Raise this at: Q33 and Q60.

What the guidance says: Footnote 62 instructs schools to treat every gender-questioning child as if they hold the protected characteristic of “gender reassignment” under the Equality Act 2010, because it is “very difficult” to determine which children actually have it.

Why it matters: This creates enormous legal pressure to accommodate transition requests. If every gender-questioning child is treated as holding a protected characteristic, any refusal could be framed as discrimination. The practical effect is to make refusal legally perilous. Footnote 62 should be removed or substantially redrafted.

4. Conscience and Compelled Speech (Paragraph 270)

Raise this at: Q33 and Q61.

What the guidance says: Paragraph 270 acknowledges that staff may have religious or other beliefs relating to gender. It offers no specific protection, no prohibition on sanctions, and no exemption from compelled speech.

Why it matters: A teacher who holds the orthodox Christian, Jewish, Muslim, or Hindu position that biological sex is binary and immutable is protected by the Equality Act 2010 (religion or belief) and by Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Compelling such a teacher to use pronouns that contradict their sincere beliefs violates those protections. The guidance must include an explicit statement that no staff member shall be required to use pronouns that contradict their sincerely held beliefs, and that no disciplinary action shall follow from declining to do so.

5. The Misogyny Continuum (Paragraphs 521 and 528)

Raise this at: Q19, Q54, Q55, and Q60.

What the guidance says: Paragraph 528 places “misogyny” at the beginning of an escalatory “continuum” leading to sexual harassment and sexual violence. Paragraph 521 instructs schools to recognise “the escalatory nature of misogyny.”

Why it matters: Neither “sexism” nor “misogyny” has a legal definition in English law. Placing these ideologically contested concepts on a continuum with criminal violence creates the machinery to treat orthodox religious views about the roles of men and women as proto-violence. Either provide a clear legal definition or remove these references.

6. Mixed-Sex Toilets (Paragraphs 106, 108, and 110)

Raise this at: Q34.

What the guidance says: Paragraph 106 correctly states that the School Premises (England) Regulations 2012 require separate toilet facilities for boys and girls aged 8 and over. Paragraph 108 notes the exception: individual, self-contained, lockable rooms. But paragraph 110 then offers advice on managing “mixed-sex toilets,” a category that, beyond the lockable-cubicle exception, should not lawfully exist.

Key argument: Paragraph 110 should be removed or redrafted. The School Premises (England) Regulations 2012, Regulation 4(2), require separate facilities. The guidance should not create ambiguity around a legal requirement.

7. Home Education as a Risk Factor (Paragraph 214)

Raise this at: Q60 and Q61.

What the guidance says: Paragraph 214 states that elective home education “can mean that some children are not in receipt of suitable education and are less visible to the services that are there to keep them safe.”

Key argument: Elective home education is a lawful right exercised by thousands of families for entirely legitimate reasons, including religious conviction. The framing of home education as making children “less visible to services” is safeguarding language for “suspect.” The guidance should acknowledge this as a lawful right, not stigmatise it.

8. The Redefinition of Family (RSHE Guidance)

Raise this at: Q61.

While this point relates to the RSHE guidance rather than KCSIE directly, the two are designed to work together. Both come into force in September 2026. The combined effect is to marginalise the institution of marriage and the significance of the married family. Marriage, the lifelong union of one man and one woman, is the institution through which children are connected to the mother and father who made them. Teaching children that this is merely one “arrangement” among many is not neutral education; it is an ideological position. The guidance should acknowledge the unique significance of marriage in providing children with stability.

9. The Missing Ruling (For Women Scotland)

Raise this at: Q33, Q34, Q35, and Q61.

The Supreme Court’s ruling in For Women Scotland v The Scottish Ministers (https://supremecourt.uk/cases/uksc-2024-0042) confirmed that “sex” in the Equality Act 2010 means biological sex. The KCSIE 2026 draft, which uses the phrase “biological sex” repeatedly and addresses sex-based provisions at length, does not mention this ruling anywhere. A 200-page statutory guidance document on safeguarding that omits this ruling is incomplete and misleading.

10. The Bundling Strategy

Raise this at: Q60 and Q61.

Gender ideology, the misogyny continuum, the parental downgrade, and the home education stigma are all bundled into a single consultation alongside provisions on grooming gangs, weapons, and child sexual abuse. The consultation is 41 pages, 79 questions, and ten weeks. Ideologically contentious provisions should be separated and consulted upon independently.

Useful Links

Respond to the consultation online: https://consult.education.gov.uk/independent-education-and-school-safeguarding-division/keeping-children-safe-in-education-2026-revisions/

Respond by email: KCSIE2026.consultation@education.gov.uk

The KCSIE 2026 draft consultation document: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/keeping-children-safe-in-education-proposed-revisions-2026

The Supreme Court ruling in For Women Scotland: https://supremecourt.uk/cases/uksc-2024-0042

Make Your Voice Heard

The consultation closes at 11:59pm on 22 April 2026. You do not need to be an expert. You do not need to answer every question. If you only answer five questions, make them Q19, Q33, Q34, Q60, and Q61. If you only answer one, make it Q33.

You need only to speak clearly about what you believe: that parents, not the state, are the primary authority over their children; that marriage between a man and a woman is the foundation of family life; that children deserve to be protected from ideology, not subjected to it; and that religious believers must not be treated as a safeguarding risk for holding the convictions of every major faith tradition.

Respond online: https://consult.education.gov.uk/independent-education-and-school-safeguarding-division/keeping-children-safe-in-education-2026-revisions/

Respond by email: KCSIE2026.consultation@education.gov.uk

Every response counts. The government is counting on your silence. Prove them wrong.