Almost half of LGBT+ youth have felt bullied in education, survey suggests

Almost half of young LGBT+ people surveyed in the UK have felt bullied or discriminated against at school or university because of their sexual orientation but many have not reported it, according to research.

The charity which commissioned the polling said the findings suggest that “despite undeniable progress in LGBTQ rights”, young people are still facing prejudice “in environments where they should feel secure and protected”.

Some 545 people aged 16-24 in the UK were surveyed online by YouGov this month, 337 of whom were still in education.

The global children’s charity Theirworld, which said the figures have been weighted to be representative of this group, said it is “unacceptable that LGBTQ+ youth continue to face bullying and discrimination in schools”.

The polling, which comes during Pride Month, found that 47% of LGBT+ youth surveyed said they had been bullied and/or discriminated against at school or university because of their sexual orientation.

Half (49%) of these people did not report the bullying to anyone.

Of those who did report their experiences, almost three-quarters (72%) said they felt staff responded badly, such as “turning a blind eye”.

One in four (25%) LGBT+ pupils said they had faced bullying and/or discrimination because of their gender identity, the polling found.

Overall, most respondents who had been bullied said it had taken the form of verbal abuse (73%), more than half (53%) cited harassment, almost a third (31%) said they had faced online abuse, a quarter (24%) endured threats of violence, more than one in seven (16%) said physical abuse, and one in seven (15%) said sexual abuse.

Almost a fifth (19%) said they were purposely misgendered.

More than a quarter (27%) of those surveyed said they had felt or currently feel unsafe in secondary school.

This compared with 6% of those who attended or are at university or college, and 9% of those who had attended or currently attend sixth-form college.

The charity said: “The findings suggest that despite undeniable progress in LGBTQ rights, young people continue to face prejudice and discrimination in environments where they should feel secure and protected.”

Theirworld president, Justin van Fleet, said: “It’s unacceptable that LGBTQ+ youth continue to face bullying and discrimination in schools — the very place where they should feel secure and safe.

“Schools must be inclusive environments where every child feels valued and respected.”