—-“SOUTHAMPTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM! —-——-— See “CLASSROOM Psychology”—-——
A series of videos by Dr Cora Sargeant, Educational Psychologist and Senior Teaching Fellow on the DEdPsych Educational Psychology Training course at the School of Psychology at Southampton University
Dr Sargeant’s video series “CLASSROOM Psychology” promotes ‘gender-affirming’ care, the use of puberty blockers, hormone therapy and social transitioning for gender-questioning individuals, including children attending compulsory education, if their title has any veracity (e.g. CLASSROOM Psychology no: 38). These themes challenge the findings of the Cass Review (2024), the Sullivan Report (2025) and the recent confirmation by the Supreme Court ruling that “woman” and “sex”, within the Equality Act 2010, have biological definitions.
Academics like Dr Sargeant can say what they like but they have to follow child-protection guidance and law when acting as teachers of trainees for a career in any children's service. What demands are made of students, what sort of outcomes are expected of those undertaking graduation-critical research projects supervised by Dr. Sargeant? How do these issues feed back to course admissions policies? So far the course directors have resisted all attempts for our interest group to access research dissertations or any details of the Educational Psychology Gender Research Group to which Dr Sargeant refers to in some of the videos. Dr Sargeant refers (“Chapter 1”) to “we, in the EPGRG, help our trainee EPs (quotes 8 at a time, which would be the majority of any cohort) to run their doctoral thesis research on gender diversity in some way, often on LGBTQIA+ more broadly too but very often on gender diversity more specifically”.
Dr Sarah Wright BA, MSc, P.G.C.E, PhD Programme Director: Doctoral Programme in Educational Psychology (DEdPsych) Training course; Educational Psychologist, Hampshire Local Authority and Professor Charles Leek PhD CPsychol AFBPsS FHEA Head of School of Psychology at Southampton University have both been offered opportunities to confirm whether opposing ‘gender-critical’ beliefs and viewpoints are given any validity and exposure on their DEdPsych course. We look forward to their positive response.
For further open debate and discussion on the issues raised please see…
Dr David Buck BSc PGCE MA MSc PhD C.Psychol AFBPsS
Former Consultant Educational Psychologist and
Ofsted Inspector of SEN