"Kemi Badenoch, the minister for women and equalities, is said to be pushing for the non-statutory guidance to include a ban on social transitioning by pupils, meaning that transgender children would not be able to use another name and pronoun or wear uniform of the opposite gender.

"But the Times said legal advice from Victoria Prentis, the attorney general, found that a ban on social transitioning in schools was unlawful under the Equalities Act and would require the government passing new legislation..."

"New legislation could delay the guidance until the 2024 general election. Alternatively, the government could issue guidance that drops the controversial clauses.

"On Sunday Badenoch told the BBC that the guidance would compel schools to inform parents if their child was questioning their gender. “What is right is that parents know what is going on with their children at school,” she said.

"But on Monday the education secretary, Gillian Keegan, declined to tell MPs when the guidance would be published, saying that she was working with Badenoch to produce it “in the near term”."