It gets better – and you can help

During my experience as a teacher, my personal life was never particularly a topic of conversation. So I can only imagine the difficulty involved in taking the decision to come out as a teacher. As well as considering the reaction of colleagues, the issue of repeatedly coming out must be amplified when new groups of students and their parents arrive each year.

On reflection, I’ve had a tremendously supportive experience as an openly homosexual man. I haven’t suffered any bullying or barriers. I’ve only received trivial and fleeting homophobic abuse. I feel comfortable being myself in my workplace, and my colleagues, friends and family all joined me in celebrating my wedding last year.

I hope my experience is typical. Sadly, I know it isn’t universal.