UK school denies Juno Dawson visit was cancelled because she is transgender

Head teacher at St Mary’s in Preston says ‘complex themes’ of new novel Martha and Me necessitated caution but gender was never a consideration

A Catholic comprehensive school has rebutted claims that it cancelled a visit by a bestselling children’s author at the last minute because she is transgender, saying that teachers had been misinformed about the suitability of her latest book for pre-teens.

Last week, Juno Dawson said St Mary’s Catholic high school in Preston had pulled its invitation 48 hours before she was due to speak as part of a promotional tour for her new novel, Martha and Me. The book tells the story of Fliss, who discovers the wartime journal of her grandmother Margot while staying with her in south Wales.

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