Which LGBTQ+ Inclusive School Strategies Support LGBTQ+ Student, Staff and Parent Perceptions’ of School Climate? A Latent Class Analysis

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ+) students, staff and parents report schools can be unsafe and unwelcoming environments. Yet few studies have explored student, staff and parent perceptions of school climate within one study or adopted a person-centered perspective. The present study sought to identify the types of LGBTQ+ related strategies adopted by schools. It explored whether identified strategies were differentially related to perceptions of school safety and community.  The study included 1,937 students, 124 school staff and 75 parents currently connected to Australian schools. Data were collected via online sampling in 2021. Four distinct inclusion strategy profiles were identified via latent class analysis: Comprehensive Inclusion, Curriculum & Pedagogical Inclusion, Extracurricular Inclusion and Limited Inclusion. Findings indicate that school staff that utilise LGBTQ+ affirming teaching practices, and schools that include LGBTQ+ related resources and activities (e.g. Gay Straight Alliances; GSAs) contributed towards greater perceptions of school safety and community.