We exist to highlight the impact of the law Section 28 and ensure the censorship of LGBTQ+ lives never takes place again.

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Public Inquiry

Sign the petition for an inquiry into Section 28

UK Parliament Petition: Launch a public inquiry into the impact of Section 28 on LGBTQ people

We are currently running a petition for a public inquiry into Section 28. We need to get to 10,000 signatures to receive a response from the Government.

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Please share the petition as widely as you can — every signature brings us closer to a government response.

About

What was Section 28?

Section 28 refers to a part of the Local Government Act 1988, which stated that local authorities in England, Scotland and Wales "shall not intentionally promote homosexuality or publish material with the intention of promoting homosexuality" or "promote the teaching in any maintained school of the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship". It is sometimes referred to as Clause 28, or as Section 2A in reference to the relevant Scottish legislation. The legislation came into effect during Margaret Thatcher's premiership on 24 May 1988.

It remained law in England and Wales until 2003, and in Scotland until 2000.

This was interpreted by schools and other council services as meaning that staff could not talk about anything to do with same-sex relationships, even if someone asked them for support.

What is the Section 28 Justice Coalition?

We are a group from diverse backgrounds campaigning on several LGBTQ+-related issues. We want to achieve justice for those who lived through Section 28, either as a student or a member of staff, firstly by securing a public inquiry into the harm caused.

We want to ensure that LGBTQ+ people are supported throughout their lives and in every area of society so that their experiences are not censored and so a culture of silence can never again prevail. We intend to do this through a range of campaigning activities, backed up by reliable research and firsthand experiences.

Our primary focus right now is our petition for an inquiry into Section 28.

Our founding members are Stevie Jones, Catherine Lee, Sarah Elizabeth Drummond, Catherine Meads and Emeritus Professor Sue Sanders, co-founder of LGBTQ History Month.

Where did this come from?

We formed after attending the conference 'After Section 28: LGBTQ+ Rights in an Age of Censorship and Backlash' in February 2026. We decided to campaign for a public inquiry into the impact of Section 28 on LGBTQ+ people, as recognition of the harms caused by the legislation has been limited.

We are united by wanting to achieve justice for all the people who were harmed by the legislation and to secure better support for LGBTQ+ people in school now, in the future, and to ensure wider censorship of LGBTQ+ lives does not happen again through any form of legal or institutional silencing.

What are our aims?

  • Awareness

    Raise awareness of the horrific legislation, Section 28, and how it impacted LGBTQ+ people attending or working in schools, those working in or adjacent to local authorities running supportive LGBTQ+ services, and how wider arts and cultural sector was censored during its tenure.

  • Apology

    Achieve a comprehensive apology and acknowledgement of the harm caused by the legislation, with a guarantee that it will never happen again, a human right of all victims and survivors

  • Protect

    To ensure that a censorship never again takes place of LGBTQ+ lives across education, arts/cultural sectors, or any other area of public life. We will highlight poor experiences and failings that still exist or are being reproduced in schools that foster a culture of silence or harm LGBTQ+ young people and wider sectoral impact.

  • Progress

    Campaign for better support and acceptance for LGBTQ+ young people in education and against the censorship of LGBTQ+ lives in all areas of public life.

  • Collaborate

    Support and work with campaigns from across the world fighting against similar current legislation and censorship practices targeting LGBTQ+ communities in other jurisdictions.

What are we planning?

We are still in the early stages of planning our campaigning activities and want to ensure that LGBTQ+ people are at the centre of everything we do.

  • Petition for a public inquiry

    Our first aim is to secure a public inquiry into the impact of Section 28. This will be a difficult task, involving everything from raising awareness, lobbying politicians and campaigning across the country. Help us with the first step by signing and sharing our petition.

  • Collate evidence and research

    To further our aims, especially a public inquiry, we need lots of data, evidence and research to support our arguments. This could be anything from research into experiences during Section 28 itself, to LGBTQ+ bullying and support now, or any other research into LGBTQ+ experiences.

  • Collect experiences and stories via our Dear Section 28 Project

    Section 28's legislation was horrendous for so many LGBTQ+ people. The Dear Section 28 Project aims to highlight experiences of LGBTQ+ people during this time whether in schools, libraries, health services, public institutions, the arts and culture sector, or any other area, whilst the legislation was in force.

  • Campaigning for better support for LGBTQ+ people in education

    Section 28 was horrific and we must ensure that it never happens again, whether by formal legislation we see being introduced across the world or by social pressure which creates a culture of silence around LGBTQ+ issues in schools and our wider lives.

How can I help now?

What is our timeline?

  1. Live nowDear Section 28 Letter project to collect impact and evidence
  2. Live nowPetition for a public inquiry
  3. Pride 2026Launch our wider campaign for justice
  4. In productionDear Section 28 film

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News

News and updates from the Section 28 Justice Coalition.