A year ago, Briella Charmichael's name was Baylin and she was a 5 year-old boy.

It is an early gender transition made possible by the controversial Safe Schools program, which teaches acceptance of transgender and homosexuality.

While many parents disagree with the decision to allow Briella to go through this change, it is hard to argue that Scott and Kiera's little boy was very unhappy in his skin.

"When your child comes to you and says to you "I am born in the wrong body', am I meant to crush my child every day and say "you were born this gender, no you can't live the gender you feel inside," Kiera said.

"What type of parent would do that?"

View photos Briella's life changed when she was able to embrace her true identity More

With a daughter already, the couple was thrilled when they learned Baylin was on the way, but for as long as they can remember Baylin was different.

Baylin dressed as Cinderella for his kindergarten dress-up day, drew pictures of himself as a girl and said he wanted to sit down on the toilet.

"We had come to realise Baylin would love all girls things and would watch me for ages get ready and wear my dresses and my heels. We would just let it go and we just thought it was a phase."

But inside was a child tormented her own body.

"I came home from work and Kiera and Baylen were sitting on the bed and Kiera called me in … that is when I realised that he had tried to pull his penis off," Scott said.

"That was probably - I don't know, the most heartbreaking thing I have ever seen in my life."

But today he is Briella — wearing a dress and a big smile.

It wasn’t quite that simple but for her parents it was worth it to have a happy child.

View photos Safe Schools teach children from a young age to accept and embrace kids with different sexualities and gender issues More

"I used to look at photos of Briella pre-transition and miss that little boy but it was a sad little kid a sad, depressed little boy, so I would never want that for her," Kiera said.

"The boys didn't want to play with Briella because you know she was a bit different and the girls didn't want to play with Briella because from the outside she looked like a boy."

Briella is enrolled in what’s known as a safe school..where a controversial policy of sexual openness enabled – even encouraged — Baylin to become Briella.

Safe Schools was first set up last year in Victoria as an anti-bullying program to increase awareness and acceptance of homosexual and transgender children.

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