Gendered Spaces and the Impact of the Supreme Court Judgement/EHRC Interim Update on Trans, Intersex and Gender Non-Conforming Adults
This report examines how the hastily released non-statutory EHRC interim update (following the April Supreme Court Judgement on the definition of sex for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010) has shaped real-world access to, and experiences within, gendered spaces in the UK.
Despite Equality Act 2010 protections for trans people remaining in law, our data demonstrates that current interpretations and practices cause a clear risk to the effectiveness of those protections. In practice, it is harder now for trans people to seek protection under the Equality Act 2010 – including with regards to aspects that the Supreme Court judgement has not changed.
Key Findings
- Gatekeeping is widespread: incidents typically follow a pattern of misgendering/mistaken identity → challenge or refusal → avoidance, reported by trans people and some cis gender, gender-non-conforming women.
- Incidents of being openly challenged in public spaces increased markedly following the non-statutory interim update: frequency of incidents and the perception that they are identity-based rose after April 2025, with toilets in pubs/leisure venues featuring strongly.
- Avoidance has become routine: many respondents now avoid gendered facilities following incidents, reporting significant consequences on health, work and social participation.
- Some people are more likely to have experienced difficulties: disability/long-term condition status and more visibly gender-nonconforming presentation are linked to higher challenge rates; cis gender non-conforming/ masculine women have been misidentified and targeted regularly.
- Public messaging matters: inconsistent interpretations have been understood by many members of the public as permission to challenge people in gendered spaces if they think they shouldn’t be there. These challenges are inappropriate and risk unlawful harassment; there is no factual evidence that excluding trans people from spaces that align with their gender improves public safety.
- Attempts to sabotage research: the hundreds of hostile responses to this survey and attempts to sabotage the research act to corroborate trans, intersex and gender nonconforming respondents’ fears of harassment from those opposed to their inclusion in society.
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