UK Single-Sex Space Rules Take Effect August 5, Requiring Biological Sex for Toilets and Changing Rooms

The Supreme Court's single-sex space ruling will come into force at the beginning of August, GB News reported. Guidance on the use of changing facilities and toilets will become effective on August 5. The code of practice was published in draft form in May and covers England, Scotland and Wales.

It states that a service must be used based on biological sex to qualify as single-sex under the Equality Act. Single-sex toilets, changing rooms, hospital wards and refuges must therefore be used based on a person's sex at birth. The code noted it would be very unlikely to be proportionate to put a trans person in a position where there is no service they are allowed to use.

Self-contained lockable cubicles have been suggested as an option for all users. For Women Scotland, the group behind the original Supreme Court case, welcomed the move. A spokeswoman said it had been a long wait for the Code of Practice and that the group had faced lies and misdirection along the way.

She added that she hoped sense would now prevail as everyone gets on with complying with the law. Nearly 13,000 toilets and more than 5,000 changing rooms could require amendment, along with at least 18,000 signs. The estimated cost runs into the millions.

Public bodies such as local councils could face unadjusted costs of £20.6 million for cleaning updated facilities and a further £14.2 million annually for construction work. Officials have warned these figures may increase further. The revised code marks the first update in more than 10 years.

It was published eight months after being handed to the Government by the Equality and Human Rights Commission. The new rules will apply to service providers including restaurants, leisure centres and hairdressers, as well as public functions such as council services and membership associations like local sports clubs with 25 or more members.