Key facts
- New UK guidance requires single-sex toilets and changing rooms to be based on biological sex.
- The guidance concludes a 40-day parliamentary scrutiny period.
- It will formally come into force in the coming weeks.
- An estimated 12,895 toilets and 5,526 changing rooms may need to be revamped.
- The total estimated 10-year cost for implementing changes is £703.1 million.
New guidance mandating that single-sex toilets, changing rooms, hospital wards, and refuges must be used based on a person's birth sex, rather than their gender identity, is set to come into force in the UK. This follows the conclusion of a 40-day parliamentary scrutiny period, during which the updated code of practice could have been rejected. The guidance, which covers England, Scotland, and Wales, confirms that for a service to be classed as single-sex under the Equality Act, it must be used on the basis of biological sex, aligning with a Supreme Court ruling.
While the code formally takes effect in the coming weeks, its implementation is expected to necessitate significant changes to public amenities. Estimates suggest that nearly 13,000 toilets and over 5,000 changing rooms, along with at least 18,000 signs, may need to be revamped across Britain. The total estimated cost for implementing these changes over a decade is £703.1 million. Public-sector bodies alone face unadjusted costs of £20.6 million for cleaning and £14.2 million annually for building work. The guidance acknowledges that unisex services, such as self-contained lockable cubicles, could provide an alternative to ensure provision for all, noting it would be "very unlikely to be proportionate to put a trans person in a position where there is no service that they are allowed to use". The code, updated for the first time in over a decade, was published by the Government after being handed over from the EHRC.