Full Breakdown
New EHRC Guidance Requires Public Facilities to Be Organized by Biological Sex
8/5/2026, 8:10:15 PM
Background & Context
In April 2025 the UK Supreme Court ruled that “sex” under the Equality Act 2010 refers to biological sex rather than gender identity. The decision prompted the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) to draft a statutory code of practice. After a draft period, the final code came into force on August 5 2026 for England, Scotland and Wales.
Core Provisions of the Code
The guidance directs that single-sex spaces—public toilets, changing rooms, hospital wards and refuge shelters—must be allocated on the basis of a person’s sex recorded at birth. Where a service is deemed proportionate to be single-sex, only individuals of the same biological sex may use it. The code also advises providers to offer gender-neutral alternatives, describing “third-space” facilities as a possible solution when exclusion would otherwise leave a trans person without any accessible service.
Scope & Estimated Impact
Figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request show the code could affect roughly 13,000 toilets, more than 5,000 changing rooms and around 18,000 signage items across the United Kingdom. Press Association analysis estimates public-sector bodies may incur cleaning costs of £20.6 million and building-work expenses of £14.2 million per year.
Official Statements & Responses
Equality Minister Bridget Phillipson said the guidance provides “legally accurate, impartial and up-to-date” advice that can be relied upon in court. EHRC chairwoman Mary-Ann Stephenson called the publication a “major milestone”. Former Home Secretary Suella Braverman argued the government had been “dragged kicking and screaming” into adopting “simple common sense” to protect women-only spaces.
Criticism & Opposition
Good Law Project, supporting an unnamed trans claimant, issued a pre-action protocol letter on August 5, labeling the guidance “transphobic” and “unlawful”. Jess O’Thomson, the group’s trans-rights lead, said the code represents a backward step for trans human rights. Alexandra Parmar-Yee, director of Trans+ Solidarity Alliance, warned the code will shut trans people out of essential services, describing it as “chaotic, unworkable and cruel”. Both organisations argue the guidance undermines protections for gender-reassignment under the Equality Act.
Legal Challenge
The Good Law Project’s pre-action protocol initiates the first formal legal challenge to the code, signalling intent to bring the matter before the courts to test the guidance against the Act’s dual protections for biological sex and gender reassignment.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
Cost estimates vary, with one source citing £20.6 million in cleaning expenses and another noting £14.2 million per year for building work, but no comprehensive total cost has been published. The code mentions gender-neutral facilities as an alternative but does not specify how many organisations have already implemented such options.
What’s Next
The government expects further debate and potential legal challenges, and the EHRC plans to update guidance for employers “in due course” to reflect ongoing legal developments. Stakeholders are preparing for possible court proceedings that could clarify the code’s compatibility with existing equality protections.
