What is the updated EHRC code of practice about and how does it apply?

The Equality and Human Rights Commission released updated guidance on single-sex spaces that permits organizations to exclude transgender people from facilities designated for one sex only. The revision marks the first major update to the EHRC code of practice in years and addresses a contentious area of equality law.

The updated code applies to schools, workplaces, hospitals, and other public institutions across England, Wales, and Scotland. Organizations can now legally maintain single-sex toilets, changing rooms, and dormitories that exclude transgender individuals, provided they have objective justification for doing so. The guidance clarifies that sex-based exclusions remain lawful under the Equality Act 2010, even as that same legislation protects transgender people from discrimination.

This positions the EHRC as taking a middle path between competing rights claims. The watchdog acknowledges both the legal protections afforded to transgender people and the right of organizations to maintain sex-segregated spaces. However, the practical effect favors biological sex categories over gender identity in these specific contexts.

The guidance has drawn scrutiny from LGBTQ+ advocacy groups, who argue it creates legal cover for excluding transgender people from facilities matching their gender identity. Simultaneously, some women's rights organizations view it as necessary protection of single-sex spaces for privacy and safety reasons.

The EHRC's role as Britain's independent equalities watchdog makes this update consequential for governance and policy implementation across public and private sectors. Organizations must now navigate both the updated code and their obligations under equality law more broadly. The revision essentially tells employers and institutions they have legal ground to maintain sex-segregated facilities, shifting the burden onto transgender individuals seeking access to spaces aligned with their identity to prove discrimination rather than organizations needing to justify exclusion.

This guidance will likely influence how disputes over single-sex spaces proceed through employment tribunals and courts, setting precedent for how British institutions handle this intersection of sex and gender identity