New guidance on implementing equality law is “exclusionary” and will create “significant uncertainty and concern” across the sector, charity leaders and experts have warned.
Yesterday, the government laid the long-awaited Equality and Human Rights Commission’s (EHRC) draft updated Code of Practice in parliament.
The code provides guidance across all nine protected characteristics and up-to-date examples of how the Equality Act 2010 applies to everyday situations.
Last updated in 2011, the latest code applies to those providing services, exercising public functions and running associations.
It reflects over a decade of legal developments, including the Supreme Court (SC) ruling in April 2025, which said sex means biological sex for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010.
The government said: “Organisations should continue to follow the law as clarified by the SC, taking specialist legal advice if needed.
“The draft code gives organisations clear, workable guidance which will enable them to take a pragmatic approach to protecting and serving the needs of our society.”
‘Not the outcome hoped for’
The code adopts the SC’s judgment that “sex”, “woman” and “man” mean “biological sex”, “biological woman” and “biological man” for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010.
It offers examples and advice to help providers make decisions for everyday scenarios such as toilet provision or when it might be legitimate to make enquiries about an individual’s sex.
Other changes include highlighting protections for disabled people and advice on pregnancy, maternity and age discrimination.
The code contains a section on charities, including examples of service provision to people who share a protected characteristic and how they can comply with the Equality Act 2010.
Third Sector Against Transphobia said it is “deeply disappointed to see guidance which appears to maintain a position that’s inconsistent with the dignity, inclusion and safety of trans and gender-diverse people”.
“We recognise that this development will create significant uncertainty and concern across the third sector, particularly for charities and community organisations that have worked hard to support trans and gender-diverse people in inclusive and respectful ways,” it said.
“Some organisations may now find that they’re no longer able to operate in the way they previously have. This isn’t the outcome many of us had hoped for.”
The group urged all charities “to pause, assess carefully what the revised code means for their organisation and their work, and seek appropriate specialist legal and governance advice before making significant changes”.
‘Cruel, inhumane and discriminatory’
Gendered Intelligence said the first draft of the new code was “cruel, inhumane, and discriminatory towards trans people”.
The trans-led and trans-involving charity campaigned for that draft to be rejected and demanded that any new version fully consider and guarantee trans people’s rights.
“Now, the government have published the amended code. However, we know that this new draft is still exclusionary and unnecessary,” it said.
“Trans people deserve the same treatment as everyone else, and a code that cheapens or weakens our rights and protections makes a mockery of the Equality Act and the principles it was built on.”
LGBT+ anti-abuse charity Galop said the draft code “will continue to make life more difficult for many trans+ people, especially those fleeing abuse with nowhere safe to go”.
“We understand many organisations are seeking clarity, but blanket exclusion isn’t required – and it’s causing harm,” it said.
Meanwhile, charity Trans Pride Brighton called the guidance “the most extreme anti-trans legislation in western Europe”.
“This guidance supercharges anti-trans lawfare, handing cis men a legal cudgel to bankrupt any charity that dares to include trans women,” it said.
The EHRC said it will update its guidance for employers in due course to reflect developments in the law.
Parliament now has 40 days to review the code. If it does not disapprove the code, the government will set a date for it to come into force.
Once in force, the code will have legal status as a statutory code of practice on how service providers, public functions and associations can meet the duties in the Equality Act 2010.
