Does your Local Authority Equality Policy exclude sex as a protected characteristic?

South Hams has Sex (gender)
www.southhams.gov.uk/equality

Torridge (North Devon) has Gender
www.torridge.gov.uk/article/11398/Equality-and-Diversity

Plymouth has Gender
www.plymouth.gov.uk/communitiesandneighbourhoods/socialinclusionandcommunitycohesion/equalityanddiversity

Devon County Council Equality pages aren't working new.devon.gov.uk/equality/

Exeter has Gender
exeter.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/council-information/strategies-policies-and-plans/equality-and-diversity/

Teignbridge has Gender but lists Sex, Gender and Gender reassignment all in that category, which is confusing.
www.teignbridge.gov.uk/community-and-people/people/equality-and-diversity/the-equality-act/

West Devon has Sex (gender)
www.westdevon.gov.uk/equality

If anyone else wants to write to all of the above please do.

Torbay has Sex
www.torbay.gov.uk/council/policies/corporate/equalities/

Somerset has Sex
www.somerset.gov.uk/policies-and-plans/policies/equality/

Cornwall has Sex
www.cornwall.gov.uk/community-and-living/equality-and-diversity/the-nine-protected-characteristics/

East Devon has Sex
eastdevon.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/council-business/equality-and-diversity/equality-policy-and-strategy-2017-20/appendix-2-equality-act-2010-duties/

Mid Devon has Sex
www.middevon.gov.uk/your-council/equality-and-diversity/

And actually if they now realise that there are orgs going into schools, health, police etc and giving incorrect info that is legally actionable they should immediately suspend any more 'training' from this orgs until their own policies and training materials have been properly reviewed. This is a scandal and it's time LAs and everyone else involved realised that. And again if they do that they should put out urgent messages to all affected services making sure everyone who has undertaken this training is informed of the incorrect info they have been given so that neither the service or individual workers e.g. teachers are put at risk of legal or disciplinary action.

It may seem like a lot to ask and could cost a fair bit to everyone but it's their legal responsibility and their own fault for not paying proper attention to law and safeguarding in the first place.

I don't know if any action can be taken against the orgs who misled everyone and caused this loss of money and breaches of law in the first place, but they should lose contracts and never be hired by LA or govt again. They are lobby groups have deliberately spread propaganda affecting sevice users and that should be investigated - it should never be allowed to happen again.

It isn't enough to update their docs if individual departments, orgs working with LAs etc have written their own policies in line with their LA. The LA eill need to put out an important memo to be acted on immediately making sure that all policies influenced by the incorrect LA policy are updated urgently and any current services acting on the policies are reevaluate in line with the change. This should especially go out to any services dealing with children or vulnerable people eg schools, health services etc.

Updated - and posted te new versions online.

Jugni will now need to start tracking updates. On the other thread, PP are getting responses from their LAs, some of whom have already updating docs.

If you are in a union ask for representation and assistance. Involve your union reps at grassroots and the Woman’s officer also. Unions need to support their female members.

They will remember Allen v GMB and Stefan Cross

Good idea, Ive messaged them x

Jugni: that's amazing work. Have you worked out the stats for how big a percentage have it wrong? Have you considered sharing the info with Fair Play for women who are fabulous with stats and can break these sorts of data sets down?

Hi all, I have made a spreadsheet with all English councils (yet to add Scotland, Wales and NI) with whether they have Sex as a separate category or not. If anyone has any idea as to how best to use this, let me know. Otherwise I will probably just go through emailing all the councils who have it wrong. This is what Ive been sending:

Good Morning

I am writing to express concern that 'sex' has been replaced by 'gender' on your list of protected characteristics. It would appear that either you are conflating sex and gender as the same thing, or that you do not think that biological sex is a cause for discrimination, which it is.

Gender refers to external social markers such as how one acts, looks, dresses, presents. It is a source of discrimination and it is good for it to be protected.

However, sex should be protected as a distinct characteristic. Sex is your biology, your body, your genitals, your hormones. If Sex is not protected then women's reproductive rights are not protected, nor is discrimination against women for pregnancy, or for being physically weaker etc.

Sex and gender are not the same. A person can have female sex biology and present as male gender, and have male sex biology and present as female. It is incredibly important for female equality to retain sex as protected.

Please reconsider this and reinstate sex as a separate protected characteristic, in order to comply with the Equality Act 2010 which retains sex as a category in order to protect females.

Mine is very confused. It specifically refers to the sex discrimination act and frequently mentions sex, as well as two references to law regarding gender: the gender reassignment regulations 1999 (legal protections for pay, treatment in employment, vocational training) and GRA, mechanism for applying to legally change gender.

However the policy statement says:

We will not discriminate ( indirect and direct ) on the grounds of race, gender, gender reassignment, marital status, being a lesbian or a gay man, age, religious beliefs, HIV status, or disability (covering sensory and physical disabilities, learning disabilities and mental health status).

Spot the missing one.

'Gender' seems to be increasingly being framed as the modern progressive way to reframe what was sex. Seething.

We've been asking for years, 'what legal rights do you want that you don't already have?' and never got a reply, just a lot of coyness and evasion. Now it's out in the plain open. 'Trans rights' means the elimination of women's rights. The removal of the rights of biological women to in any way define or separate themselves from men who want to be women. Much of which is being done behind closed doors, in private meetings and stealth changes to policy. No wonder the TRAs here are telling us it's too late, it's already been done.

And we have politicians, political parties and local and national government colluding with this! Is there anyone left who can truly stand up and say this is a moral, ethical, inclusive agenda?

They also have "gender" as well as sex! They appear a bit confused.

My council does include sex, but it has conflated the 9 protected characteristics in the EA with their own definition of discrimination and have added others like gender identity which they evidently consider a separate concept to "gender reassignment" which I'm guessing they think is surgery.

Picasso, was just coming on to say the same thing.

Obviously this was a deliberate tactic across local authorities and some like Sarah Brown succeeded in getting sex replaced with gender. Others weren't quite so successful but lobbyists suggested sex(gender) as a way of paving the path to full obliteration of sex. It's not a natural expression and almost without any doubt was agreed on by lobby groups before they sent it out to the transvangelicals in the field.

Sex (gender) seems quite common. I think maybe it's because gender is sometimes seen as a more polite euphemism for sex , but that's not an excuse in a legal framework these days.

It's not, it's done deliberately as gender includes men in the definition of female and woman.

They are quite happy to write sexual orientation so its not about saying sex.

I've just sent that to my local council... 'gender' indeed!

Ours has gender. I've emailed them and am now seething.

I like your wording on the letter TimeLady

This is shocking! Like the Handmaid's tale. How dare they just fiddle about with the Equality Act as the fancy!

Mine lists all but refers to "Gender (sex)".

I'm sure you are right timelady. I will write to them to check.

Sex (gender) seems quite common. I think maybe it's because gender is sometimes seen as a more polite euphemism for sex , but that's not an excuse in a legal framework these days.

Sex (gender) seems quite common. I think maybe it's because gender is sometimes seen as a more polite euphemism for sex , but that's not an excuse in a legal framework these days.

I'm in Scotland. Mine has sex then beside that gender in brackets. Not sure about that. Maybe they think the two are the same?

Dammit, meant to post that on the spreadsheet thread.

I can't edit the spreadsheet either..

I've kept things very simple and non-accusatory, just a request that they rectify their mistake:

I note with some concern that your equality and diversity policy conflates the term sex with gender

www.richmondshire.gov.uk/media/8372/equality-policy.pdf

ie Sex (gender)

The Equalities Act 2010

www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/section/4

specifically states 'sex' as the protected characteristic, not' sex (gender)' which could lead to some confusion as the two are not interchangeable. In these days of identity politics, I'm sure you'll agree that accuracy in these matters is important. I would be grateful if you could look into this.

Thank you