M&S Colchester claim mixed changing is ‘completely safe’ for women.

Just repeating this for anyone who missed it.

"Marks & Spencer is pushing back after campaign group Sex Matters claimed its changing room policy could be unlawful. In a letter to the retailer, Sex Matters argued that advertising male and female spaces while operating them as mixed-sex facilities could amount to discrimination and create a “hostile” environment for women. M&S rejected the claim, stating the group has been misinformed about its approach.
The company said most of its stores have long used unisex fitting rooms with private, lockable cubicles, and that this policy has not changed following recent legal rulings. It also denied removing gendered spaces, noting that many locations historically used generic Fitting Rooms signage, with new Try On signs part of a broader redesign. The dispute comes as debate continues across the UK over single-sex spaces."

Personally I don't think Sex Matters would be suggesting a policy could be unlawful unless there was reasonable doubt that it was, indeed, unlawful.

Now that this has gone viral, M&S will have to release a statement and we can all make a more informed decision about how many of their stores use generic 'Fitting Rooms' signage, and whether or not they have removed gendered spaces.

We have years of evidence that transwomen have illegally filmed women and little girls in changing rooms and M&S have done nothing to help avoid this. Transwomen have shown off online about masturbating in M&S women's changing rooms.

Now a woman has legally filmed a man when she's trying to prevent transwomen from illegally filming and watching women and girls.

Some women are worrying more about the man who was doing an objectively poor job at customer service.

Get your priorities straight.

Agree these kind of tactics turn me off completely. If there is a point to be made there are so many better ways to do this without attempting to humiliate someone while they are at work.

I was in M&S earlier. All of the signs simply said fitting room. Upstairs children could try on school uniform with their mums to hand. I didn't have to fight my way through hoards of men queuing up to use the fitting room upstairs on the lingerie, children's & women's wear floor. I also didn't see women causing a scene at the fitting room downstairs in menswear & home furnishings. I suppose they could have wanted to try on a bath sheet or tea towel.

Exactly this. The video of this and the BA duty manager this week have really irked me. These are ordinary people going about their jobs and both of the people recording completely invaded their privacy in an attempt to make a point to strangers online. It’s revolting and FWIW I think they both handled themselves far more graciously than I would have in the same situation.

Go check the online store guide - it is Fitting Room (men) and Fitting Room (women)

The boogie (wo)men aren't transwomen

The one who raped a patient on a single sex NHS ward was.

Are you certain of that? When I worked for them around 12 years ago, the fitting room signage literally just said Fitting Room. There was definitely no redesign of signage for many years after I left and I don't remember that ever changing in my local stores. M&S was massively into consistency and policy so individual stores wouldn't have deviated from this. At the time, the fitting rooms were split by gender (I happened to notice a reference to trans people in policy long before it hit the news) and I remember occasionally men being disgruntled when they accidentally tried to enter a Female changing room, pointing out it didn't actually say as much. As was fairly typical at that time I'd say, it was assumed you would know the fitting room in Women's or Lingerie was the female one.

Interestingly, 60% of transwomen in custody only started transitioning after they were imprisoned.

I suspect that there is a majority crossover in the 62% you quote. It's almost as if they can't hack it in the male estate and think this is an easy way out. I expect the transwomen who are walking amongst us on the outside are not representative of the 62%. I wonder what percentage detransition on release.

There are about 17000 men serving sentences for sex crimes and around 150 transwomen (who statistically were likely not living as trans at the time of their crimes). 97% of women contacting Rape Crisis have been assaulted by men they know. The boogie (wo)men aren't transwomen.

A few months ago my local M&S told me the changing room in the women's department was a women's changing room not a mixed sex one.

Note that it says, "many locations historically used generic Fitting Rooms signage".

The use of the word 'many' instead of 'most', or 'all' suggests that some locations will still use male or female signage. This is particularly likely given that Sex Matters took the time to get involved.

In which case M&S are breaking the law.

Obviously this isn't proof but it suggests that M&S are still advertising changing rooms as male and female.

M&S Denies Changing Room Policy Is Unlawful After A UK Campaign Group Raises Concerns | Hotspots Magazine

I need to go into our city centre next week. I'll make a detour into M&S for a nosey.

@frumpydump that's interesting - have you got any evidence that all M&S stores advertise all of their changing rooms as just 'fitting rooms'? I haven't been to my local store for a while but I remember they were always advertised as men's or women's.

I no longer shop at M&S (even online) for this very reason. I used to do most of the clothes shopping for my family there. I will stay away until they respect the law.

But they don’t advertise it as that. They advertise them as fitting rooms. That’s it.

Agree I find this disgusting. No one has the right to treat shop staff like this while they are at work.

They are very obviously breaking the law if they advertise it as a woman's changing room and let men in.

Yes, if they provide single sex changing rooms for men but not women that would be discrimination

Except many of the M&S stores still have a men’s changing room, it’s just the women’s they’ve opened to all.

If M&S has a changing room near all of the women's clothes, and a changing room near all of the men's clothes, both signposted 'fitting room', would it be reasonable to expect that one is for men and the other for women?

I think most women would be shocked to hear a man on the otherside of the partition. Lots of men would be uncomfortable if they heard girls too.

If mixed sex changing rooms are safe and wanted, why aren't they more upfront about them? Why say "Fitting Room", and not mention that they are for both men and women?

The online reviews they allowed grossed me out so much I haven’t found it hard to stop buying clothes there. I still buy food but that’s reduced

M&S isn't breaking the law.

Are they not breaking the law by providing single sex fitting rooms for men but not for women?

@IMakePointsWhichHoldSignificance
, that ain't a bag, it's a shipment! Sorry, couldn't resist

I wouldn’t want mixed changing rooms in say a gym or swimming pool but I don’t see the issue with lockable cubicles in a store. A lot of places, especially smaller stores, only have space for one. This is a personal view but I do not see the point in harassing a worker over anything like this. It’s not his personal policy, he didn’t build and design the store. There is no point shouting at someone over this. Email head office, start a petition, don’t harass powerless retail workers.