Well well well ...

[nevertrustaherdofcows]

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/05/15/exclusive-return-ladies-gents-lavatories-ministers-tell-architects/

Extract:

Public buildings will have to have separate 'ladies' and 'gents' lavatories in the future in a blow for campaigners who want more gender-neutral facilities.

Robert Jenrick, the Communities secretary, is to amend building regulations and planning guidance to ensure separate 'ladies' and 'gents' facilities are installed in new buildings or those being developed, the Telegraph can disclose.

Buildings which already had unisex lavatories, which are shared by men and women, also face having to install partitions to ensure the privacy of the occupants is “fully respected”, sources said.

Mr Jenrick’s department launched a review last November to “ensure better provision of toilets for women and men”.

That came after an outcry over the way that companies and authorities had ripped out male and female lavatories and replaced them with gender neutral ones.

Evidence has shown that women face increasing difficulties accessing single-sex lavatories because many have been converted into "gender neutral" ones.

As I said on the other thread, I hope this is what it looks like BUT I want a clear and unequivocal statement from the Government that the toilets are segregated on the basis of sex, not gender and that they are to be used in line with biological sex.

Plus penalties for companies, public buildings and government departments that fail to uphold this.

Yay :)

At face value - fantastic. But, what RedDogs said.

What a shame that the title of this thread doesn't say what it is about. So this fact wont be picked up by anyone searching on mumsnet itself nor more importantly on google.

Could you ask MNHQ to change the title so that more are actually informed about this, which surely is the point.

I mean yes that's good.

However the men using the gents and the women using the ladies was a strongly enforced social convention.

Now that convention has been undermined and loads of women and girls have got the message look the other way, be kind etc etc. To reverse that, not sure how. But yes interesting and good news.

It says a blow for those who want gender neutral etc. Why is it never pointed out that no one would have any problem if it was in addition to single sex facilities?

When you're talking about spaces, 'gender-neutral' is such a shit, mealy-mouthed phrase. It's 'mixed sex', that's the significant aspect.

The other thread has a more obvious title

Ladies and Gents loos to return! www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/4246033-Ladies-and-Gents-loos-to-return

Not directly related to this news but my work has gender neutral toilets for years (they have never been labelled as such) but they are completely separate walled in areas each with a toilet, sink, hand dryer. I’ve never had a problem using these.

I would have thought this was a more agreeable alternative to ‘normal’ style cubicles that are then labelled as gender neutral. Although I’d imagine it might be a hassle to install.

Good, which was the theatre that raised money for more ladies loos then changed them to unisex?

Hope this applies to schools too.

@HighPressureDays

Not directly related to this news but my work has gender neutral toilets for years (they have never been labelled as such) but they are completely separate walled in areas each with a toilet, sink, hand dryer. I’ve never had a problem using these.

I would have thought this was a more agreeable alternative to ‘normal’ style cubicles that are then labelled as gender neutral. Although I’d imagine it might be a hassle to install.

There are lots of threads on this, but self-contained rooms are essential where a toilet is unisex, but there are advantages to single sex provision in cubicles. The most obvious is that cubicles are much more space efficient and one of the main problems women often face is lack of supply (plus men rarely are impressed by having to queue for a self contained room when they would be better off with a speedy urinal), but there are lots of others. Even where the self-contained room model is used, there are still advantages to single sex rooms (space allowing) and ideally set in different corridors/spaces.

They can start with the Home Office.

A source close to Mr Jenrick said: “It’s a necessity for women to have access to their own provision of toilets, but too often separate sex toilets are being removed by stealth - causing great distress.
Sex is mentioned here:

Brilliant, except for what Red said. I would like clarity on what a woman means in this context. And would have preferred an additional mandate for third spaces.

I pass a government building near westminster abbey - I think it’s trade - and you can see the ‘unisex’ loos through the windows. Makes me 😡

@toffeebutterpopcorn

Good, which was the theatre that raised money for more ladies loos then changed them to unisex?

Hope this applies to schools too.

The Old Vic. And when The Stage published an article about women's concerns about them there was an outcry from the usual suspects on Twitter threatening to cancel their subscriptions and The Stage caved in and removed the piece.