NHS hospitals will be given guidance on preserving single sex wards

[ChristinaXYZ]

"NHS hospitals will be given guidance on preserving single-sex wards and businesses offered reassurance on the legality of keeping male and female lavatories, under plans by the equalities regulator to help public and private sector bodies resist pressure from pro-trans activists.

Baroness Falkner, the chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission has told ministers that the body is acting on a request by MPs to issue hospitals, schools, prisons and private firms with "worked examples and guidance" that will "provide clarity ... on the provision of single-sex services." It is expected to issue the guidance early next year.

The regulator's intervention follows a series of highly charged controversies over the use of women-only facilities by trans hospital patients, prisoners and staff.

A Whitehall source said that "one of the biggest concerns of women’s groups is ensuring prisons, refuges, changing rooms and hospital wards are kept single sex." The new guidance will be something that public and private sector bodies "can use to show they are adhering to the law."....

"The EHRC's plan to clarify the law is intended to strengthen the hand of organisations currently concerned that they will face legal action if they attempt to retain women-only facilities or groups.

An EHRC spokesman said: “The law allows for single sex spaces and we believe it’s important people understand how they should operate in practice. We are looking at how best to provide more clarity for service providers so they can be confident they are complying with the law.”"

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Small thread on this: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/4376924-The-EHRC-to-issue-guidance-on-single-sex-services

There's also a thread about Baroness Faulkner's interview today on Times Radio.

This would be a massive achievement if they manage it. I imagine that all the NHS trusts cheerleading for rapists and other male born sex offenders to be placed in women's wards if they self identify as women may have placed some pressure on the government?

I think the NHS Trusts got told by Stonewall what 'Stonewall Law' was and that's how it all went down.

Thank god the EHRC is actually defending women’s human rights. I hope this is part of a movement back to reality.

Does that cover Scotland too?

I saw this and thought. Fucking how disingenuous. Have they no shame?

In the 90s when big govt thing was single sex wards. Behind the scenes it was ALWAYS single gender.

How can something be got back if it wasn't there in the first place?

It's fairly simple. The same immediate and unquestioning respect and care for female people's protected characteristics and choice of space needs to be extended on request in the exact same way as it is currently extended to male people who wish to be on women's wards.

This will mean having to admit that biological sex exists however, and accepting that some female people may choose not to be with male people regardless of whether or not the male person wishes it. But then the male person is being allowed to identify out of the male provision whether or not the other males in the provision agree.

Not everything can be for everyone in order to meet needs. Everyone's needs are equally important.

But the NHS has never had single sex wards! It has always been single gender...

Can you point me to the frost gender ward please?

CuriousBogInTheNight

"But the NHS has never had single sex wards! It has always been single gender."

I think you are mistaken. No mention of genderwoo here.

www.rdash.nhs.uk/about-us/public-declarations/delivering-same-sex-accommodation/

www.uhs.nhs.uk/Media/Controlleddocuments/General/Same-sex-accommodation-policy.pdf

I really hated waking up in Recovery after my BSO hysterectomy to see a middle-aged bloke staring at me across the aisle from his bed.

They'd run out of beds in the main wards so they then had to temporarily turn Recovery into a full-on mixed-sex ward. I was stuck there for 12 hours till eventually a bed manager found a room for me.

There had been a complication with the op. I was on fentanyl, really vulnerable, bleeding out of my vagina, needing vaginal examinations, my airway was bruised, with no visitors allowed (and this was pre covid) - not even my adult DS or my DP.

And still that man stared across. (He was eventually rewarded by being found a ward bed quicker than I was, presumably to get shot of him.)

And no, they won't close the curtains for privacy when the staff need to keep an eye on you.

Bloody horrible stressful experience.

Sorry to hear that, SpindelWhorl. The last thing you need after surgery is unnecessary stress.

Some people say they don't care who else is in the ward. Lucky them. For most of us, that may be true in intensive care, when you're barely conscious and there are staff around you all the time.

But in recovery, I was fully aware of my surroundings and would have felt embarrassed by male patients walking past. I'd have been very disturbed if a man stared at me. That's unpleasant at the best of times, and intimidating when you are weak and vulnerable.

andyoldlabour I believe it's Annex B of the single sex wards policy which gives away that in fact single sex wards are nothing of the kind, I can't dig it out now but will later if someone else doesn't.

Anbex B is discussed on this thread www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3705528-New-NHS-guidance-on-same-sex-accommodation#prettyPhoto