(Youth) Hostels

[FlabbergastedAgain25]

I've been using hostels and bunkhouses for 40-50 years, and based upon completing a feedback questionnaire and the request to complete 3 additional EDI questions I have just discovered that YHA (England and Wales) now ask about your gender identity...and when questioned about the situation they state that beds in dorms are based on gender identity not sex. I can't see where this is explicitly stated in their website.

Apparently they've responded to the EHRC consultation and are awaiting clarification before changing their current approach...

Have I been naive to not have realised female on their booking link does not mean biologically female?

Not naive, but deliberately deceived.

And that is why I only book private rooms with the YHA.

Yes, I was aware of this.

YHA Beer has 2 mixed sex toilet and shower rooms. Each room has 2 toilets with a standard height partition, a shared sink and two (solid door) shower enclosures. The room has no door, it has been removed and is open to the corridor.

Clearly, one was once the male toilet/washrooms, and the other was the female.

YHA have had this policy for years, I think there were many threads about this in ?2018. Not that I am saying you are naive, because who would think that in any sane world that policy would be appropriate?

It's been their policy for years. I remember it being discussed here when women who wanted a female only dorm were told to contact them and disclose very personal information, such as abuse, in order for YHA to consider granting them a female only space. I don't know if they still require that, but as you say it is gender rather than sex.

I agree with PPs that it has been like this for years. I, too, only book private rooms when alone even if I have to pay for a double or family room to do it.

I did know this, probably from seeing something on here. I really wonder why these organisations (NHS, Guides etc) don’t make their mixed sex status very obvious on their websites or marketing, since they’re so very sure all the public is happy with that.

Yes, it’s been like this for far too long. I remember one of the things that peaked me was sharing a hostel room in London with a TIM who made the rest of us extremely uncomfortable. Like others, I now only book private rooms, which is a shame because I used to love meeting other walkers/travellers.

I had a google and there were a few threads on this board in 2018 about it. There was also an implication that the policy came in in 2018, when they changed the terminology from 'sex' to 'gender' for booking dorms.

Thank you everyone for your replies so far. I've been quite reclusive for a while, and then sometimes booked private rooms, so was quite shocked to realise dorms are not single sex.
@Haulage yes, it would seem reasonable for organisations to make it clear when booking!

Yes, sadly they are yet another organisation that decided to throw women under the bus on the demand of men several years ago.

I queried this just last week with the SYHA and got this reply: "As an accommodation provider, Hostelling Scotland is committed to operating in accordance with the Equality Act 2010 and the recent UK Supreme Court ruling on single-sex spaces. Our duty is to ensure the safety, dignity, and legal rights of all guests across our network.

In line with current guidance and our operational policy, dormitory accommodation is allocated based on the gender marker as recorded on official identification. This means that individuals booking female-only dormitory accommodation will not be asked to share with anyone whose gender marker is male. We do not allocate shared accommodation on the basis of gender self-identification.

Where dormitory beds are unavailable for a given date, we will endeavour to offer appropriate alternatives, including private accommodation, alternative dates, or nearby hostels, subject to availability.

We hope this provides clarity and reassurance.

Thank you again for your enquiry and for your support of Hostelling Scotland."

I will follow up and ask what a "gender marker" is ... But it seems to be an improvement on their previous policy which was straight self-id.

“Gender markers” eg on passports are self ID

Their (YHA E&W) response to my query was:

"In light of the Supreme Court ruling in April, we sought legal advice to help us review its implications for our operations. We have responded to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) consultation for its Code of Practice and asked for clarity and guidance to help us shape our policy.

While we wait for this, our current approaches remain unchanged. The comfort, safety, and dignity of all our guests is always our top priority, and we are committed to being a welcoming and inclusive place for everyone.

YHA operates shared dormitories and private rooms in our hostels. Dorms are segregated by gender. We allow guests to choose the dormitory according to the gender they identify as. If any guest does not want to stay in a dorm with any other guest, we offer private rooms. All our hostels require presentation of identification at check-in to ensure that the identity of the guest matches the booking.

It is likely that we clarify the definition of male/female on the online booking form. We are currently awaiting the final updated Code of Practice from the Equality and Human Rights Commission before confirming if any changes to our policies and practices are required.

YHA constantly reviews its policies and procedures to ensure they are legally compliant and appropriate to current circumstances. Any changes to our policies are communicated as needed. "

It sounds to me like YHA E&W are blatantly ad knowingly breaking the law, ie they have made the decision to continue to break the law and to discriminate against anyone who needs a single sex dorm. "Waiting for ehrc guidence" is just blather to aid their time wasting.

Scottish YHA are still breaking the law because gender markers on official documents are not based on biological sex. But they are at least making an effort to find a practical solution. They could always say 'we expect our patrons to book the dorm that corresponds with their bio sex" and make it clear that's the rules. But they will still be a bit stuck on how to proceed if they think someone might be lying. I feel for the front of house staff.

Last time I was in a female SYHA dorm, we were asked if we minded a man (one half of a couple) staying in our room because the hostel had overbooked the men's dorm. My friends and I said we did mind, but it was embarrassing to be put in that position, as his partner was going round reassuring people how lovely her partner was. I didn't notice him in the room when I went to sleep so I assume they found another solution.

Realised this shite state of affairs when we checked in as a family to a YHA last year. Now distinctly less keen to let my daughter go youth hostelling with her mates or - far more so - alone

Their website has undergone a few... transformations in this area over the last couple of years. Sadly I haven't kept evidence, it was just something I looked at occasionally.

The Wayback Machine has some receipts. In 2019 to Jan 2025, there was a Transgender Guest Equality Policy which can be viewed from here: <a class="break-all" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230314234226/www.yha.org.uk/our-policies/equity-diversity-inclusion-policy" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20230314234226/www.yha.org.uk/our-policies/equity-diversity-inclusion-policy

I am fairly sure that I checked that page just before the SC judgement, and the policy was still there. Some time since the SC judgement, the policy referenced above disappeared from the current website: https://www.yha.org.uk/our-policies/equity-diversity-inclusion-policy

I live in hope.

Edited to add: oh dear, the Wayback Machine link doesn't look very promising, presumably because of nested links. Here it is as just text to copy and paste:
web.archive.org/web/20230314234226/www.yha.org.uk/our-policies/equity-diversity-inclusion-policy

It sounds to me like YHA E&W are blatantly ad knowingly breaking the law, ie they have made the decision to continue to break the law and to discriminate against anyone who needs a single sex dorm. "Waiting for ehrc guidence" is just blather to aid their time wasting.

Exactly. I hope their legal dept is OK with all this law-breaking. They surely wouldn't want to see themselves in court over this?

The issue of how providers verify sex in order to operate single-sex spaces and services has more or less tipped me into supporting, in principle, some sort of digital identity tool.

We could* fairly easily take sex information for a digital ID service from the Register of Births. A big benefit of a digital identity tool is that it can be highly modular, so no-one is asked or expected to share irrelevant personal information (e.g. sex when buying alcohol) rather than - as happens at present - all the personal information on one’s passport, driving licence, bank card. Thus the hypothetical TIM who passes retains his privacy except where his sex is relevant. Youth hostels, gyms etc. would routinely verify sex via the digital identity tool. Access to toilets and changing rooms could be gated electronically.

*But won't, because the Lab govt is on record stating that it regards sex data from birth certificates as accurate enough for the purposes of complying with equality duties. Can't remember where I read this, but when I have more time I might see if I can dig up the reference. I think it was a government minister during a parliamentary debate.

Yes, the Goverment basically pooh-poohed the concerns over digital ID presented by Sex Matters about this very point.

So, I've just read the latest member newsletter: "Join our AGM - your voice matters!". "We'll present the 2024/25 annual report, share what's been happening behind the scenes and host an open Q&A so you can get the answers you want straight from the team."

Hmm. I can certainly think of some questions...

How open is 'open'? Unless this is an AGM in physical space you've got no chance. Questions in a chatline, which is set up so that other attendees can't even monitor how frequently an issue is raised via this 'open' process.

Yes, I quite agree that "open" might be another word that is used in a way that does not mean what I think it usually means.

The removal of the Transgender Guest Equality Policy off the website might mean that one could phrase a question such that it's not obvious where one's affiliations lie. However, dates might mean that they've got an obvious get-out for this year's AGM: if it was removed within the year 2025-2026 then that would be an easy way of fending off the question.

Mn alerted me to this fact as well.

Yes that's still not legally compliant because it is ridiculously easy to get the Gender marker on official ID changed to be false. You do not need a GRC to do it even, and the substance of the SC ruling is that even with a GRC, a male person is still male and a female person is still female, for the purposes of provision of single sex facilities.

A legally compliant policy would be that all shared accommodation is in mixed-sex dorms by default, and female people who are actually female in the sense of biological sex can ask for female-only accommodation, but male people with a female gender marker on their ID do not qualify. The EHRC is also clear that transmen (biological females who want to be considered men) may be required to use the mixed-sex option if they have chosen to have treatments that make their appearance sufficiently masculine as to potentially cause alarm to women who want a single-sex space (having a short haircut and wearing a lumberjack shirt does not meet this threshold) because this meets the standard test of being a proportionate means to achieve a legitimate aim.