A U.K. employment tribunal has ruled that a National Health Service (NHS) policy requiring female nurses to share changing rooms with a transgender man is illegal.
The Newcastle Employment Tribunal found that the County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust engaged in unwanted conduct related to sex and gender reassignment, which violated the dignity of the claimants and created a hostile, humiliating and degrading environment. In addition, by failing to address nurses’ concerns about the policy, the trust established “a hostile and intimidating environment,” declared Employment Judge Seamus Sweeney.
Nurses at Darlington Memorial Hospital reported that a male colleague known as “Rose” — who identifies as transgender but retains biological male characteristics — has been present in the women’s changing room. The changing area is an open space without cubicles and features a slow-lock system that makes entry difficult.
Tracey Hooper, a nurse at the hospital, described the situation: “You scan the changing room before you start to undress. It’s just very uncomfortable. I don’t want to get changed in front of a biological man, and I don’t want to see him getting changed either.”
Another nurse, who was sexually abused as a child, recounted being accosted by “Rose” while searching for her locker-room keys: “I felt glued to my seat, I could not move. My hands started to sweat. I was petrified and felt sick and began hyperventilating.”
After raising concerns with hospital management, the nurses requested that “Rose” be moved to a separate changing area. Instead, they were told by hospital staff that the trust “supports [the transgender colleague] 150%” and that they needed to “be educated,” “broaden their mindset,” and “compromise.”
In May 2024, the nurses filed a claim with the employment tribunal. Two months later, the hospital created a temporary locker room in a ward manager’s office for those uncomfortable changing around “Rose.” However, this space continued to be used as a locker room even after it was deemed fire-safety non-compliant.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) had previously warned the trust that its policy violated 1992 regulations requiring single-sex changing rooms. Despite a March 2024 Supreme Court ruling clarifying legal definitions of “man” and “woman,” the hospital’s director, Andrew Thacker, republished the policy without change.
Bethany Hutchison, a Darlington nurse, stated: “This is a victory for common sense and for every woman who simply wants to feel safe at work.”