Media Releases

Nancy Kelley, CEO at Stonewall (she/her), said: ‘We welcome the Tavistock & Portman NHS Foundation Trust’s application to appeal the ruling in the Bell v Tavistock case.

'Puberty blockers have been used for decades, and the court’s judgment does not reflect international best practice in the care of trans children, as highlighted by The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) Standards of Care and the Endocrine Society’s Guidelines, along with medical organisations and experts around the world, who have called for the decision to be overturned. We will do everything we can to support ongoing legal efforts to ensure trans young people have access to care.

‘We should learn from Australia’s experience, where a Family Court process was introduced in 2003 for trans young people to access gender-affirming medical treatment. The requirement for court authorisation was revoked in 2017 after research made clear the severe harm it caused through increased delays and distress to young people and their families. This ruling highlighted that gender-affirming care is an internationally-recognised medical treatment that does not require judicial involvement.

‘Today, the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust has announced their clinical review process timeline for the young people who are currently undergoing endocrine treatment and those waiting for treatment. We welcome the clarity their timeline brings, but more must be done to ensure that trans young people and their families affected by the ruling have access to targeted mental health support while their care is under review.

‘Like every young person, all trans and gender questioning young people must be able to access specialist healthcare in a timely way, and contribute to healthcare decisions which are right for them. We will continue to fight for all trans young people to get the support they need, until all LGBT people are free to be ourselves.’

Please see here for more information on today's update.

If you are struggling with this development, please consider getting support from:

Trans Youth & LGBT organisations:

• Gendered Intelligence: youthwork@genderedintelligence.co.uk / 07511614834 (website)
• Mermaids Youth helpline: 0808 801 0400 (website)
• LGBT Foundation email: helpline@lgbt.foundation (website)
• Proud Trust: 0161 660 3347 / info@theproudtrust.org (website)
• AllSorts: 01273 7212211 (website)

Helplines:

• MindLine Trans+: 0300 330 5468 (website)
• Switchboard LGBT+ helpline: 0300 330 0630 (website)
• LGBT Foundation helpline: 0345 3 30 30 30
• Childline: 0800 1111 (website)  

If you’re feeling suicidal or are in a crisis: 

• Hopeline: CALL 0800 068 41 41 / TEXT 07860 039967 / EMAIL pat@papyrus-uk.org
• Give us a shout: TEXT 85258

Nancy Kelley, Chief Executive, Stonewall (she/her) said: ‘The 2021 Census will be a historic moment for LGBT+ communities. For the first time, the Census includes two new voluntary questions on sexual orientation and trans status, as well as clear and inclusive guidance on how to answer the Census sex question. This will give us an accurate picture of the size and make-up of the LGBT+ population in Britain.

'For far too long, our community has been a hidden population. Collecting this vital data will ensure researchers, policymakers, service providers and community organisations are able to understand the needs of LGBT+ people and develop tailored services to help us be treated fairly and achieve our potential. Now we need to make sure all lesbian, gay, bi and trans people in England and Wales feel confident and supported to fill in the Census on 21 March.’

Nancy Kelley, CEO at Stonewall (she/her) said: ‘It is upsetting and concerning that Jayne Ozanne, James Morton and Ellen Murray all felt they had to resign from their advisory posts in response to a lack of UK Government action to address conversion therapy. We stand in solidarity with them and are grateful for all the work they have done to hold the Government to account, work that we will all continue to do as we fight for LGBT+ equality.

‘It is appalling that in 2021 our communities are still being subjected to these harmful practices, putting lesbian, gay, bi, trans, queer, intersex and asexual people at risk of lifelong trauma. In the last week alone, almost twenty thousand people have emailed their MPs and urged the UK Government to stop dragging its feet and bring in a full legislative ban of LGBTQIA+ conversion therapy.

‘The trust and support of our communities cannot be taken for granted. It has been almost one thousand days since the UK Government promised to ban conversion therapy, but actions speak louder than words. We have waited long enough, now is the time for the UK Government to act.

‘To add your voice and call on the UK Government to act, go to www.banconversiontherapy.com and write to your MP today.’

Nancy Kelley, CEO of Stonewall, and Colin Macfarlane, Director Stonewall Scotland and Northern Ireland, said: ‘We are appalled by the baseless and offensive accusations made by Alba parliamentary candidate Margaret Lynch on Saturday.  

‘In a speech made on Saturday (10 April), she accused Stonewall, LGBT Youth Scotland, and indirectly ILGA World, of campaigning to lower the age of consent to 10. Her words were then widely shared online by a number of individuals and organisations. What she said was not only untrue, but it was also a wilful, bad faith interpretation made for the sole purpose of trying to smear LGBT+ organisations. Her allegations have been refuted in the strongest terms by ILGA World. 

‘In making these accusations, she is repeating deeply harmful myths about LGBT+ people as paedophiles and sexual predators. It’s the oldest trick in the homophobic book of lies. This kind of language has a long, dark history of being used to paint us as threats to children and stop us from being treated as equal citizens. These myths are used to bully, intimidate and silence LGBT+ people.  

‘We will not stand for this.  Her comments have been deeply upsetting for LGBT+ people in Scotland and beyond. These falsehoods and those who recycle them and amplify them place our staff and our community in danger. They have no place in public life, or anywhere else in society.

‘We call on Margaret Lynch to retract her false accusation and apologise. We are carefully considering our next steps. If you have any information that could help us consider our next steps, please get in touch. This is about the sort of country we want to live in, and whether we want to live in a country where decency and truth matter. We call on all Scotland’s political leaders to condemn this behaviour and stand in solidarity with LGBT+ communities.’

Nancy Kelley, CEO of Stonewall, (she/her) said: ‘We are delighted that Northern Ireland has become the first UK nation to vote in favour of banning conversion therapy. This fantastic result is the culmination of years of campaigning and the recent work of the Ban Conversion Therapy Northern Ireland coalition, which we’re proud to be part of. It was moving to hear such passionate speeches from across the political spectrum, and now the Minister for Communities must urgently bring forward legislation to deliver on the Assembly’s resounding mandate.

‘We hope that this powerful move forward for a full legal ban on conversion therapy will inspire swift movement from the Governments across the rest of the UK in implementing their own effective legislation to outlaw this barbaric practice. In 2021, no LGBT+ person should ever be made to feel that they need to change who they are. Last night the Assembly voted to protect our communities from harm and it’s time for other nations to stop dragging their feet and follow suit.’

• New research finds 3 in 4 LGBT+ women and non-binary people (77 per cent) experiencing worse mental health due to the pandemic.
• Top concerns include being unable to see family, worries about health of family and friends, and decreased mental wellbeing.
• DIVA and Stonewall to uplift and celebrate lesbian community for Lesbian Visibility Week 2021.

Results released today for Lesbian Visibility Week 2021 show the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on lesbian, bi, trans and queer women and non-binary people in the UK and beyond.

The survey found that 3 in 4 LGBT+ women and non-binary people (77 per cent) reported worse mental health as the result of COVID-19 and subsequent lockdowns. Over half (52 per cent) of respondents had accessed mental health services in the past 12 months, while a further 12 per cent had tried to access mental health services but were unsuccessful.

Of the almost 2000 respondents, 72 per cent identify as a lesbian, 16 per cent identify as bi, 5 per cent identify as gay, and 1 per cent identify as asexual. The majority of the group are cis women, while 6 per cent of the group are non-binary and 4 per cent are trans women. 

When asked about their specific concerns relating to the pandemic, and lockdowns, almost two thirds of respondents (63 per cent) cited being unable to see friends and family, more than half (51 per cent) were worried about the health of their friends and family, and almost half (48 per cent) were concerned about decreased wellbeing.

While impacts of the pandemic were a key finding of the research, the survey also looked at wider challenges that LGBT+ women and non-binary people are facing in the UK.

The results found that bi people were less likely to be open with their friends and family about their sexual orientation, with 31 per cent of bi women and non-binary respondents being open with all of their close friends about their sexual orientation, compared to 55 per cent of their lesbian counterparts. The survey also found that 50 per cent of bi respondents are open with most or all of their family members about their sexual orientation, compared to 81 per cent of their lesbian counterparts.

Other key figures showed:

• Of respondents with children, more than 1 in 3 (36 per cent) experienced barriers or challenges whilst trying to start or grow their family.
• More than 4 in 5 (81 per cent) of the LGBT+ women in the sample are open with most or all of their friends about their sexual orientation, while just over 4 per cent are not open with any of their close friends.
• Of the 61 per cent of respondents who were in a relationship at the start of the pandemic in March 2020, almost nine in ten (87 per cent) had stayed coupled up.

The survey, which was commissioned by DIVA and sponsored by P&G, Citi and Tesco launches today for the start of Lesbian Visibility Week 2021 which runs from Monday April 26th until May 2nd.

Lesbian Visibility Week was founded in 2020 by Linda Riley, DIVA magazine publisher, to support, celebrate and uplift the lesbian community. This year, DIVA have partnered with Stonewall to bring a week of events, laughter and learning for the community.

Throughout the week, DIVA will host their iconic Visible 100 list, highlight heroes of the community at the DIVA Awards, and put on a DIVA Pride. Stonewall are offering series of three free interactive events to support lesbians in the workplace, and award-winning comedian Catherine Bohart is set to host ‘Stonewall presents GIGLESS’, a virtual comedy night in support of the week.

As well as all of this, there will be virtual workshops and events every day of the week, exploring topics from faith and activism, to sports and community. With something for everyone, the organisations are encouraging all LGBT+ women and non-binary people to come along to every and any event which takes their fancy.

Linda Riley, Founder of Lesbian Visibility Week (she/her) said: ‘I am delighted to have founded Lesbian Visibility Week and be working with Stonewall to build an innovative programme of events around Lesbian Visibility. For too long the L in LGBT+ has been under-represented and not celebrated within the LGBT+ community, hopefully Lesbian Visibility week will finally give our voices a chance to shine.’

Nancy Kelley, Chief Executive, Stonewall (she/her) said: ‘We’re so excited to be partnering with DIVA this year to continue Linda Riley’s brilliant work in founding Lesbian Visibility Week, and create space to empower and uplift the lesbian community.

‘The last year has been hard for every one of us, and this survey highlights some of the challenges faced by LBTQ+ women and non-binary people throughout this time. But it also shows the need to come together in celebration.

‘As a lesbian, I love our community, and I love the way that we support and champion each other. That’s why I’m so thrilled about the fantastic series of events that we’ve put on together. From the DIVA Visible 100, to Stonewall Presents GIGLESS, hosted by the incredible Catherine Bohart, and much more, this Lesbian Visibility Week will be a powerful, joyful celebration for all of us.’

Caroline Frankum, Global CEO, Kantar Profiles Division (she/her) and Sophia Papadopoulos, Global Chair, Pride@Kantar (she/her) said: ‘With this year’s Lesbian Visibility Week taking place against an uncertain and evolving landscape of easing COVID-19 restrictions, this report serves to provide a roadmap for how the community can emerge stronger than ever beyond the pandemic. This is a pivotal moment to inform the agenda for how society, government and corporations can better understand this diverse community and inspire their growth.’

Visit our Lesbian Hub.

Nancy Kelley, CEO at Stonewall (she/her) said: ‘We welcome the news that a proposal will be put forward in the Queen’s Speech to introduce a Bill to ban so-called ‘conversion therapy’. Any practice that seeks to convert, cure, change or cancel a person’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity is dangerous and harmful and must be banned. The same goes for the promotion or advertisement of such practices and attempts to remove a person from the country for the purpose of subjecting them to conversion.

‘We hope to see the details of the Bill shortly. The UK Government must publish a full and comprehensive Bill that bans conversion practices in all forms, for all people and in all settings, including religious and faith-based settings, and it must also provide statutory support for victims and survivors. We urge the UK Government and Parliament to quickly pass legislation to ensure no LGBTQIA+ person is left at risk of serious harm by these inhumane and degrading practices.’

Nancy Kelley, CEO at Stonewall, said: ‘We welcome the commitment to introduce legislation to ban so-called ‘conversion therapy’. However, the news of a consultation is concerning and will be hard for our communities to hear. We don’t need a consultation to know that all practices that seek to convert, suppress, cure or change us are dangerous, abusive and must be banned. Lesbian, gay, bi, trans, intersex and ace communities have been waiting almost three years for the UK Government to follow through on their promise to ban all conversion practices, and any delay leaves us at further risk of abuse.

‘The UK Government must publish a comprehensive Bill now, as well as a clear timeline for its implementation. As part of the Ban Conversion Therapy coalition, we will continue to hold the UK Government to account on their promise to ban this abhorrent practice for good, everywhere it happens and to everyone it harms, and protect our communities from harm.’

A year on from Sheldon Mills being appointed Chair of Stonewall’s board of trustees and Nancy Kelley starting as Chief Executive, Michele ‘Mitch’ Oliver has been appointed Vice-Chair of Stonewall.

Mitch takes up the Vice-Chair role from Simon Blake, who has completed two full terms on the board.

Mitch has been a Stonewall trustee since February 2019. She is Global Corporate Brand & Purpose Director for Mars, Incorporated. In this role Mitch leads the ‘Mars, Incorporated’ brand strategy. Mitch is also a Commissioner at the Civil Society Commission and Deputy Vice-Chair Unstereotype Alliance (UN Women).

She brings a wealth of experience and expertise in brand, purpose and communications to Stonewall’s board, and has played a key role in supporting Stonewall through a soon-to-be-unveiled brand and purpose refresh.

Mitch is proud to be a bi woman, a partner to Paul, and a mother of a wonderful blended family. She is passionate about shaking up conventional definitions and tackling harmful stereotypes. From challenging the perception of what family life looks like, through to using the power of brands to celebrate and support everyone in our LGBTQ+ community.

Welcoming Mitch’s appointment, Sheldon Mills (he/him), Chair of Stonewall, said: “We are so fortunate to benefit from Mitch’s experience and wisdom as a global brand leader, a global business leader and a bi woman. In her two years on the Stonewall board she has demonstrated her leadership and supported the charity through a period of leadership change, and strategy development. Simon has been an excellent Deputy Chair and trustee of Stonewall for the past six years. Everyone at Stonewall thanks him for his commitment and leadership in our work to support LGBTQ+ communities in the UK and across the world.

Michele ‘Mitch’ Oliver (she/her), Vice-Chair of Stonewall, said: “What an incredible honour it is to be appointed Vice Chair of Stonewall. Stonewall is a very special organisation, with exceptional people. The struggle for equality is different for every member of our LGBTQ+ community. Our diversity is our strength. Our power is in coming together to create a world where everyone is free to be themselves. I look forward to supporting Stonewall’s leadership in delivering on our new strategy and leveraging our refreshed brand. Simon has certainly set the bar very high as an outstanding Vice Chair, and I am privileged to build on his legacy.”

We’re so pleased to share that five new trustees have joined Stonewall’s board: Dunni Alao, Lou Downe, Gbolahan Faleye, Adam Lake and Dr Kyle Ring. 

Our trustees are responsible for overseeing all of our work, taking collective decisions at board meetings on matters from finances to strategic goals. It’s their role to ensure that Stonewall is accountable, complying with the law and carrying out work for the public benefit.

Our new trustees bring skills across fundraising, communications and HR, to name a few. They are all fierce proponents of LGBTQ+ rights and are fully dedicated to our ethos and goals as we move forward with our new strategy. We now have the most diverse board in our history, with strong representation of trans people and people of colour, as well as a greater diversity of socioeconomic backgrounds.

We’re so grateful to each of our five new members for bringing their skills and lived experiences to our charity. We now have a wider range of voices and experiences helping oversee our work than ever before, which will take Stonewall ever closer to achieving our vision of a world where all LGBTQ+ people are free to be themselves and can live their lives to the full. 

Please read on to find more information about each trustee.

Dunni Alao (she/her)

HR Leader, Civil Service

I work as a UK civil servant in Human Resources and it is this area of expertise that I hope to bring to the Board. I believe that people are the most valuable part of any organisation and I am very much looking forward to working with the Senior Leadership Team to ensure that Stonewall has the right support in place and prioritises the needs of its workforce.

Working on the Olympics while at the Department for Transport was a career highlight, and in 2018 I was shortlisted a Top 10 Corporate Rising Star at the National LGBT Awards. Outside work, I’m a big advocate of causes against homelessness. I spent three months in New York volunteering at a charity for homeless men with a history of substance abuse, and I have taken part in Crisis at Christmas since 2008.

It’s an absolute honour to support a charity that is actively advocating for the rights of the LGBTQ+ community. I truly believe the work of Stonewall is vital, not just for our LGBTQ+ family but wider society. As someone from a diverse background, I believe there is far more that unites us than divides us. We all want to get on and live our lives in peace, and by protecting the rights of each other we safeguard those rights for everyone. Because a fairer society for the most marginalised is a better society for all.

Lou Downe (they/he)

Founder, School of Good Services

I run a professional coaching and training business called the School of Good Services, where I help organisations deliver services that meet the needs of their users and have a positive impact on the world. Before that, I spent six years in the UK Government establishing the cross-government standards for good services. I was nominated as one of the top 50 creative leaders by Creative Review and one of the world's 100 most influential leaders in digital government in 2018.

I grew up in Devon and outside of work I love to garden and cook. I’ve been known to take a stepladder to the park looking for walnuts, and take over derelict plots around London to turn them into allotments (with the help of some city-farm manure transported in my wife’s suitcase!).

I am hugely excited to be joining Stonewall's board of trustees. There are many who, because of their privilege, might feel that the battle for LGBTQ+ rights is won, but it is far from being so. We are not free until we're all free, and Stonewall is at the cornerstone of that mission.

Gbolahan Faleye (he/him)

Fundraising Director

I am a proud fundraiser, business development and stakeholder engagement expert and in my career, have been fortunate to raise money for various good causes. This currently includes enabling countries and their governments to work more effectively through advice and policy solutions. Against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic, I helped stand up programmes to support African governments and multi-lateral agencies in their fight against the virus including the roll-out of vaccination programs. Prior to this, I have worked across the private, public and third sectors on issues ranging from education to heritage and international development.

When it comes to the change I’d most like to see, it has to be a world where LGBTQ+ people are free to be who they are, regardless of where they are from – be it Nigeria or Nottingham. It’s as simple as that. But as we know, the reality is very different. This is why I am proud to join a group of committed individuals working to ensure that this goal is reached. We will of course need to be pragmatic about the road ahead and resilient to challenges. But as we are stronger together, I know we can do it.

I am proud to join the Stonewall Board and look forward to contributing in some small way to the immense achievements the organisation has been able to achieve and will achieve going forward.

Adam Lake (he/him)

Head of Climate Week NYC

The specialism I bring to the board is communications, though I have a wider interest in strategy and development. Since taking on responsibility for Climate Week NYC in 2018, a major focus for me has been to engage with a wider audience as part of our fight against climate change. My proudest achievement was helping Climate Week NYC support over 500 events in New York and around the world during a pandemic year.

I have been a campaigner of some description or another since as long as I can remember, but initially I worked as an actor. I think it was when I had to dress up as a donkey and dance on the pitch with the Cheeky Girls at Brentford football stadium that I realised I wanted something more meaningful from life. I decided to join PinkNews as an intern over a decade ago and this led to me becoming their Political Editor, after which I had several rewarding campaign roles.

I am incredibly excited to join the Trustee team. Stonewall has never been in a stronger position to create positive change for LGBTQ+ people in the UK and around the world. Inclusion is only as strong as its weakest link, and until equality encompasses our entire community – both through legal change as well as societal – we cannot say that any of us are equal. ‘Free to Be’, to me, is about having the ability to be as fabulous or as boring as anybody else, happy in the knowledge that the best way to be living our best lives is by living them as ourselves.

Dr Kyle Ring (they/them)

Medical doctor

I have been working as a medical doctor for the last nine years and am nearing the end of my specialist training in HIV and Sexual Health. I have sat on a number of national committees, but I am most proud of my work with Decolonising Contraception, a grassroots community group run exclusively by people of colour with the aim of addressing racial health inequalities in sexual and reproductive health.

I’m also passionate about challenging Euro-centric beauty standards. This inspired me to start an instagram page called @in.hair.itance, aimed at celebrating hair history and diversity for people of colour. The page now has more than 90K followers and continues to grow.

The LGBTQ+ movement has made so much progress over the last 50 years, in no small part due to our unity and recognition of the cis-heteronormative patriarchal powers which affect each of us. I hope that in the next five years we re-embrace the power of that unity, ensuring that no group is left behind. Our future success is dependent on cohesion, co-ordination and understanding.

I am so excited to join the Board of Trustees and be given the chance to represent such an inspirational organisation like Stonewall.