Since the Supreme Court ruling in April 2025, that defined sex as biological sex for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010 there has been confusion, and uncertainty about the ruling’s widespread implications. Many workplaces have raised important questions about what this could mean for their inclusion work. At Stonewall, we’ve been working with a range of stakeholders including colleagues in the LGBTQ+ sector, employers, service providers, parliamentarians and the legal sector to better understand the implications of the ruling and to advocate for inclusion.
This briefing has been prepared for members of the Stonewall Diversity Champions programme. Its purpose is to provide you with further information about the consultative and parliamentary process, the ruling itself, the potential implications and how you can make your voices heard in the coming weeks and months.
As an LGBTQ+ rights charity we are committed to providing you with the support and information you need. We will continue to support you to ensure that trans staff and others within the LGBQ+ community feel safe, included and respected in your workplace.
As this is a complex and evolving area of work, we have drawn together knowledge from leading legal teams to support your understanding. We will continue to provide further insight over the coming weeks. Please note that this briefing is for information purposes and should not be considered legal advice.
This briefing was prepared in June 2025 and is comprised of three parts:
Part one
Is an explainer prepared by the Stonewall policy team outlining the current situation as well as the process to develop statutory guidance. It also outlines how the EHRC consultation on statutory guidance will work, as well as how Stonewall will support you to submit to it as a key stakeholder.
Part two
Is a briefing prepared by Doughty Chambers to help you gain greater clarity on the ruling. It was prepared as part of Stonewall’s engagement with Members of Parliament.
Part three
Is a briefing prepared by Howard Kennedy LLP which provides you with information about how this ruling is connected to other relevant legislation.
Here is the explainer we shared on how to formulate individual submissions to the EHRC consultation.