Separate toilets needed for boys and girls as government updates school guidance

Schools had previously been told that transgender pupils could use whatever toilets they felt most comfortable in.

However, under the revised guidance, facilities must be “made available on the basis of biological sex”, but schools can also consider toilet arrangements for transgender pupils, such as “gender neutral provision”.

Education secretary Jenny Gilruth said the guidance provided “clarity” following two landmark court rulings.

In April, the Supreme Court ruled that a woman is defined by biological sex under equalities law.

Two months later, a judge ordered that six Scottish schools must provide single-sex toilets for pupils.

In its previous guidance, published in 2021, the government said there was no law that stated “only people assigned male at birth can use men’s toilets and changing rooms, or that only people assigned female can use women’s toilets and changing rooms”.

It also said that in PE classes organised by sex, transgender pupils should be able to take part with the group that matches their “gender identity”.

However, this line is removed in the new document, BBC Scotland reports.

Education secretary Jenny Gilruth said the guidance was non-statutory because local authorities have the legal power to run Scotland’s schools.

She insisted there would be adequate resources to make changes to toilet facilities, and said that schools were already to required to provide accessible toilets.

Having published the document more than five months after the Supreme Court ruling, Gilruth added: “It has taken us some time to get us to this place but it’s really important that we move forward as a consequence of the ruling and this guidance provides clarity in that regard.”