UK Supreme Court ruling on the meaning of sex in the Equality Act: our work

We are the regulator of the Equality Act 2010. We do not make the law, but it is our job to ensure that it is followed. Read more about how we do this. 

In 2024, we opened a public consultation to update our code of practice for services, public functions and associations. Following the UK Supreme Court ruling on the definition of ‘sex’ in the Equality Act 2010, we ran a second consultation on some proposed updates to the guidance. This consultation closed on 30 June 2025. Since then, we have:

• analysed the consultation responses
• used the responses to inform further changes to the code

On 4 September 2025, we submitted the draft code to the UK government.  

Once the UK government approves the draft, it will lay the draft code before Parliament for their review. Parliament will then have 40 days to review the code. The government will decide when to start this procedure.  

If Parliament does not disapprove the code, the government will set a date for it to come into force. We will then publish it on our website.

This means that the code will have legal status as the guide on how service providers, public functions and associations can meet the duties set out in the Equality Act 2010.

On 15 October 2025, we wrote to the minister to ask for:

• an update on that process
• the revocation of the 2011 version of the code, as it is now out of date in various respects

Given these important developments, we have removed the interim update from our website. Duty bearers should:

• continue to take specialist legal advice, as before, on their obligations under any relevant legislation, including the Equality Act 2010 and Human Rights Act 1998
• use the new code when it is approved by Parliament