A police force is housing biological males who identify as transgender women in female custody cells, despite the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling last April that the legal definition of sex under equality law refers to biological sex.
Staffordshire Police’s custody policy permits “detainees may be placed in accommodation consistent with their gender identity,” meaning biological men can be held in cells designated for women.
These revised rules were drawn up after the Supreme Court judgment, which has been broadly understood to mean biological males should not have access to single-sex spaces reserved for women.
Yet rather than aligning with that interpretation, the updated policies maintain a commitment to letting individuals self-identify their gender — a stance that critics say directly contradicts the court’s decision.
Freedom of information documents obtained by Terence Stock, a former member of the force’s Independent Advisory Group, reveal that Staffordshire Police holds an “explicit policy commitment to self-identification”.
As a result, detainees are permitted to declare their own gender, which is then “respected in records.”
While the policy states that male and female detainees are separated for safeguarding purposes, it simultaneously allows them to share spaces via this loophole.
The force’s updated searching guidance presents further contradictions.
Staffordshire Police’s custody policy permits ‘detainees may be placed in accommodation consistent with their gender identity’
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GETTYIt stipulates that searches exposing intimate body parts should be conducted by officers matching the detainee’s biological sex, yet also states holders of a full Gender Recognition Certificate effectively change sex.
For a trans woman, this means “the person’s sex becomes that of a woman.”
Cathy Larkman, a Women’s Rights Network director and retired police superintendent, said: “These policies do not comply with the Supreme Court judgment, and they indicate a level of ignorance with the law and a disregard for the rights of women that is deeply concerning.”
She added that the force’s searching guidance “ties officers up in ideological knots” and called on Staffordshire Police to “go back to the drawing board.”
The critic described the document as “overly convoluted and contradictory”, and one that “fails both their officers and the public.”
Mr Stock echoed: “It is unforgivable that Staffordshire Police still fails to reflect fully the For Women Scotland Supreme Court judgment and the clear same-sex requirement in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act.
“Intimate searches are among the most intrusive powers imaginable, and disproportionately affect women with histories of trauma and sexual violence.”
Amid the backlash, Staffordshire Police rejected suggestions that its custody arrangements endangered detainees.
A spokesman said: “All detainees are accommodated in individual cells with their own toilet and handwashing facilities.
“Exercise yards are used by one detainee at a time, and shower arrangements are managed to prevent contact between detainees.”
The force added that accommodation decisions were taken on a case-by-case basis, weighing safeguarding considerations and operational requirements.
On the question of searches, the spokesman said officers acted in line with applicable legislation and force policy, and that “where there is any dispute regarding a detainee’s sex, searches are conducted according to the detainee’s biological sex.”
Possession of a Gender Recognition Certificate, the force clarified, “does not automatically determine how a search will be conducted.”
“Senior officers continually review our policies to ensure they remain compliant with legislation, national guidance and relevant court judgments.”