pride month – Govan Community Project

At Govan Community Project we are deeply concerned about the recent Supreme Court ruling and the subsequent guidance from the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), both of which have raised significant questions about the interpretation and application of sex-based rights under UK law.

We want to be clear: Govan Community Project stands in solidarity with transgender and gender-diverse people. Trans women are women. Trans men are men. Non-binary people exist. We also recognise the existence and rights of intersex people, who are frequently excluded from public discourse.

As a human rights organisation working with people seeking asylum and refuge—many of whom have experienced profound trauma and systemic exclusion—we understand how important dignity, recognition, and safety are to the lives of those we support. Our services have always operated, and will continue to operate, on the basis of self-identification. This principle is core to our values of respect, autonomy, and inclusion.

We understand that transgender people are protected under the Equality Act 2010, including through the protected characteristics of gender reassignment and sex. We will continue to provide services that are inclusive of all people, and we reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that everyone accessing our support feels safe, seen, and respected.

We are proud to offer inclusive opportunities in our workplace and across our programmes. This includes welcoming gender diversity within our staff team and ensuring that our women’s and men’s groups are open to participants based on their self-defined gender identity.

We are particularly concerned about the potential chilling effect these legal developments may have on public and civic life for transgender and gender-diverse people—including those seeking asylum, for whom access to safe, affirming spaces is already limited. At a time when trans communities face rising hate crime and marginalisation, we believe it is vital that organisations like ours speak up in support of their dignity and rights.

Our approach is grounded not in politics, but in compassion, community, and international human rights law. We acknowledge the concerns our staff and community members have raised and reaffirm our role as an ally to the LGBTQIA+ community. We will continue to learn, listen, and stand beside all those who face systemic discrimination, while focusing on what we can do: provide safe, inclusive, and life-changing support.

Now more than ever, we call on decision-makers to uphold the fundamental rights of all people—to be treated with dignity, to live without fear, and to exist as their true selves.