Hampstead Heath ponds consult on trans inclusivity

The pools get very busy in summer and are popular with Londoners of all ages

The City of London Corporation (CLC) has launched a consultation on the nature of trans swimmers' access to the Hampstead Heath ponds.

The consultation, which looks at six ways of operating the pools and their facilities, examines who should be able to access the Kenwood Ladies' and Highgate Men's ponds.

Currently, trans men and trans women are entitled to use the pond of their choice - a Mixed Pond is also available. Possible ways forward include ditching the sex division completely.

The corporation said the consultation was prompted by April's Supreme Court ruling on the definition of a woman, and the CLC's need to comply with relevant legislation, as part of the Equality Act 2010.

'Strictly single-sex'

One option is for the Highgate Men's Pond to remain accessible to men and trans men and the Kenwood Ladies' Pond to stay accessible for women and trans women.

A second proposes that these two ponds be run as "strictly single-sex facilities". Under this option, the men's pond would only be accessible to biological men and the ladies' pond to biological women.

A third option proposes that the ponds should be trans-inclusive spaces based on how people have decided to live their lives.

Under this option the men's pond would be accessible to people who have decided to live their lives as men (including trans men but excluding trans women) and the ladies' pond to people who have decided to live their lives as women (including trans women but excluding trans men).

The issue of who should be allowed to use which ponds has been a matter of some controversy

Another option stipulates that all the ponds should be trans-inclusive spaces but that the communal toilets and changing rooms should not be.

Under this option, trans men would have access to the men's pond and trans women would have access to the women's pond and the meadow, but would be required to use the separate accessible toilet, shower and changing room at each facility.

A hybrid approach where they are trans-inclusive spaces at stated times but are operated as strictly single-sex facilities at other times is also under consideration.

A final option is that all the facilities should be accessible to everyone.

The CLC said it did not "currently favour this option, as it is believed it would be unpopular with most users, due to the unique nature and historic significance of these bathing ponds".

"However, it has been included as an option for completeness and to evaluate support for it. This will be considered alongside other options."

In the wake of the Supreme Court ruling, campaign group Sex Matters filed for a judicial review over CLC's continued operation of the ponds on the basis of gender self-identification, arguing that options two, three, four and five of the consultation are unlawful based on the April 2025 Supreme Court ruling.

The pools date back to the 18th Century

In April, judges at the UK Supreme Court unanimously ruled that a woman is defined by biological sex under the 2010 Equality Act.

It marked the culmination of a long-running legal battle which has had major implications for how sex-based rights apply across Scotland, England and Wales.

Campaign group For Women Scotland brought the case against the Scottish government, arguing that sex-based protections for women should only apply to those born female.

The Scottish government argued in court that transgender people with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) were entitled to the same sex-based protections as biological women.

The Supreme Court decided that the proper interpretation of the words "man", "woman", and "sex" refer to a biological man, a biological woman, and biological sex.

Judge Lord Hodge said the ruling should not be seen as a triumph of one side over the other, and stressed that the law still gave protection against discrimination to transgender people.

The consultation is open until 12:00 GMT on 25 November.

Clarification 20 October: This article has been updated to explain that the campaign group Sex Matters has filed for a judicial review over the decision to continue to operate the men's and women's swimming ponds on the basis of gender self-identification, arguing that the consultation options are unlawful based on the April 2025 Supreme Court ruling.