Scottish Government's Trans and Non-Binary Inclusion Policy: FOI release

Information requested

1. A copy of the latest version of the Scottish Government's Trans And Non-Binary Inclusion Policy.

Please also include any other versions that have been issued in the last three years. If the policy's name has changed, or if its subjects are now dealt with under another policy, then please provide copies of the relevant policies instead.

2. Copies of all emails, intranet posts, and any other materials used to advise staff of changes to the Policy.

3. Copies of all consultation documents and consultation responses on changes to the Policy, including any communications to and from the SG LGBTI+ Network, staff unions, and external partners such as the Equality Network, Scottish Trans, Stonewall, the SHRC etc.

4. Copies of the minutes of the (Short Life) Working Group On The Supreme Court Judgment in FWS vs. The Scottish Ministers since 17th June.

5. Copies of all other policies or other documents that have been changed as a result of the (SL)WG's deliberations.

Response

I enclose a copy of some of the information you requested.

1. A copy of the latest version of the Scottish Government's Trans And Non-Binary Inclusion Policy. Please also include any other versions that have been issued in the last three years. If the policy's name has changed, or if its subjects are now dealt with under another policy, then please provide copies of the relevant policies instead.

I attach a copy of the latest version of the policy which was published on 29 September. This is an interim policy whilst work is carried out to establish a settled policy position.

The previous version of the policy is available online here. Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.

2. Copies of all emails, intranet posts, and any other materials used to advise staff of changes to the Policy.

The relevant emails, intranet posts and other materials are all attached to this email. These consist of:

• Five emails sent to different staff groups (including staff working in public bodies who are subject to our policy), plus an attachment which was sent with the sponsor team emails
• A copy of the Q&A attached to the emails sent to different staff groups
• A copy of the Leadership Brief published on our intranet on the change (also attached to emails sent to different staff groups)

3. Copies of all consultation documents and consultation responses on changes to the Policy, including any communications to and from the SG LGBTI+ Network, staff unions, and external partners such as the Equality Network, Scottish Trans, Stonewall, the SHRC etc

We have interpreted your question to be in relation to consultations relating to the change made to the policy on 29 September 2025. The Scottish Government does not have the information you have asked for as no consultation was carried out on this change. This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.

4. Copies of the minutes of the (Short Life) Working Group On The Supreme Court Judgment in FWS vs. The Scottish Ministers since 17th June.

Currently some of these are already available on gov.scot - UK Supreme Court Judgment (For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers): working group - gov.scot – under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy. We intend to publish further minutes in January 2026, which is within 12 weeks of the date of your request, and so we are applying an exemption under 27(1) of FOISA. In this case it is reasonable to withhold the information until it is publicly available, rather than release some of this information before the planned publication date.

This exemption is subject to the ‘public interest test’. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption. We recognise that there is some public interest in releasing the information requested to be transparent. However, given that the information requested will be subject to release within the appropriate time frame we do not consider that the public interest in releasing the information immediately outweighs the public interest in the administrative process running its course.

5. Copies of all other policies or other documents that have been changed as a result of the (SL)WG's deliberations.

Every key area of government which is or may be affected by the Supreme Court judgement is carrying out assessments across legislation, guidance and policies. We have:

• Updated our guidance for the Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scotland) Act 2018 - Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scotland) Act 2018: statutory guidance - gov.scot. Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.
• Amended the public appointments recruitment process for public bodies subject to the Act, now collating and using biological sex at birth data to apply the Act. The relevant updated documents are our Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) and Privacy Notice (PN). The relevant updated documents are our Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) and Privacy Notice (PN). A copy of the DPIA is attached, which also contains a copy of the publicly available PN - Privacy notice - Scottish Government Jobs. Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have
• internet access to obtain this information from the website listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.
• Published revised Supporting Transgender Pupils in Schools Guidance, while recognising that the EHRC are also reviewing Technical Guidance for schools; - Supporting transgender pupils in schools: guidance for education authorities and schools – revised - gov.scot. Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.
• Undertaken extensive engagement with Police Scotland, policing partners and other key stakeholders to develop a revised stop and search code of practice for police officees in Scotland for public consultation. This has included workshops focused on key themes including vulnerable adults, children and young people and equality and human rights. A series of focus group were also undertaken with police officers across Scotland to better understand and consider practical considerations and operational risks. The revised code of practice will soon be published for public consultation.
• Contacted all health boards in Scotland on 30 September to reinforce the message that all Health Boards should be following the law and ensure that they are complying with the judgement and with all relevant legislation and regulations. This letter was published online and is available here - Director of Health Workforce.dot. Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at https://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.

FOI 202500497199 - Information Released - Annex

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