Trans & Gender Diverse Swim

Just a quick update on the issues that a few people have raised concerns about vis-a-vis when cis people were let into the Sunday session a few weeks' back...had a good chat with a deputy manager yesterday and will be talking to our usual manager this weeek. It appears there's been some confusion from some staff about what the term 'gender diverse' implies. They've been taking 'Trans and Gender-Diverse People' to effectively mean 'mainly trans but also any other LGB person' ie 'general diversity'! I should say that this term came from the pool itself, but from a trans perspective this tends to mean 'gender diverse but on a trans spectrum' - and it very definitely relates to gender identity and not sexual orientation. To be clear, despite this confusion on the part of some pool staff and perhaps also attendees, the sessions have always very clearly been for people on a trans spectrum only and not cis allies, so please ensure everyone knows this as it does seem that some of the cis people attending have been brought in by their trans friends. Every place taken by a cis person is a place a trans person can't take. While trans people are apparently still not able to access mainstream pools and changing rooms wearing swim wear appropriate to them, these sessions are a lifeline. I say apparently because Swim England have removed that pernicious 'advice on swimwear' from their website (so perhaps our 300-signature petition worked to a point!) however nothing clear has replaced it and given the EHRC's latest recommendations we are keeping a close eye on what is replacing it). Cis allies, however lovely and cool some might be, do not have this barrier in mainstream. At the moment this is trans swimmers' only protected space. Please respect this. Thanks all.

Hi All, Our usual manager at the Centre has been on annual leave for a few weeks and in her absence some confusion appears to have arisen with the deputy and reception about what 'Trans and Gender Diverse People' actually means ie. on a couple of occasions they've been letting cis allies in with the idea that the session is 'inclusive'. I have made it very clear this is not the case. The sessions are and have always been for trans and gender diverse people only, and while we expect reception staff to just welcome people in and accept their attendance without query or comment, the life-guarding staff are well-trained and supportive and on hand for anyone to ask for support if they feel someone's behaviour or comments in the sessions raises concerns. Our usual manager is now back and I will be meeting with her this week to sort this out and ensure the usual conditions are restored. A couple of attendees have however told me that on Sundays there appear to be some trans people actively bringing their cis friends in and that this is affecting their feelings of comfort in the Sunday session. I am concerned about this so am putting this out in the community to politely ask that trans attendees please don't do this. The sessions are exclusively for trans and gender diverse people only. If you bring cis friends in, every place they take in the pool is space a trans person can't take. However much your cis friends may be fine and cool with you, it doesn't mean other trans people will be comfortable with them. It can create imbalances in the sessions and exclusions for others. These sessions are the only sessions we trans and gender diverse people can swim in swimwear that is totally comfortable for us without restrictions that exist in the main pool, and the environment is a safe space. The sessions are run totally on a self-ID basis with no crieria or entry requirements - they're run on trust that the people who attend are trans or gender-diverse and have need of this space. If you have cis ally friends who want to swim with you and other trans people, please attend the mainstream sessions so those spaces can be safer and inclusive, also consider asking cis allies known to you to actively challenge Swim England's current restrictions on trans people's swimwear which is a major barrier we are still facing hence the need for separate sessions. There are only 2 opportunities a week for us at present and the sessions mean a lot. Please respect this. I'll update everyone on my meeting with management after it's happened. Thanks, Art x

Hiya, I haven't been at the sessions for a while due to health and work issues, but understand this morning that there were some issues at yesterday's session when reception let cisgender people in the training pool, some of whom were making ignorant and transphobic comments. I'm absolutely horrified this has happened and have been straight onto it this morning with the manager to ask her to look with urgency into what happened with this. If you were there please can you let me know anything you wish to share about it. I am so sorry this has happened. Will update when I hear back. Please be reassured I'm not letting this one rest until I get a full picture of what happened and that the centre ensures this doesn't happen again. Hope everyone's ok. Love Art x