Nurses accuse NHS trust of putting them ‘at risk’ over policy allowing transgender colleagues to use women’s changing rooms

A group of nurses embroiled in a year-long row over a transgender policy have accused their NHS trust of “ignoring” concerns for their safety.

Bethany Hutchinson, who lives in County Durham, is one of eight women taking the NHS employment fund to court after her hospital allowed a transgender woman to use the women’s changing room.

Ms Hutchinson, a nurse who works at Darlington Memorial Hospital in County Durham, appeared on Women’s Hour on Radio 4 yesterday, where she spoke to BBC journalist Nuala McGovern.

The nurse, who insisted she alleges her transgender colleague is a “predator” in some way, shared details of the ongoing dispute between hospital nurses who have lodged complaints against County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust.

Complaints about the policy have led to a year-long dispute with staff, who claimed the trust’s response was “extremely unsupportive” and that workarounds failed to resolve the issue.

One solution offered by the trust was to assign a “locker room” to the colleague, although Hutchinson considered this insufficient and described the trans nurse as biologically “male”.

Funded by the Christian Legal Centre, which acts on behalf of evangelical Christians in the UK, the nurses are launching an employment tribunal against the trust.

The nurses, Bethany Hutchison, Lisa Lockey, Annice Grundy, Tracey Hooper and Joanne Bradbury, have been dubbed the ‘Darlington Five’.

Bethany claimed staff noticed the colleague was using the locker room despite having received “no warning or consultation from senior management”.

She explained: “This has led to nurses having panic attacks before their shifts, it has led to international women wearing clothing under their uniform because obviously, culturally, they cannot be exposed without any clothing in front of any another man other than her husband.

“And generally just a feeling of anxiety among staff, you know, staff looking over their shoulders worried that this person is going to walk in and be naked.”

Hutchinson said she refused to refer to the colleague in question as a woman, describing her as “I would say a man,” even though they themselves use the pronoun she/her.

“I don’t agree with using that,” Bethany said. “They are men, they act like men, they have all their male parts in place and I believe that sex is a biological fact.” It is not interchangeable.

Ms Hutchinson opposed the policy allowing transgender women to access “feminine” spaces.

‘Personally, I don’t think anyone with XY chromosomes should be allowed in because where do you draw the line? But it’s not up to me to make that decision,” he said.

Mrs Hutchinson took the decision to take the matter to an employment tribunal, claiming the trust was putting her and other nurses “at risk”.

—I must add that not for this particular person. I have never alleged that this person is a predator.

“But the policy the trust has in place puts women at risk because it states that men can identify as women and access women’s locker rooms.”

Despite claiming she had never alleged the individual in question was “a predator”, Ms Hutchinson said policy within the NHS put women at risk of “harassment, rape, sexual assault, voyeurism”.

She described the work environment alongside her transgender colleague as “hostile.”

“I would like to point out that this is not a campaign against this particular person, I have nothing against her,” she said, but added that they were the “catalyst” for her to take action.

He claimed the trust had been “extremely unsupportive” in its response to complaints first raised a year ago.

During a meeting with Human Resources, Ms. Hutchinson said she and other nurses were told to be more inclusive and needed to “broaden their mindset.”

She said: “I’m dealing with nurses who have suffered sexual abuse as children, nurses who have been in violent relationships that have been violent at the hands of men, and I would challenge anyone to sit in front of these nurses and say you need to expand your mindset”.

One solution proposed by the trust involved the use of a ‘changing room’ to separate complainants from the trans staff member.

Discussing the suggested solution, Mrs Hutchinson said: “I think the trust thinks they have done this to appease us, but my argument is that the locker room, that locker room, is still under the same policy.” There is no other policy in effect. So if a transgender person or a self-identified person would like to access that locker room, they can do so.’

The court is funded by the evangelical group Christian Legal Centre, which is part of Christian Concern.

Bethany described herself and her family as “unapologetic Christians,” although she added that the court was “not a Christian campaign.”

In 2023, the Christian group representing the group’s anti-abortion activists attempted to challenge buffer zones on abortion clinics.

Earlier this year, the group supported a school staff member after she was dismissed for “serious misconduct” for sharing Facebook posts criticizing plans to teach LGBT+ relationships in primary schools.

A spokesperson for County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust said: ‘The Trust is committed to providing a safe and respectful environment for all colleagues and patients, operating within the law and adhering to national policies.

‘Additional alternative changing rooms have been installed, including a private, individual, lockable changing room. An office has been converted into a locker room for storing belongings.

‘The Trust has processes in place to listen to and respond to concerns raised by any of our colleagues. We take all concerns raised seriously and investigate them thoroughly. An internal investigation continues while court proceedings continue.’