Transwomen are banned from female changing rooms by Virgin Active after the threat of legal action by TV star
The gym chain, who have 230 clubs based across eight countries worldwide, sent an email to its customers on Friday morning informing them of the 'important update' to their 'club rules'.
It comes after GB News presenter Michelle Dewberry revealed that she had cancelled her Virgin Active membership after 'seeing a man in the female changing rooms'.
Solicitors representing the 45-year-old, who won the second season of The Apprentice, sent a letter threatening legal action against the business in February.
The claim, supported by the charity Sex Matters, insisted that it would be brought under the Equality Act and concerned the chain's 'trans inclusion' policy, which permitted both transwomen and non-binary individuals from entering female changing rooms.
Now, Virgin Active have revealed that their controversial policy has changed. In an email shared widely online, they announced: 'To comply with the law, we have had to update our Club Rules so that our changing rooms and bathroom facilities are designated according to biological sex.
'While this decision was outside of our control, it is legally binding on our business - as well as other gyms, leisure centres and similar facilities across the UK.'
Listed on their website under Section 8 of the Virgin Active Club Rules, the new UK-based policy states that 'by law, our members and visitors who use a changing room marked as 'male' or 'female' must select the one that matches their biological sex'.
Transwomen have been banned from using female changing rooms at Virgin Active. The gym chain, who have 230 clubs based across eight countries worldwide, sent an email (pictured) to its customers on Friday morning informing them of the 'important update' to their 'club rules'
It comes after GB News presenter Michelle Dewberry (pictured) revealed that she had cancelled her Virgin Active membership after 'seeing a man in the female changing rooms'
The company also confirmed that they are 'awaiting further detailed guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (ECHR)' in order to help them implement the Supreme Court's ruling in practice.
In April, the Supreme Court announced in a landmark judgement that the definition of a woman is based on biological sex.
Five Supreme Court justices unanimously decided that the term 'women' when used in the 2010 Equality Act meant biological women, and not transgender women - even if they have undergone sex reassignment surgery.
The court had been asked to rule in a case the Scottish government brought forward by feminist group For Women Scotland.
The case centred on whether somebody with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) recognising their gender as female should be treated as a woman under the 2010 Equality Act.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch praised the 88-page ruling as a 'victory' for women and said it meant the 'era of Keir Starmer telling us women can have penises has come to an end'.
The ruling was lauded by gender critics as a victory, despite the judges' warnings that it should not be seen as a 'triumph' of one side over another.
Meanwhile, trans activists have warned the ruling could put trans people at risk and make them feel less safe as they vowed to fight on.
Guidance issued by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) in 2022 said it is legal for gyms to limit these communal spaces to a single-sex as long as a gender-neutral changing room is also provided for trans people.
In light of the Supreme Court's ruling earlier this year, the EHCR are set to confirm and submit its updated guidance regarding public female-only spaces to ministers in the coming weeks.
Their policies are set to impact any public organisation including schools, hospitals, cinemas and leisure centres, alongside public retailers.
In March, Ms Dewberry, shared a screenshot of Virgin Active's response to her email that was seeking a policy clarification.
The company's reply read: 'The changing rooms are split between female and male, with children attending up to the age of eight-years-old of a different gender.
'For the female changing rooms in particular, this would cover females of all ages, boys up to the age of eight, transgender females, and non-binary members.'
Ms Dewberry wrote on X: 'Whatever happened to our right to a single-sex changing space? She did not elaborate further, or reveal if it was a trans woman she encountered
Ms Dewberry wrote on X: 'Whatever happened to our right to a single-sex changing space?
'If you are among the minority of woman [sic] who are comfortable sharing your single-sex changing room with adult males, I completely respect that.
'But what about the majority of us who aren't?'
Ms Dewberry did not elaborate further, or reveal if it was a trans woman she encountered.
A Virgin Active spokesperson at the time said: 'In accordance with UK law and industry guidance, we respect the choice of our members to use the changing room facilities based on the gender they identify with.
'We support and respect all our members and their safety and privacy remains our highest priority. We continue to ensure our policies remain legal, fair and inclusive.'
Dewberry's post divided X as some users agreed it was unfair 'the men's [changing room] is the men's and the women's is a free-for-all'.
Others questioned whether Virgin Active provided 'communal changing rooms where you strip in front of each other? Or do they have individual cubicles?'
'I had the same issue a number of years ago and also cancelled my membership,' one user replied to Dewberry.
The EHCR's new guidance, said to snub demands for a watered down ban on trans people using women's toilets and changing rooms, has been celebrated by certain women's rights activists.
Leading women's rights campaigner Kellie-Jay Keen told the Daily Mail: 'This has been a long time coming and is about 15 years too late.
'The EHRC has failed women spectacularly over the last few years... I'm just disgusted at how they have served women so abysmally.
'Obviously if these new measures make women safer, then it is welcomed... but this whole issue is just insane. We need to get back to commonsense.'
Charities are also expected to be covered by the new guidance, which is due to be submitted to women and equalities minister, Bridget Phillipson, later this month.
Ms Phillipson is reportedly poised to green-lit the measures as long as they conform with the law. It will then be rolled out before parliament after summer recess.
However, trans activists and allies have criticised the 'evil' Supreme Court decision ruling on the definition of a woman, accusing lawmakers of attacking minority groups and putting them at risk, and setting the community 'back 20 years '.
When Ms Barnett, who boasts a combined 2.5 million followers on social media, first started raising funds for the space in 2021, she indicated that it would be open to trans women. However, she later changed her mind
In April, former Dragons' Den star and gym entrepreneur Duncan Bannatyne said that 'no-one should ever allow men into women's changing rooms'.
Mr Bannatyne, the owner of The Bannatyne Group which owns health clubs and spas across the UK, shared a series of gender critical posts in the aftermath of the ruling which saw judges define the meaning of a woman in equality law.
Taking to X, formerly Twitter, the ex-dragon said: 'I hope all gym owners will join me now in agreeing that single sex spaces for women means biological women.
'No gym should ever allow men into women's changing rooms.'
In March, the founder of a female-only gym faced outrage on social media after saying that her work out space would not permit entry for transgender women.
Fitness influencer and model Natalee Barnett, 25, devised the idea behind The Girl Spot gym, due to open soon in Wandsworth, south London , after experiencing gym-based sexual harassment at the hands of men.
When Ms Barnett, who boasts a combined 2.5 million followers on social media, first started raising funds for the space in 2021, she indicated that it would be open to trans women.
Four years later, and with over £22,900 raised via GoFundMe donations, Ms Barnett backtracked on her initial objective, stating that the gym is no longer trans-inclusive and will only serve as a 'safe space for biological women'.
Since, the entrepreneur has been subject to vile abuse and branded 'transphobic' - however others have said she may face legal action.
'Of course, trans women are welcome at my women-only gym,' she said in a TikTok in 2021.
'I don't see trans women as trans women - I see trans women and women. And if you identify as a woman, then you are of course welcome'.
Ms Barnett's announcement fuelled heated social media debate, with critics blasting the influencer for accepting donations on the basis that the gym would permit trans women who were born male but now identify as female, before reversing her decision.
Taking to social media to defend herself, Ms Barnett said that her decision had not been 'made lightly'.
She wrote: 'I spent a great deal of time and money including seeking legal advice and it was absolutely not a choice made lightly or out of exclusion or malice, but rather out of my commitment to ensuring a space where women who have experienced trauma, harassment, or discomfort in co-ed gyms can feel at ease.'
Fiona McAnena, director of campaigns at human rights charity Sex Matters, told The Telegraph that Barnett is 'well within her legal rights' to implement the single-sex rule.
'There are thousands of gyms in the country, almost all open to both sexes. It's very telling that there is so much vitriol aimed at one woman running one small gym, just because she wants a male-free space,' Ms McAnena said.
However, many branded Ms Barnett's plans unfeasible, questioning how she would be able to legitimately check an individual's genitals prior to them entering the establishment.
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