In 2021, the Sports Council Equality Group released its ‘Guidance on Transgender Inclusion in Domestic Sport’. This required national governing bodies (NGB) to ‘define the best options for their sport’ based upon factors such as contact and the existing competitive model. As an NGB, Swim England was therefore obligated to consider each sport individually, whilst utilising the same consideration of safety, fairness and inclusion across all disciplines.

The policy will go live from 1 September 2023 meaning all competitions/ competitors will need to comply from this date. Exceptions do exist where swimming competition licenses have already been granted or leagues have already begun.

If you are a meet promoter and have already received a licence number prior to 3 April your existing conditions will be honoured.

Should you have any queries please contact [email protected]

Please see the Explanatory Note for an overview of these considerations. Further questions can be sent to [email protected]

Questions or concerns relating to the policy should be submitted to [email protected]

Yes. There are age-specific considerations with regards to Water Polo. However, the wider policy is applicable for all ages.

Swim England recognises that this is a sensitive area and therefore the welfare of competitors is our primary concern. As a result of previous, unfounded allegations, Swim England asks that such concerns are raised post-event. Please advise the complainant that the challenge will be looked into following the event. Do not approach the athlete. As per the policy, questions or concerns should be submitted to [email protected]

The event conditions will be updated to include the following: The Female category is for birth sex females in accordance with Swim England’s Transgender and Non-Binary Competition Policy. By entering the ‘Female’ category you confirm that your birth sex is female.

Licensed competitions have been granted a licence by Swim England as a result of a formal application detailing the conditions and management of the event. As a result, licensed competitions within swimming are able to submit times into national rankings whereas unlicensed competitions cannot.

Swim England does not set changing room policy for transgender participants. If you have queries about changing room usage, Swim England recommends speaking to the pool operator about its designated policy.

If the league is affiliated, it must adhere to the new policy.

Any organisation affiliated to Swim England, a region or a county running competitions under Swim England Laws must adhere to the new policy.

Whilst safety is the overall priority, Swim England believes transgender males should be able to compete in the Open category of Water Polo, if they make the informed decision to do so. Transgender males or non-binary individuals with a birth sex of female who wish to compete in the Open category will be required to sign an assumption of risk form. For further information, please contact [email protected]

Webinars have been delivered to stakeholders across aquatics and guidance is available via this webpage. If you have further queries please contact [email protected]

You should have received an email explaining the updated policy, including how it may impact you. If this is not the case, please contact [email protected]

If a swimming league event is licensed, it must adhere to the new policy. Within unlicensed events athletes should be free to self-ID as per the policy.

World Aquatics have set out the expectations for costumes and we would still expect competitors to comply with this. We recognise that athletes may not want to wear costumes as prescribed in these rules and where possible, we will support this. We have published our Swimwear Guidance which outlines different formats of costume. It is essential an athletes applies for a Certificate of Exception if they want to wear a costume not specified by World Aquatics.

As per the policy, these are the categories into which competition is split. You may see it represented as ‘EC’ on websites such as swimmingresults.org.

Whilst this policy refers solely to competition, Swim England recognises that overnight stays during a meet need to be considered. In this instance the safety and welfare of all members, regardless of whether they are transgender, must be prioritised. Therefore, Swim England recommends that birth sex be used when determining room sharing. If room sharing is not appropriate in these circumstances, a single room should be offered.

If they wish to update their gender this can be done by the club or the individual logging into OMS and editing the gender field on the Diversity tab. This field is used for data collection only. If they wish to change their ‘Eligibility Category’ on OMS this can only be done by contacting [email protected] where the team will be happy to help with the process. It is the ‘Eligibility Category’ field that determines the category of competition. Please note, the process to change someone’s ‘Eligibility Category’ may take up to 28 days and can only be changed back once.

Please do not approach the member directly as any presumption, whilst legitimate, may be unfounded and cause harm. Questions or concerns relating to the policy should be submitted to [email protected]

The Policy relates solely to competition and it is for each club to determine their training sessions. Where there is a concern please contact [email protected]

The Policy relates solely to competition and it is for each club to determine their training sessions. Where there is a concern please contact [email protected]

This policy is solely for competition and therefore an individual should be free to volunteer as per their gender identity, free from discrimination.

If the member has joined Swim England within the last 28 days, the Eligibility Category can be changed by emailing [email protected] to confirm that a mistake has been made upon registration.

If the error has been noticed more than 28 days after the membership registration, they can request for an Eligibility Category correction to be made by emailing [email protected], however Swim England will require a copy of the member’s Birth Certificate to do so.

Please be aware that the process of amending Eligibility Category will take up to 28 days to update on the member’s profile.

No, unless a swimwear exception has been applied for and granted under a ‘Certificate of Exception‘.

Please advise the complainant that the challenge will be looked into following the event. Do not approach the athlete. As per the policy, questions or concerns should be submitted to [email protected]

Please do not approach the member directly as any presumption, whilst legitimate, may be unfounded and cause harm. Questions or concerns relating to the policy should be submitted to [email protected]

Please consult the policy. If you are unsure as to the appropriate category, questions can be submitted to [email protected]

No, if you have already received a licence number prior to the launch of the Policy your existing conditions will be honoured. We appreciate that the documents for the meet might not all comply as a result of entries being open prior to the updates of the event management software. If you wish to update your conditions to comply with the new Policy please contact your Regional Licensing Officer.

Rankings will refer to ‘Open/Male’ times rather than simply ‘Male’. Given swimmingresults.org includes British, Welsh and Scottish rankings the term ‘Male’ must still be included for accuracy.

Swim England is in discussion with third party meet entry software providers about the changes. Although we do not have direct control over these applications, we expect updates to begin form the implementation date of the 1st September 2023.

Please speak to the lead referee who will refer the matter in accordance with the agreed process.

Swim England recognises that this is a sensitive area and therefore the welfare of competitors is our primary concern. As a result of previous, unfounded allegations, Swim England asks that such concerns are raised post-event. Please advise the complainant that the challenge will be looked into following the event. Do not approach the athlete. As per the policy, questions or concerns should be submitted to [email protected]. You will be provided with a reporting form, with a request for basic information including the competitor involved, the individual raising the concern and the basis for this concern.

No, as the event has been licensed the Female/Open categories will apply.

The swimmingresults.org website is a live website and changes will therefore begin to take place from 1 September. Swim England will endeavour to make these changes as quickly as possible. However, if after the 1 October 2023, you notice a reference has been missed, please email [email protected].

Please contact [email protected] and the team will help you based upon the specifications of the situation.

If competitions applied for a licence prior to 3 April 2023, then Swim England has agreed to honour the conditions of the application. This may mean that some competitions continue to use ‘Female/Male’ categories for the remainder of 2023. If you are unsure please contact [email protected]. Regional Licensing Officers will be checking any licensing applications received after the launch of the new Policy in order to ensure they comply.

Swim England recognises that this is a sensitive area and therefore the welfare of competitors is our primary concern. As a result of previous, unfounded allegations, Swim England asks that such concerns are raised post-event. Please advise the complainant that the challenge will be looked into following the event. Do not approach the athlete. As per the policy, questions or concerns should be submitted to [email protected]

The policy does not come into effect until the 01 September.

Swim England recognises there will be a period of transition between the old and new categories and we therefore expect to see some instances of the category ‘male’ still appearing on documents and scoreboards post 1 September. Swim England is in touch with the main event management system providers as they put in provision to accommodate the changes.

The result stands and the challenge will be looked into following the event. Do not approach the athlete. As per the policy, challenges should be submitted to [email protected]

Swim England recognises there will be a period of transition between the old and new categories and we therefore expect to see some instances of the category ‘male’ still appearing post the 1st September.

The following text can be added to event conditions to account for this:

Currently, the software used to manage and run the meet are not capable of the new ‘Open’ and ‘Female’ categories. An exact date for when these changes will be made is not yet available. It is inevitable, and this is recognised by Swim England, that there will be a period of transition and that the terms ‘Male’ (and other legacy terms) will continue to appear on scoreboards, webpages and applications. However where this happens, the terms ‘Ladies’, ‘Women’ and ‘Girl’ should be taken as referring to the new ‘Female’ category and all other terms as the new ‘Open’ category.

In order to ensure consistency with senior (16+) events, the ‘Female’ and ‘Open’ categories may still be used. However, unlike in senior competition, competitors are free to self-id into the category that aligns with their gender identity.

Swim England recommends speaking with the Club Welfare Officer and Coach to agree the best course of action within the remit of the club. This is an evolving area and therefore understanding will be needed from all parties to ensure that changes can be implemented positively. Whilst every effort must be made to respect the needs of your child, safeguarding must remain the overall priority. For support, please submit any questions to [email protected]

We take a zero tolerance approach to transphobia and discrimination. Such instances should be reported via the Club Welfare Officer and emailed to [email protected]

Historical records will be listed as ‘Female’ and ‘Open/Male’. The latter will be used to reflect that historical records were achieved within the ‘Male’ category, prior to the implementation of an ‘Open’ category. The heading ‘Sex’ will also be replaced by ‘EC’, in reference to ‘Eligibility Category’.

The objective of this policy is to determine how transgender and non-binary members can compete within Swim England’s sports. As a result, members will not be able to freely alternate between the ‘Female’ and ‘Open’ categories. A maximum of 2 changes may be made. Please note, the Swim England process may take up to 28 days.

To update your eligibility category this can only be done by contacting [email protected] where the team will be happy to help with the process. It is the ‘Eligibility Category’ field in the Online Membership System that determines the category of competition. Please note, the process to change someone’s ‘Eligibility Category’ may take up to 28 days and can only be changed back once.