Universities review transgender policies following Sussex free speech fine

Several universities have begun reviewing or removing transgender policies from their websites, following the record-breaking £585,000 fine issued to the University of Sussex for breaching free speech policies. 

The Office for Students (OfS) handed out the largest fine it has ever demanded of a university after it deemed Sussex had failed to uphold free speech when former Professor Kathleen Stock was forced to resign over her controversial views on gender identity. 

The OfS’s investigation against Sussex centred on its trans and non-binary policy, which insisted that academics had to “positively represent trans people and trans lives” in all course materials. Professor Stock resigned from her post at Sussex University in 2021 after student protests accused her of making “trans students feel unsafe” with her views on gender and sex.

The University of Essex has removed a link on its website to its gender identity policy supporting transgender and non-binary staff  

In an article for Unherd, Stock urged the university sector to heed the lessons of the OfS’s inquiry, stating that “the findings are very welcome; I hope the sector finally pays attention”.

A wave of “anxiety” has taken hold amongst UK universities following the OfS’s decision, with “trans policies vanish[ing] from university websites” in droves.   

The University of Essex has removed a link on its website to its gender identity policy supporting transgender and non-binary staff. A spokesman noted: “[the university’s] policies and guidance [are] under regular review as part of meeting our legal obligations”.  

Similarly, the University of Exeter’s and the University of Leeds’ policies have also vanished from their website, the latter directly citing the OfS’s verdict as the reason for doing so. Some universities, including the University of Warwick, have, however, kept their gender identity frameworks online.  

The University of Sussex has expressed its intent to challenge the outcome of the OfS’s inquiry, arguing it was “vindictive and unreasonable”, with the institution adding that the regulator was using Sussex to “entrench an extreme libertarian free speech position”.

Vice-Chancellor of the University, Sasha Roseneil, referred to it as a “kafkesque investigation” that was “politically motivated”.    

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson commented that “we [the government] are giving the OfS stronger powers on freedom of speech so students and academics are not muzzled”, adding that free speech and academic freedom were “non-negotiables”, with “robust action” as the consequence for non-compliance.