Nelson City Council
Captured
Q1: Do you provide communal single-sex changing and showering facilities?
Yes
Q2: Do you provide single occupancy changing and showering facilities? If so, how many at each site?
Nayland Pool
Within the female changing room there are ten private (single-occupancy) change cubicles.
This changing room also includes a shared changing area, four shower cubicles (without doors/screens) and five toilets.
The male changing room does not include private (single-occupancy) change cubicles. It contains a shared changing area, four shower cubicles (without doors/screens), a urinal and five toilets.
The facility also contains three family/accessible/gender-neutral changing rooms. All people are welcome to use these private areas, regardless of gender. Two of these have seating, a changing area and a baby changing table. The third has the same facilities, plus a basin.
Riverside Pool
Within the female changing room there are three private (single-occupancy) change cubicles and three private shower cubicles. This changing room also includes a shared changing area and four toilets. The male changing room does not include private (single-occupancy) change cubicles, however it does include three private showers. This changing room also includes a shared changing area, a urinal and two toilets.
The facility also contains two family/accessible/gender-neutral changing rooms. All people are welcome to use these private areas, regardless of gender. These each have seating, a changing area, a baby changing table, a toilet and a shower.
Q3: Please provide any policies or procedures that apply to trans-identified people who wish to use the changing and showering facilities in your sites.
We have no Council specific policy or procedure applying to ‘trans-identified’ people who wish to use the above mentioned facilities. We are guided by law (most relevantly the combined operation of the Human Rights Act 1993 and the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990) which prohibits Council from discriminating against people on the grounds of sex, and relevant Human Rights Commission guidance on the application of that law (such as Trans rights are human rights - A guide to your rights and protections as a transgender person) which has indicated that the government has considered that the ground of ‘sex’ includes people who are transgender.
In this particular context, Council is more specifically guided by Recreation Aotearoa’s guidance document ‘Trans and gender diverse guidelines for exercise and recreations providers’ which states that individuals may use toilets, changing rooms, showers and other facilities appropriate to their gender.
Q4: How are your different changing and showering facilities labelled and described?
The female changing rooms are labelled as ‘Wāhine’ and the male changing rooms are labelled as ‘Tāne’, with the corresponding universal pictograms/symbols. These signs also include information about the separate availability of the family/accessible/gender-neutral changing rooms. The family/accessible/gender-neutral changing rooms are labelled as ‘Whānau/Whaikaka/Iakore’, with corresponding universal symbols. These signs specify that all are welcome to use these private areas.
Q5: At your sites, which changing room and showering facilities is a trans-identified male permitted to use?
We understand the term ‘trans-identified males’ as used in your request to refer to
transgender women. These people may use facilities that align with their gender identity,
including female changing rooms, and the shared areas and private cubicles within those
rooms. They may also use family/accessible/gender-neutral changing rooms (as can any user
regardless of their gender).
Q6: If applicable, do your facilities allow trans-identifying males to attend Women Only swim sessions?
Yes, noting our understanding of the term ‘Trans-identified males’ outlined in the response to Question 5 above. Women-only sessions are reserved for individuals who identify as women, including transgender women.
Our Verdict
Nelson City Council has a long history of ignoring women's rights in this area, this is no exception.
Links to any provided documents