A watchdog which said girls in care should share a bedroom with boys who ‘self-identify’ as the opposite gender is guilty of ‘dangerous negligence’, a former senior police officer claimed yesterday.
Cathy Larkman criticised the Care Inspectorate after it said looked-after transgender children ‘should not be made to use the toilet or bedroom of their sex assigned at birth’.
The edict adds that trans youngsters should be able to ‘share a room with other young people who share their gender identity’.
The Scottish Mail on Sunday revealed that astonishingly, it also states there is ‘no law in Scotland’ that protects single-sex spaces.
Last night retired police superintendent Ms Larkman, national policing lead for the Women’s Rights Network, said: ‘I don’t normally call for anyone to lose their jobs, but everyone involved in this decision should be removed.
‘They aren’t fit for their role.’
Former senior police officer Cathy Larkman is critical of the Care Inspectorate’s gender policy for looked-after children
The Care Inspectorate has been accused of ‘dangerous negligence’ over its stance on looked-after transgender children
Writing on social media platform X, she said: ‘It’s wilful and dangerous negligence towards vulnerable girls.’
Research from the University of Stirling in 2019 showed that in Scotland, the majority of children who have been removed from their parents have endured maltreatment or neglect.
According to the Cass Review published last year, there is a high presentation of children who have had adverse childhood experiences and those who are ‘looked after’ among the transgender population.
In light of those findings, the Care Inspectorate published updated guidance for care workers and accommodation providers in May 2024.
It said it supports schools guidance issued by the Scottish Government which states that a transgender youngster should not be made to use the toilet or bedroom of their biological sex.
It states that ‘if a transgender young person wants to share a room with other young people who share their gender identity, they should be able to do so as long as the rights of, and risks to, all those involved are considered and respected’.
In a move which critics believe displays a chilling lack of understanding of equalities legislation, it goes on to say: ‘The provision of gendered facilities such as toilets is social convention. There is no law in Scotland about this.’
Susan Smith, of campaign group For Women Scotland, said: ‘Various pieces of legislation do mandate single-sex toilet provisions.
‘Care Inspectorate officials must be naive to the point of abject idiocy if they think gender identity will preclude children indulging in dangerous sexual behaviour.
‘Children’s human rights and physical safety matter: unless the Care Inspectorate want another child abuse inquiry on their hands, they will stop deliberately putting children at risk.’
Scottish Conservative equalities spokesman Tess White added: ‘It’s frankly ludicrous that Scotland’s care watchdog doesn’t recognise there are legal obligations to provide single-sex spaces.’
Helen Joyce, director of advocacy at human rights charity Sex Matters, called the guidance ‘a terrifying failure of the state’s duty to protect some of Scotland’s most vulnerable young people’.
She said: ‘This policy is grossly negligent, putting young people who deserve so much better at significant risk.’
The Care Inspectorate was contacted last night for comment on Ms Larkman’s intervention.
A spokesman for the watchdog told the Scottish Mail on Sunday: ‘It is for care services to decide on the appropriate provision of facilities to meet the individual needs, rights and wishes of those experiencing care.’
