FOI25/26 052 1 Interpretation & Application of Equality Act 2010
FOI reference: 25/26 052
Date received: 25/07/2025
Date responded: 05/09/2025
Information requested
You asked SQA for the following information:
This is a request under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.
I am seeking all records held by the Scottish Qualifications Authority from 1 January 2023 to the date of your response concerning the organisation’s interpretation and application of the Equality Act 2010, particularly in light of the UK Supreme Court ruling in For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers [2022] UKSC 31 (clarified December 2023), which confirmed that the protected characteristic of “sex” in the Act refers exclusively to biological sex.
Please provide the following information:
1. Policy Review and Legal Compliance
a. Any records (emails, legal advice, internal papers, minutes) discussing the implications of the UK Supreme Court judgment on SQA policies, equality documentation, or terminology used in guidance, assessments, or training materials.
b. Any Equality Impact Assessments (EQIAs), draft or final, reviewing the legality of using “gender identity” or similar constructs in place of “sex” across any area of your remit.
c. Records showing how SQA ensures that its materials and equality monitoring frameworks comply with the Equality Act’s legal definition of “sex,” and not with external lobbying guidance.
2. Third-Party Influence, Stonewall and Related Organisations a. A breakdown of all payments made by SQA from 1 January 2022 to the present to:
• Stonewall UK / Stonewall Scotland
• LGBT Youth Scotland
• Equality Network
• Scottish Trans
• Any other EDI or diversity provider offering consultancy, audits, benchmarking, or staff training.
Please include:
• Supplier name
• Date and amount of payment
• Nature/purpose of service or event.
b. All internal records (emails, reports, meeting notes) referring to engagement with Stonewall or related organisations, including participation in the Diversity Champions scheme, the Workplace Equality Index, or other lobbying-affiliated initiatives.
3. Curriculum Oversight and Safeguarding Responsibilities a. Any records or guidance materials used or produced by SQA from 2022 onward referencing “gender identity,” “non-binary,” “trans inclusion,” or similar concepts in relation to:
• Qualifications and assessment frameworks • Subject content under Health and Wellbeing, PSHE, or RME • Training materials for markers, appointees, or contractors.
b. Details of any internal or external concerns raised (including whistleblowing, safeguarding issues, or public correspondence) regarding the legal accuracy or safeguarding appropriateness of materials containing contested gender identity concepts, especially where biological sex was misrepresented or omitted.
4. Public Accountability, Neutrality, and Nolan Principles a. Records showing what steps the SQA has taken to ensure its policy positions remain institutionally neutral, evidence-based, and in line with the Nolan Principles of Public Life and Education (Scotland) Act 1980 requirements.
b. Any risk assessments, governance papers, or correspondence evaluating whether third-party equality guidance—such as that from Stonewall—was legally compliant or potentially in conflict with statutory duties under the Equality Act 2010.
This request is made in the public interest to assess whether a national education body is lawfully interpreting and applying equality law, particularly in relation to sex-based protections and safeguarding. Responses should be provided in electronic format where possible.
If this request exceeds cost limits, please advise on how best to prioritise the information.
Response
Again, please accept our apologies for the delay in responding to your request. We are in a peak period of requests for information, and experiencing some resource issues, coupled with this request requiring multidisciplinary input it has resulted in the delay in responding.
Throughout this response, names and identifying information of SQA staff below Head of Service level and non-SQA staff have been removed under section 38 (1)(b) as this is considered personal information. Please note that system information has also been redacted.
Glossary
NDPB
Non Departmental Public Body
HRTU
Human Resource Trade Union
1. Policy Review and Legal Compliance
a. Any records (emails, legal advice, internal papers, minutes) discussing the implications of the UK Supreme Court judgment on SQA policies, equality documentation, or terminology used in guidance, assessments, or training materials.
The information requested is contained within attachment 1a.
b. Any Equality Impact Assessments (EQIAs), draft or final, reviewing the legality of using “gender identity” or similar constructs in place of “sex” across any area of your remit.
When an authority is unable to provide information, under section 17 of the Act, it must inform a requester. SQA has not carried out any EQIAs regarding this topic.
c. Records showing how SQA ensures that its materials and equality monitoring frameworks comply with the Equality Act’s legal definition of “sex,” and not with external lobbying guidance.
In both our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Policy and our Equality Impact Assessment Guidance we use the definitions of protected characteristics from the Equality Act 2010 and the Equality and Human Rights Commission's guidance. A copy of both documents are provided for reference in attachment 1c. SQA has been clear in our processing of data and use of language that reference to ‘sex’ under the Equality Act 2010 refers to biological sex. This remains unchanged.
2. Third-Party Influence, Stonewall and Related Organisations
a. A breakdown of all payments made by SQA from 1 January 2022 to the present to:
• Stonewall UK / Stonewall Scotland
• LGBT Youth Scotland
• Equality Network
• Scottish Trans
• Any other EDI or diversity provider offering consultancy, audits, benchmarking, or staff training.
Please include:
• Supplier name
• Date and amount of payment
• Nature/purpose of service or event.
The information requested is contained within attachment 2a.
b. All internal records (emails, reports, meeting notes) referring to engagement with Stonewall or related organisations, including participation in the Diversity Champions scheme, the Workplace Equality Index, or other lobbying-affiliated initiatives.
The information requested is contained within attachment 2b.
3. Curriculum Oversight and Safeguarding Responsibilities
a. Any records or guidance materials used or produced by SQA from 2022 onward referencing “gender identity,” “non-binary,” “trans inclusion,” or similar concepts in relation to:
• Qualifications and assessment frameworks
This information is publicly available and is therefore exempt information under section 25(1) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA).
However, to assist you in finding the information I have included links to the appropriate areas of our website.
Guidance on use of gender as a variable in National 5 and Higher Psychology assignments
Modern Languages - Course overview and resources - SQA
LGBT inclusive education - SQA
• Subject content under Health and Wellbeing, PSHE, or RME
When an authority is unable to provide information, under section 17 of the Act, it must inform a requester. SQA does not have any information regarding subject content as this is out with the remit of SQA.
• Training materials for markers, appointees, or contractors.
This information is publicly available and is therefore exempt information under section 25(1) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA).
However, to assist you in finding the information I have included links to the appropriate areas of our website.
Understanding gender identity and transgender - SQA
More information is contained within attachment 3a.
b. Details of any internal or external concerns raised (including whistleblowing, safeguarding issues, or public correspondence) regarding the legal accuracy or safeguarding appropriateness of materials containing contested gender identity concepts, especially where biological sex was misrepresented or omitted.
The information requested is contained within attachment 3b.
4. Public Accountability, Neutrality, and Nolan Principles
a. Records showing what steps the SQA has taken to ensure its policy positions remain institutionally neutral, evidence-based, and in line with the Nolan Principles of Public Life and Education (Scotland) Act 1980 requirements.
SQA work, including policy positions, is carried out in line with SQA Code of Conduct, contained within attachment 4a.
We have also provided email correspondence regarding an organisation response to the EHRC consultation on the Code of Practice from the Supreme Court ruling.
b. Any risk assessments, governance papers, or correspondence evaluating whether third-party equality guidance—such as that from Stonewall—was legally compliant or potentially in conflict with statutory duties under the Equality Act 2010.
When an authority is unable to provide information, under section 17 of the Act, it must inform a requester. SQA does not have any information relating to evaluating whether third-party guidance was legally compliant or potentially in conflict with statutory duties under the Equality Act 2010.
Documents:
Breakdown of Payments (100 KB)
Appendix 6 EQIA Guidance (166 KB)
Article Supreme Court Ruling (531 KB)
Article Unrest in Parts of the UK (700 KB)
Code of Conduct Redacted (188 KB)
Equality Diversity and Inclusion Policy (230 KB)
Equality Impact Assessment Template (154 KB)