A former Scottish prison governor has declared there are effectively no women's prisons in Scotland due to a contentious transgender housing policy, with a crucial judicial review set for next month.
Governor's Stark Warning Ahead of Court Battle
Rhona Hotchkiss, who served as governor of the now-closed women's prison HMP Cornton Vale until her retirement in 2019, issued the stark criticism in an interview with the Sunday Mail. She argued that the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) must rename its female estates to "mixed units" if its current policy on housing transgender inmates continues.
The policy, which is the subject of a legal challenge by the campaign group For Women Scotland at the Court of Session in February, states that transgender prisoners can be placed in an establishment matching their affirmed gender once a safety assessment is completed.
Legal Challenge and Policy Controversy
Hotchkiss, who now sits on the board of JK Rowling's women's refuge Beira's Place alongside For Women Scotland co-founder Susan Smith, stated the policy contradicts the Equality Act. "The ruling was quite clear that the Equality Act sex means biological sex," she said. "Therefore if you have a women's prison, it has to be all people who are biologically women."
She added: "It's now a misnomer to say we have any women's prisons in Scotland, we don't... These are men, no matter how they identify, they shouldn't be in women's prisons unless they are going to stop calling it a women's prison."
The legal challenge follows public outcry in 2023 over plans to house convicted transgender rapist Isla Bryson in a women's facility, which prompted a policy review in 2024. For Women Scotland's legal documents claim the SPS policy is "unlawful" and creates an "intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating and/or offensive environment" for female prisoners.
Government and Prison Service Response
A Scottish Government spokesperson said it accepted the Supreme Court's judgment and was ensuring all policies comply with legal obligations. "The Prisons Guidance has not been changed, and it can be taken from that the Scottish Government has concluded it does not need to be changed," the spokesperson stated, noting the matter was now for the courts.
The Scottish Prison Service said it was "committed to upholding the rights, safety and wellbeing of all people" in its care and had fully accepted the Supreme Court judgment. It declined to comment further due to the live legal proceedings.
The judicial review, scheduled for February 2026, will be a pivotal moment for Scotland's prison policy and the wider debate on transgender rights and single-sex spaces.
