introduction. using this toolkit This toolkit is for LGBT organisations that want to be inclusive. It explores what transphobia is, the barriers to services trans people face, and provides simple, practical guidance on how you can remove these barriers. The information it contains comes from trans people themselves. We held a series of focus groups which explored trans people’s experiences of accessing services. Some of these groups were open to all trans spectrum people, others were closed groups on the same issues, which were targeted at specific groups of people; trans youth and black and minority ethnic (BAME) trans people. We also held discussions with LGBT organisations to find out the challenges they face.
Our advice and guidance is based around 10 Keys to success. These highlight the importance of delivering services to trans people and recognising their unique potential to be an integral part of your organisation’s activities and its development. We hope this resource will provide you with concrete tools to realise your vision of trans inclusivity. Although this toolkit has been written with LGBT organisations in mind, we think much of this information will be relevant to other organisations and service providers too. Please feel free to use it and adapt it to suit your needs.
LGBT. STRONGER TOGETHER LGBT people have different identities and experiences, but we share some common vulnerabilities. There are solid reasons for bringing LGB and trans people together. Gender affects everyone. People who challenge gender stereotypes are often amongst the most stigmatised people in our communities; women who assert themselves as leaders are often branded as ‘lesbians‘ to make them stop pushing for change, men who embrace their emotional or artistic sides are often branded as ‘gay’ and penalised socially and in the world of work. Gender bias and homophobia are inextricably entwined.
The violence that our communities experience often happens when we don’t conform to socially sanctioned ideas about what men and women should look like, how they should act, or how they should behave. Trans people experience homophobia, and lesbian, gay and bisexual people experience transphobia. By confronting gender bias as well as homophobia we work for the benefit of all LGBT people. We also challenge the root causes of sexism. There are practical reasons why organisations are stronger when they include the T. The new public sector duties allow bodies to 2