Report of the City Solicitor

This report provides an update on the work undertaken in Manchester to improve outcomes for its trans residents including progress against the recommendations within the Research Study into the Trans Population of Manchester, commissioned by the Council and published in 2016.  Aligned to the overarching themes of the research study, this report provides details of ongoing work aligned to each theme, along with other examples of relevant work in this area.  Additionally, the report considers the significant increase in reported trans hate crimes in Manchester and outlines the reasons for and responses to this as an area of focus.

The Committee received a report of the City Solicitor which provided an update on the work undertaken in Manchester to improve outcomes for its trans residents including progress against the recommendations within the Research Study into the Trans Population of Manchester, commissioned by the Council and published in 2016.  Aligned to the overarching themes of the research study, the report provided details of ongoing work aligned to each theme, along with other examples of relevant work in this area.  Additionally, the report considered the significant increase in reported trans hate crimes in Manchester and outlined the reasons for and responses to this as an area of focus.

Officers referred to the main points and themes within the report, which included:

• Young people and education;
• Health;
• Housing;
• Domestic abuse;
• Trans hate crime;
• Additional activities; and
• Gender Recognition Act consultation.

The Virtual School Head informed Members that the Trans Action Group referred to within the report was holding a meeting the following week and invited Members to attend that meeting or a future one.  The Chair asked that details of this meeting be circulated to Members of the Committee.

Some of the key points that arose from the Committee’s discussions were:

• How the specific needs of trans people would be taken into account in the work on the LGBT-Affirmative Extra Care scheme, given that their needs differed from those of LGB (Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual) people; and
• Hate crimes against trans people, including the reluctance of some trans people to report hate crimes, prosecutions for hate crimes and which Third Party Reporting Centres (TPRC) trans people would feel comfortable using.

The Project Manager for Extra Carereported that those providing the extra care services should receive additional training on the needs of the LGBT communities, including needs specific to trans people, and that the information in the Research Study into the Trans Population of Manchester would also be used to inform the care provided.  She informed Members that there had been an initial workshop at the LGBT Foundation which had sought views from LGBT people on what they wanted within the Scheme and that the representative of the Pride in Ageing Advisory Group who was sitting on the steering group was a member of the trans community who provided feedback from the wider trans community.

The Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager advised Members that the increase in reported hate crimes against trans people appeared to be due to an increased confidence in reporting hate crimes to the police.  He advised Members that he would do some further work to look at prosecution rates and trans-friendly TPRCs.  A Member asked to be provided with further information on the trans-friendly TPRCs, which the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager agreed to provide.

The Lead Member for LGBT Men informed Members that he agreed that there was an increased confidence in reporting hate crime which partially explained the increase in reported hate crimes but he also believed that there had been an increase in hate crimes being committed against LGBT people generally.  He advised Members that it was important to continue to work with the police and other agencies to address this and to share best practice.  He also stated that it was important to address misinformation and asked that a ‘mythbuster’ leaflet on trans issues produced by LGBT+ Labour be circulated to Members of the Committee, to which the Chair agreed.

Decisions

1.            To request that details of the Trans Action Group meeting be circulated to Committee Members.

2.            To request that the ‘mythbuster’ leaflet on trans issues produced by LGBT+ Labour be circulated to Members of the Committee.