A tribunal has revealed that a transgender nurse, who had access to female changing facilities, was concurrently attempting to start a family with their girlfriend. The situation sparked concern among colleagues, leading to a formal complaint.

Reportedly, Rose Henderson made an inappropriate comment to a pregnant co-worker, inquiring whether she had developed ‘those pregnancy breasts.’ Additionally, Henderson was said to have worn revealing boxer shorts in the female changing area, raising further discomfort among staff.

In 2023, a group of 26 nurses formally expressed their concerns by sending a letter to the hospital management, urging that Henderson be restricted from using the female changing rooms.

The employment tribunal heard testimony that Henderson had openly discussed plans to impregnate their girlfriend while utilizing the shared changing space. This revelation added to the unease among colleagues.

Jane Peveller, a part-time nurse at Darlington Memorial Hospital in County Durham, provided evidence concerning the situation. She recounted a conversation from early 2024, which took place in the eye room, a dedicated area for admitting eye patients in the Day Surgery Unit. During this discussion with Lisa Lockey and another theater staff member, Henderson’s behavior was a central topic.

She said: ‘We had a conversation about Rose Henderson with a member of the theatres staff team.

‘I do not know this staff member’s name or precise role, but during the discussion, she told Lisa and I that Rose Henderson had informed theatre staff that he was trying to get his girlfriend pregnant.’

A letter sent soon afterwards from the worried nurses to hospital managers stated: ‘Rose Henderson has made no secret that he has stopped taking female hormones and is trying to inseminate his female partner.’

Rose Henderson (pictured) allegedly asked a colleague who was expecting a baby whether she had ‘those pregnancy breasts’ and wore tight boxer shorts with holes

Seven nurses from Darlington Memorial Hospital arrive at a landmark employment tribunal at Newcastle County Court

Mrs Peveller told the tribunal: ‘If it was correct it meant I would be getting changed next to a sexually active biological man. I was happy to take the information as correct. Why would my colleague lie to me?’

Simon Cheetham, KC, for the Trust, asked whether she had tried to verify the information by asking Henderson whether it was true or merely a rumour.

She replied: ‘No, I did not ask Rose Henderson about it.’

Another nurse, Vivienne Robinson, was left feeling concerned when Henderson spoke about her breasts while she was pregnant.

Bethany Hutchison, the nurse who took the lead in bringing concerns to hospital managers, told the tribunal: ‘Vivienne told me that she had been in the changing room together with Rose Henderson, whom she had never spoken to before, although she knew that Rose Henderson identified as a ‘transgender woman’.

‘I understood Vivienne as saying that it was just the two of them in the changing room. Vivienne said that she was pregnant at that time, and as she was in the changing room, she initially had her back to Rose Henderson but later turned around.

‘According to Vivienne, Rose Henderson then said to her: “You do not look as big as this from behind”.

‘Vivienne was shocked and made no answer. Rose Henderson then asked her: “Have you got those large pregnancy breasts?”‘

Bethany Hutchison (centre, in pink) is the lead claimant of seven nurses taking on a health trust claiming sexual discrimination and sexual harassment because nurse Rose Henderson, who was born male but identifies as a woman, was able to share female changing rooms

Despite voicing anxiety about Henderson’s comments and demeanour, the nurses said they felt their concerns were not being taken seriously by management.

Mrs Peveller told the tribunal: ‘I attended a meeting with Tracy Atkinson, the Head of HR on 20 May 2024. There were quite a lot of DSU nurses present at the meeting, so I hoped the management would understand that a lot of people were unhappy about the situation.

‘I was happy to let Bethany Hutchison take the lead in explaining our concerns and asking questions on our behalf. My impression from the meeting was that Ms Atkinson was not really taking us seriously.

‘For example, when we asked how she would feel if she had to change in front of a biological male, she said it would not bother her because she had previously been in the Army.

‘Then she proceeded to ask what we wanted, which was fairly simple. We explained that we wanted a gender-neutral changing room to be provided for Rose Henderson.

‘Ms Atkinson indicated she was going to do something, but I did not get the impression she was going to do anything as a matter of urgency. I felt that this was wrong since the Trust had known about the situation for quite a long time and had not done anything about it.’

Carly Hoy, a band 3 healthcare assistant, at the hospital, told the hearing of her stress at seeing Henderson walking around in holed boxer shorts – claiming this led to anxiety which needed medication.

She said: ‘On many occasions I saw Rose Henderson just walking around the changing room wearing nothing except very tight black boxer shorts with holes all over them. I did not want to see that and was not paying close attention, but he would just catch your eye since it was very conspicuous as he would be walking up and down the changing room.

Karen Danson (pictured) previously told the hearing that Henderson triggered a flashback to child sexual abuse trauma when they met in the changing room

‘I would usually see his side profile. It was very hard to ignore but as soon as I saw him, I turned away.

‘I normally wear a dress rather than trousers, so to change from my uniform, I need to strip down to my underwear to put my tights on and then put my dress on. I was really uncomfortable changing if Rose Henderson was in there. I am not going to get changed in front of a biological man.

‘Rose Henderson just stood there and stared at you, waiting for you to change. When he was there, I would either get my belongings from the locker and go to the toilet to change, or go outside the room, wait until they had come out and then go in and get changed.

‘The problem was that there was not always time to wait. The situation has made me feel extremely anxious, and for some periods of time, I was prescribed medication for anxiety.’

She said she began calling her mother or sister when she went into the changing room and if Henderson was there she would make sure to stay on the phone for the duration of the time she was getting changed.

The tribunal has been told hospital managers suggested Henderson helped to ‘educate’ the nurses expressing concern.

It was suggested Henderson might be able to ‘broaden their mindset’ about trans matters and was approached to talk to female colleagues.

Ms Hutchison told the tribunal: ‘The ward manager Claire Gregory informed me that she had been told that “the Trust were in support of Rose” and we, the 26 nurses who signed the letter, had to be educated, broaden our mindset and be more inclusive.

‘To add insult to injury, Claire told me that Tracy Atkinson (a hospital human resources manager) suggested that Rose Henderson should be the one to educate us, to broaden our mindset and become more inclusive.

‘From what Claire told me, I understood that Rose Henderson had been approached by his managers prior to this meeting and agreed to “educate” us himself.

‘I remember this conversation with Claire so well because I was extremely upset by the news I heard from her. I realised that the management were not going to support us and were only going to label us bigots, unreasonable, unkind and not inclusive.’

Seven of the 26 nurses launched an employment tribunal against County Durham and Darlington Foundation Trust (CDDFT) claiming sexual discrimination and sexual harassment.

They say the Trust’s stance flies in the face of a Supreme Court ruling in April of this year which found the terms ‘woman’ and ‘sex’ in the Equality Act refer only to a biological woman and biological sex.

The tribunal has heard they have been publicly supported by public figures, including the Health Secretary Wes Streeting, the Leader of the Opposition Kemi Badenoch, Harry Potter writer JK Rowling, olympic swimmer Sharron Davies OBE, the businessman and philanthropist Duncan Bannatyne, the women’s rights campaigner Maya Forstater, and politicians Baroness Claire Fox, Miriam Cates MP, Rosie Duffield and Lord Toby Young.

Ms Hutchison told the hearing: ‘All those politicians publicly expressed their unreserved support for our demand to have a safe single-sex changing room at work.’

The hearing, expected to last a month, continues.