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Hampstead Heath's famous bathing ponds could soon ban transgender swimmers from using single-sex spaces under proposals now out for public consultation.
The City of London Corporation (CLC), which manages the ponds, has launched a review setting out six possible approaches to gender inclusivity.
One option would bar trans people from using ponds that match their gender identity, restricting them instead to the Heath's mixed pool.
Currently, trans men and women are allowed to use whichever single-sex pond they feel is most appropriate.
But the policy has sparked years of tension among swimmers, with campaigners demanding a return to strict sex-based segregation.
In recent years, women have staged high-profile protests, including in 2018 when campaigners donned fake beards and moustaches to storm the men's pond, and again this May when around 30 women chanting 'no goolies in our poolies' tried to enter the male-only space in defiance of the rules.
The row has escalated further since campaign group Sex Matters threatened legal action after a Supreme Court ruling defined the legal meaning of 'woman' as biological sex.
Critics say the ponds' current system undermines women's rights to privacy and dignity.
But trans swimmers and their allies argue they have used the ponds for decades without issue, calling the push for exclusion 'cruel and judgemental'.
They warn the rules could backfire, forcing trans men with facial hair and masculine features into the women's pond and leading to humiliating confrontations, the Guardian reports.
Maya Forstater, chief executive of Sex Matters, said: 'Women who choose to swim at the ladies' pond rather than the mixed pond are choosing a female-only environment for a variety of personal reasons, including privacy and dignity. Allowing men with the protected characteristic of gender reassignment to enter means that it is no longer a female-only environment.'
Announcing the consultation, Chris Hayward, the CLC's chair of policy, said: 'Hampstead Heath is one of London's most cherished open spaces, and the bathing ponds are an integral part of the Heath.
'We want to hear directly from users and other stakeholders about how they value these unique facilities and how they believe they should operate in the future, and I encourage everyone with an interest to take part in the consultation.
'We recognise the sensitivity surrounding this issue. Our consultation will help ensure that everyone's voice is heard, and that decisions are made in a fair, respectful, and transparent way, in line with the law.
'While the consultation will be an important source of insight, it is not the only factor.
'The views we receive will sit alongside our wider responsibilities – including meeting legal requirements, assessing equality impacts, ensuring safeguarding, and considering how any decisions could be implemented in practice.'
In 2018, women staged a protest in the men's pond, wearing fake moustaches and beards to highlight the organisation's refusal to ban trans women from the ladies' pond.
Tensions flared again in May this year when women's rights campaigners stormed the male pond with around 30 female protesters, wearing false beards, wigs, and moustaches, demanded to be let in on Bank Holiday Monday, claiming to self-identify as male.
'They were blocked by security guards and police, who locked gates and reminded them protests were not allowed.