Backlash grows against endometriosis charity who appointed trans woman Steph Richards – who has repeatedly clashed with feminist campaigners – as new CEO with mother who has the condition calling it ‘utterly sick’

• EXCLUSIVE: Critics labeled the appointment of a biological male as ‘insulting’
• READ MORE: Campaigners praise pledge to end gender-neutral language in NHS

An outraged mother suffering from an agonising womb condition has slammed a charity supporting those with the illness after a trans woman was appointed as its new chief executive. 

Endometriosis South Coast (ESC) announced that transgender Labour activist Steph Richards – who has repeatedly clashed with feminist campaigners – would be the organisation’s new head.

But the news left women’s rights campaigners ‘insulted’, with one furious activist raging everyone had ‘lost their collective minds’, while others insisted the role should have gone to a biological female.

Jeanette Towey, 66, who has suffered with endometriosis since she was 15 and has had five miscarriages due to it, said she was ‘sickened’ by the appointment.

The mother-of-two, from Crowborough in East Sussex – whose daughter also has the agonising condition, said: ‘To appoint a man like that to a role with an endometriosis charity is an insult in the extreme. It’s appalling. I never thought we would see an endometriosis charity succumb to this kind of woke ideology.’

Critics have labelled Steph Richard’s appointment as ‘an insult to women’ and ‘an absolute disaster’ (pictured is Ms Richards)

Mother of two Jeanette Towey, 66, has suffered from endometriosis since she was 15 and was outraged by the appointment

Health charity Endometriosis South Coast provoked outrage on social media by announcing trans woman Steph Richards was their new chief executive with a quote implying biological men could suffer from the condition

ECS’s announcement of Ms Richards’ appointment also came with a statement next to her image that said: ‘Isn’t it ridiculous I’ve got to my 40s before any medical professionals even mentioned endometriosis.’

Charity founder is PhD student and sufferer of endometriosis who’s 

Endometriosis South Coast founder and chairman of trustees is Jodie Hughes, who was diagnosed with Endometriosis at the age of 29.

Ms Hughes has previously spoken as a key note speaker at a round table event on transgender health care and had studied transgender and gender bias theories at university. 

Her PhD at the University of Roehampton was looking at the disparities in the care of Endometriosis patients

In an article written by Ms Hughes, entitled ‘Managing Endometriosis When You’re Trans: Suffering In Silence, she said: ‘Managing endometriosis is a feat in itself, but it can be an even more difficult and isolating experience for transgender individuals.’

‘Too often, transgender and non-binary people are left out of the conversation when it comes to this disease. This can lead to a lack of understanding and feelings of helplessness, which in turn, can cause worsening symptoms.

Trans women, who are biological males that identify as women, do not and cannot have a uterus and, therefore, can never suffer from endometriosis. 

The charity, which runs support groups for women who suffer from the debilitating condition, later apologised for the ‘misunderstanding’.

‘This quote is from a person that our charity supports. Not from Steph herself,’ the organisation wrote on X.

‘Steph is a huge advocate for what people in the endo community go through. This is why they were appointed, not because they have their own endo journey.’

But they continued to face backlash, with one person writing: ‘You have failed every single woman who is currently using your services.’

Kellie-Jay Keen, founder of Let Women Speak movement, was critical of the language used by the charity and said it ‘ignored women’.  

‘Everyone has lost their collective minds,’ she added. ‘The losers are women who suffered from endometriosis who have to rely on a charity that won’t call them ‘women’ but ‘people’ but who will call a man a women.

‘This is an absolute disaster and affront to all women who suffer from endometriosis, which is about 10 per cent of women. It’s really insulting. 

‘I think it’s doubly insulting they will use female language for him but not for a suffer the condition.’ 

Conservative activist Ms Towey claimed to have previously worked as a regional organiser in the south for Endometriosis UK, operating across Southampton and Portsmouth – where ECS is based. 

She added: ‘This is a tin pot charity. I don’t know who they are… I have never heard of this lot.’ 

Ms Richards, who uses the pronouns she and her, has undergone £30,000 in treatment and surgery to transition

Kellie-Jay Keen, founder of Let Women Speak movement, was critical of the language used by the charity and said it ‘ignored women’ and added: ‘Everyone has lost their collective minds’ 

What is endometriosis?

Endometriosis is a condition where tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows in other places, including the ovaries and fallopian tubes. 

The long-term condition affects women of any age, including teenagers. 

Common symptoms include:

• Pelvic pain
• Period pain
• Pain during or after sex
• Pain peeing or pooing
• Feeling sick
• Difficulty getting pregnant

Treatments include:

• Painkillers
• Hormone medicines and contraceptives
• Surgery to cut away the patches of endometriosis 

Source NHS 

Ms Richards, who uses the pronouns she and her, has repeatedly clashed with women’s rights advocates, some of whom she has branded as ‘terfs’, and was previously involved in a protest outside the FiLiA feminist conference.

On LinkedIn, the activist, who is also a Women’s Officer at Portsmouth Labour Party, lists her professions as journalist and publisher, having started the website and blog Steph’s Place UK.

Steph’s Place UK was one of the trans rights organisations which unsuccessfully attempted to have the Equality and Human Rights Commission stripped of its international accreditation after it warned about changes to legal gender recognition and conversion therapy.

The new chief executive described the questions over her appointment as ‘transmisogyny’ and said she did not apply for the role but were asked to take it on.

She said on X that she had begun ‘researching issues around pregnancy and women’s health well over two decades ago’.

But Caroline Ffiske, director of Conservatives for Women, said she was in ‘disbelief’, adding: ‘It’s an insulting appointment. It’s an insult to women.

‘It’s an absolutely shocking appointment. There’s just disbelief and despair among the entire community.’

Another critic on X, who claimed to have suffered from the condition for years, wrote: ‘As a woman who suffered with endometriosis for decades, I simply cannot fathom why you’d think this appointment is appropriate.’

On its website, ESC said it is an ‘inclusive charity set up to support people who haven’t started their diagnosis journey, are going through the diagnosis stages, or have been diagnosed with endometriosis and/or adenomyosis’.

Caroline Ffiske, director of Conservatives for Women, said she was in ‘disbelief’, adding: ‘It’s an insulting appointment. It’s an insult to women’

Ms Richards is pictured at an event with Portsmouth’s Labour party 

Feminist author Milli Hill argued that the appointment was no different to a controversial case last year where a man was appointed Scotland’s first ever period dignity officer

It added it aims to create a ‘safe space for all people with the condition regardless of race, gender, or religion. 

READ MORE: Outrage as charity for endometriosis – a painful womb condition – appoints a trans woman as CEO: Critics slam Labour activist’s appointment as an ‘insult to women’ 

‘This disease does not discriminate and neither do the people who run this charity,’ the organisation added on its website.

The charity’s founder and chairman of trustees is Jodie Hughes, who was diagnosed with Endometriosis at the age of 29.

Ms Hughes has previously spoken as a key note speaker at a round table event on transgender health care and had studied transgender and gender bias theories at university. 

Her PhD at the University of Roehampton was looking at the disparities in the care of Endometriosis patients

In an article written by Ms Hughes, entitled ‘Managing Endometriosis When You’re Trans: Suffering In Silence, she said: ‘Managing endometriosis is a feat in itself, but it can be an even more difficult and isolating experience for transgender individuals.’

‘Too often, transgender and non-binary people are left out of the conversation when it comes to this disease. This can lead to a lack of understanding and feelings of helplessness, which in turn, can cause worsening symptoms.

On ECS’s website, the charity added endometriosis in the ‘gender non-conforming population is a highly stigmatised and scary area of diagnosis and treatment’. 

It claimed that ‘focussing research and treatment plans on gendered constructs is not progressing either research or treatment’. 

The charity was eventually forced to issue an apology and clarify that the quote came from a person the charity supported rather than Ms Richards herself

Some endometriosis suffers, like a user who only went by IDD64, said they struggled to understand how the charity could consider this appropriate

Feminist author Milli Hill took issue with Ms Richards’ appointment, arguing on X that it was no different to the case last year where a man was appointed Scotland’s first ever period dignity officer. 

While Ms Richards hasn’t responded to the outrage over her appointment directly, she responded to Ms Hill’s post, stating: ‘I was researching issues around pregnancy and women’s health well over two decades ago. 

‘Strangely in those days ‘sex’ didn’t come into it.’ 

Ms Richards has previously argued to Ms Hill that people can change their biological sex, male or female, ‘a bit’.

Now in her 70s, Ms Richards has previously detailed her journey to becoming a trans woman on her blog.

In that account, she details, how alongside her ex-wife Lin, she created a safe space where men could cross-dress in secret from their families. 

‘Some wanted to be schoolgirls and brides, of course, but for most, it was a case of wearing a dress, having a coffee, or for the very brave, going out for a shopping experience,’ she wrote. 

ECS claims to support ‘people’ going through endometriosis, a condition where womb tissue grows in parts of the female anatomy it shouldn’t, such as ovaries and fallopian tubes.

Symptoms include pain in the pelvis and abdomen, extremely painful periods, pain during sex, trouble conceiving, with the huge impact on sufferers also potentially leading to depression.

About one in 10 women in the UK are believed to have endometriosis.

Despite being so common, many women struggle to have their pain and symptoms taken seriously and can be forced to wait decades for a diagnosis. 

The issue of the terms women and those relating to female anatomy being removed from health information pages for conditions that only affect biological women has been raised before.

Health experts have criticised the trend saying it dangerously overcomplicates vital health messaging. 

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