Abortion safe access zones come into force in England and Wales

In a major victory for a longstanding Humanists UK campaign, safe access zones around all hospitals and clinics providing abortions in England and Wales are implemented from today.

The move means people accessing or providing abortions can do so free from harassment and intimidation. Humanists UK has campaigned on this issue as part of the ‘Back Off!’ campaign – which it helped to launch in 2015 – and welcomed the implementation as a crucial step towards protecting abortion care access.

Safe access zones will make it an offence to influence, obstruct, or harass anyone within a 150-metre radius around any premise providing abortion services, and anyone found guilty of breaking the law will face an unlimited fine. This covers acts such as handing out leaflets, protesting against abortion rights, shouting at individuals, or physically restricting someone’s access to a clinic or hospital.

Instances will be dealt with on a case-by-base basis, with police and prosecutors evaluating the intent and recklessness of the person involved. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has published clear guidance to prosecutors that there is no defence on religious or ethical grounds to people seeking to influence, obstruct, or harass others within safe access zones. As such, Humanists UK expects silent prayer to be covered by the law as a practice that people accessing a clinic often describe as intimidating, even if the person praying is not speaking.

What are safe access zones?

Recent years have seen a sharp increase in the size and extent of religious protesters picketing abortion clinics in the UK. Using tactics imported from the United States, these protesters can display graphic images, hurl insults, and call women and clinic staff ‘murderers’ as they approach the building. Women who have attempted to access abortion services have described this as a ‘gauntlet of abuse’.

Safe access zones are an innovation – piloted successfully in parts of the United States, Canada, and Australia – to uphold women’s fundamental right to access healthcare. They require the space around abortion clinics to be free to access for all patients. This means protesters have to move their signs and soapboxes down the street, or direct their attention to policymakers, rather than vulnerable women and girls. Those accessing abortion services include women who are victims of domestic violence, rape, and sexual assault.

The Scottish Parliament voted to implement safe access zones in June, and they are already in force in Northern Ireland.

The route to safe access zones in England and Wales

Legislation to introduce national safe access zones was passed in the UK Parliament in March 2023, following an amendment tabled by Stella Creasy MP, and supported by Humanists UK through briefing to the All-Party Parliamentary Humanist Group (APPHG).

But the UK Home Office under Home Secretary Suella Braverman chose instead to consult on the matter, despite a clear mandate from Parliament supporting the establishment of such zones. Draft guidance released in January 2024 by then Home Secretary James Cleverly included expansive religious loopholes that would have rendered the legislation incapable of protecting women from abuse and harassment. Parliament was dissolved for the General Election before any changes could be implemented.

Richy Thompson, Humanists UK Director of Public Affairs and Policy, commented:

‘We welcome the new Government’s swift action on implementing safe access zones, as well as the robust guidelines issued today. We know from extensive work in this area that people accessing a clinic can feel intimidated by the presence of someone praying in the area, even if they are not speaking. The law spells out clearly that any attempt to influence or obstruct abortions will fall foul of the law, and we would expect silent prayer to fall within this.’