Universities UK have published guidance "to help universities navigate their legal obligations and their practical application". The guidance used a hypothetical case study "in which an external speaker on faith in the modern world requests that the audience is segregated according to gender". If UK law really does say that women can be segregated from men - then UK law must be changed. 

Nick Cohen's said - 

"In the 1930′s Poland began to enforce segregated seating in its universities, with Jewish students restricted to the left side of the lecture hall. This, of course, allowed lecturers to address and take questions only from the right side if they were so inclined.

Polish students of all religious persuasions protested by refusing to sit down in lectures. We can only hope that modern students will also protest".

 

Here's the link to the guidance - 

http://blog.universitiesuk.ac.uk/2013/11/25/external-speakers-guidance-segregation/#comments

You can read more about this issue here - 

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/nov/26/british-universities-gender-segregation-secular

or here - 

http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/nick-cohen/2013/12/the-segregation-of-women-and-the-appeasement-of-bigotry/

or this audio exceprt from BBC Radio 4 You and Yours (The discussion begins at 33'50') One of the speakers contradicts the pieces written above. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/i/b03k289k/ 

This is a great piece by Jasmin Alibhai-Brown in the Independent - 

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/its-shameful-that-our-universities-have-accepted-gender-segregation-under-pressure-from-the-most-oppressive-religious-fanatics-8991593.html

and here's a piece by Victoria Smith on mumsnet -

http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/guest_blogs/1936682-Gender-segregation-in-British-universities-religious-extremists-arent-the-only-misogynists-out-there?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Tweet&utm_campaign=guest%2Bblog%2Buni%2Bgender%2Bsegragation 

 And here's Jasmin Albihai-Brown on top form on Channel 4 - 

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid601325122001?bckey=AQ~~,AAAAAEabvr4~,Wtd2HT-p_Vh4qBcIZDrvZlvNCU8nxccG&bctid=2920019169001

And on 14.12.13  - The former home secretary Jack Straw told BBC Radio 4's Today programme he believes it is "wrong" for universities "to indulge such extraordinary behaviour".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-25345571

 

and here's an excellent piece by Sarah Khan in the Independent - 

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/segregating-men-and-women-at-university-events-wont-lead-to-equality-8962984.html

BREAKING NEWS (13.12.13)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/10514551/Official-watchdog-says-university-sex-segregation-plans-not-permissible.html

13.12.12 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-25353882

and finally - 

http://www.channel4.com/news/pandering-to-extremism-pm-blasts-uni-gender-segregation