Gender Identity Research & Education Society
FrontNews

Building a New GIRES Website & Resources

Help Shape the Future of GIRES

GIRES is entering an exciting new phase, and we’d love your input.

We’re preparing to build a new GIRES website, designed to become the heart of a wider digital network connecting our research, resources, community network and training platform. It will be a place where individuals, professionals, and organisations can easily find trusted evidence-based information about trans+ people, gender diversity and inclusion.

But, before we begin, we want to make sure it truly reflects what our users need.

That’s why we’ve launched a short survey to gather your feedback and ideas. Whether you visit GIRES to learn, teach, research, or find support, your insights will help us design a new website that works for everyone.

Take the GIRES Website Survey here: Click Here to Complete our 5 minute Website Survey

Why we’re building a new website

For more than 25 years, GIRES has been a trusted source of knowledge and guidance on gender identity and trans inclusion. Our website has supported millions of visitors, from families and community groups to healthcare professionals, educators, and policymakers.

But as GIRES restructures to serve both the trans community and the organisations that support them, we need a website that reflects that change, one that:

  • Makes it easy for different types of visitors to find what they need, quickly and confidently.
  • Improves accessibility, readability, and search visibility so GIRES’ evidence-based content reaches more people.
  • Demonstrates our commitment to intersectionality and inclusion, not only through what we say but through how we design and communicate.

The current site has served us well, but it’s time to take the next step, to create a digital space that truly meets today’s standards for user experience (UX), accessibility, and search optimisation (SEO).

What the new website will do

We want the new GIRES website to act as a modern, accessible resource library, built with advanced search and filtering so people can easily find accurate, relevant information based on who they are and what they need.

It will:

  • Offer clear pathways for individuals, families, professionals, educators, and researchers.
  • Bring together key GIRES materials – from resources and fact sheets to workplace guidance and best-practice examples.
  • Make it easier to navigate and share resources, with tools that support accessibility and mobile use.
  • Showcase our latest work, consultation and survey updates, and community collaborations in a more engaging and connected way.

This website will also act as the central hub in a broader digital GIRES ecosystem. It is intended to be the central point linking to three new connected platforms – the GIRES Research Database, an updated and extended TranzWiki, and the GIRES training platform – each with its own purpose-built design. Future articles will explore these projects in more detail and invite additional community and user input through separate surveys.

Designed with accessibility and collaboration at its heart

We want the new GIRES website to feel welcoming, intuitive, and inclusive, whether you’re exploring for the first time or returning as a regular visitor. That means listening to real users as we scope out the project, plan, test, and refine its structure and design.

Accessibility will be central from the start:

  • The new platform will meet inclusive accessibility standards.
  • The layout will use clear language, inclusive imagery, and accessible visuals.
  • The structure will support multiple user journeys, ensuring everyone – from a trans+ person seeking guidance to a policymaker looking for evidence – can find what they need easily.

The Website Experience Survey is the first step in this collaborative design process.

Take the GIRES Website Survey: CLICK HERE

How you can get involved

Your feedback will help us understand what works, what doesn’t, and what people want to see more of. That information will guide how we design, structure, and prioritise the new site once we receive funding to begin the project.

By taking part now, you’ll be helping us put the plans in place to build a website that truly reflects the values GIRES stands for: accessibility, inclusion, and reliable knowledge for everyone.

If you want to know more about the wider plan for GIRES charity repositioning as a central leading hub in trans+ educational, research, and resource excellence, you can read our article: GIRES: Our Next Chapter – Building the Digital Infrastructure Trans Lives Deserve.

We’re also inviting collaborators, supporters and changemakers to support GIRES in undertaking this significant change.

As part of this, we would be interested in hearing from grant-giving or funding organisations looking to invest in an accountable, sustainable, and change-making charity.

You can get in touch with us through our contact page, or by emailing: support-us@gires.org.uk