Abortion services: Safe Access Zones

Safe Access Zones aim to protect women and staff accessing and providing abortion services by preventing activities which could influence or alarm them around hospitals and clinics.

Safe Access Zones will be introduced from 24 September 2024. 

What Safe Access Zones are

Safe Access Zones (sometimes also called 'buffer zones') will prevent certain activities around clinics and hospitals that provide abortion services.

This is doing something which either intends to (or is reckless as to whether it will):

• influence someone’s decision to access, provide or facilitate the provision of abortion services
• prevent or impede another person from accessing, providing or facilitating the provision of abortion services, or
• cause harassment, alarm or distress to another person relating to their decision to access, provide or facilitate the provision of abortion services, where in each case the other person is in the safe access zone

Examples of such behaviour, where there is intent or recklessness, may include: 

• approaching someone to try and persuade them not to access abortion services
• surrounding people as they try to go in or out of the clinic or hospital 
• handing out leaflets 
• religious preaching
• silent vigils

This list is not exhaustive and enforcement agencies will reach their own decisions on whether an offence has been committed.

Safe Access Zones will help ensure women and girls can access abortion services without fear or intimidation, and protect staff working at these locations. 

What Safe Access Zones cover

Safe Access Zones will cover: 

• the hospital or clinic where abortion services are provided (referred to in law as the 'protected premises')
• the public area of any grounds of the hospital or clinic, and 
• any public areas within 200 metres of the boundary of the grounds (if there are any, or from the premises if not)

The size of the zone can be increased or reduced if needed. If this happens, the list of current zones (see below) will be updated to show the change for the relevant premises.

Private properties in Safe Access Zones

In general, the offences apply in public places within the Safe Access Zones. However, if someone does something in a private place (such as a private residence)  within the boundary of a Safe Access Zone that can be seen or heard in the public places that are part of the Zone, an offence could be committed if it is done with the intention of (or reckless as to the whether it has the effect of):

• influencing someone’s decision to access, provide or facilitate the provision of abortion service
• preventing or impeding someone from accessing, providing, or facilitating the provision of abortion services, or
• causing harassment, alarm or distress to someone relating to their decision to access, provide or facilitate the provision of abortion services, where in each case the other person is in the safe access zone

Where Safe Access Zones are

See a list of current Safe Access Zones in Scotland, including maps.

Enforcement and penalties

Police Scotland will be responsible for enforcing Safe Access Zones. 

Anyone who breaks Safe Access Zone laws could be fined up to £10,000 under summary procedure or to an unlimited amount under solemn procedure.  

If you see someone or a group of people breaking the law on Safe Access Zones, you can report it to Police Scotland.  

Monitoring the effectiveness of Safe Access Zones

We will review how effectively Safe Access Zones are working, and report on this.

Further information

Read the Act at the legislation.gov.uk website: Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Scotland) Act 2024.

Alternative versions

BSL and Easy Read versions of this guidance will be available from 20 September 2024.