# Sexual Offences Act partially decriminalizes sex between men (1967)

URL: https://english-history.com/timeline/1967-sexual-offences-act-partially-decriminalizes-sex-between-men
Categories: main-event

Private consensual homosexual acts between men over twenty-one were decriminalized in England and Wales. Within the broader Postwar & Modern UK period, decolonization, welfare institutions, migration, European integration and withdrawal, devolution and social change reshaped the modern United Kingdom. This event is placed at 1967 in the chronology so it can be read alongside the political, military, social and cultural changes around it. The reform was a major milestone in the long legal struggle for LGBT equality.

## Why it matters
The reform was a major milestone in the long legal struggle for LGBT equality.

Ruler at the time: [Elizabeth II](https://english-history.com/rulers/elizabeth-ii)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia topic lookup — Sexual Offences Act partially decriminalizes sex between men](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Search?search=Sexual+Offences+Act+partially+decriminalizes+sex+between+men&go=Go)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica topic lookup — Sexual Offences Act partially decriminalizes sex between men](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=Sexual+Offences+Act+partially+decriminalizes+sex+between+men)
- [Wikipedia — Timeline of British history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_British_history)
- [The National Archives — Postwar collection](https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/explore-the-collection/explore-by-time-period/postwar/)