Childline accused of putting girls at risk from chest binders

Childline has come under fire for allowing kids to encourage each other to obtain chest binders behind their parents’ backs.

On the service’s ‘gender identity’ message board, one girl reportedly said she was experiencing suicidal thoughts because she couldn’t flatten her chest without her parents’ knowledge. In response, a user suggested “ways to get free binders”.

In another instance, one user encouraged a girl to take testosterone as a way to prevent periods.

‘Terrifying’

In response to the concerns, a Childline spokesperson stated: “All posts are carefully reviewed before they are published online. We are confident our system of monitoring posts ensures the safety of the young people who use our service.”

But the message board rules explain that it might not be able to accept posts that encourage young people to “hurt themselves” or “give medical advice that may not always be safe”.

James Esses, a former Childline counsellor who has previously raised alarms about gender ideology’s influence on the service, said: “It’s children egging each other on to transition and suggesting they source breast binders behind their parents’ backs. If they are moderating this that’s terrifying.”

‘Radicalisation’

Online chat rooms have been accused of endangering gender-confused children in the past.

In 2020, the mother of a 16-year-old girl revealed that online ‘trans radicalisation’ led to her daughter ‘Kate’ being referred to the Tavistock clinic.

After watching “endless” YouTube videos containing pro-trans propaganda and immersing herself in online chat forums promoting radical trans ideology, Kate announced to her parents: “I don’t want to be a girl any more – I want to be a boy”.

In 2022, The Times revealed that trans-activist group Mermaids allowed young people to share advice and personal details on its online forum. One mother only discovered that her autistic 14-year-old son used the platform after finding sexually explicit images on his phone.

NHS

And last year, a business part-funded by the NHS was accused of ‘schooling’ children struggling with their mental health in gender ideology.

Kooth PLC boasts that 60 per cent of all 10 to 25-year-olds in the UK have free access to its digital mental healthcare platform courtesy of NHS and local authority funding.

According to an investigation by parent group Transgender Trend, Kooth allows users to self-ID as male, female, ‘agender’ or ‘genderfluid’, hosts chats on topics such as ‘Coming Out As Trans’, and directs children to sites promoting breast-binders.