‘New Tavistock’ urged to uphold advice protecting gender-confused children

The Tavistock clinic’s replacement services must not fall into the trap of blindly affirming children’s gender-confusion, clinicians have warned.

The NHS Children’s and Young People’s Gender Service for London, which is due to open in April, was set to operate under interim guidance informed by findings from the Cass Review which branded the Tavistock clinic ‘not fit for purpose’ in 2022.

But according to The Guardian, several clinicians have resigned from roles involving developing training guidance for the new hub over concerns that it failed to adhere to the Cass Review’s recommendations and gave in to calls to give youngsters ‘trans-affirming’ procedures.

Pressure

Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) stated that “The programme has now been passed on to the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, who will complete and deliver the induction programme.”

The regional hub is due to be operated by GOSH, in conjunction with Evelina London Children’s Hospital and the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. A separate hub for the north of England is set to open in the coming months.

Last week, a private clinic announced that it had become the first UK-based private provider to be registered by the health regulator, the Care Quality Commission, to prescribe cross-sex hormones for patients over 16.

The clinic is part of the Gender Plus group, run by former Tavistock workers.

Three-year-olds

In December, it was revealed that over 350 children aged six and under were referred to the controversial Tavistock clinic before it stopped accepting new referrals.

Between 2010 and 2022, 12 three-year-olds, 61 four-year-olds, 140 five-year-olds and 169 six-year-olds were referred to the Gender Identity Development Service operated by the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust.

Under NHS England’s proposed changes to the Children and Young People’s Gender Incongruence Service’s referral pathway, there would be a minimum age limit of seven even if a younger child had parental consent.

A pre-referral consultation would also be required to determine a “local care plan to support the child or young person”, including whether they would benefit from accessing a different service instead.