Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Your Friendly Neighborhood Sociologist (talk | contribs) at 19:33, 31 December 2024 (→Expansion in the 2010s: Removed redundant bits). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

The Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) was a nationally operated health clinic in the United Kingdom that specialised in working with children with gender identity issues, including gender dysphoria. The service closed on 28 March 2024 after serious concerns were repeatedly raised over a number of years by several independent NHS whistleblowers.

Launched in 1989, GIDS was commissioned by NHS England and took referrals from across the UK, although it was operated at a Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust site. GIDS was the only gender identity clinic for people under 18 in England and Wales and was the subject of much controversy. In July 2022, the NHS decided to close GIDS and replace it with regional healthcare centres, following the release of an interim report by the Cass Review on the provision of gender identity services for children and adolescents conducted by paediatrician Hilary Cass.

History

Pre-establishment

GIDS was a service provided by the Tavistock Clinic. Originally located at Tavistock Square in London, the clinic specialised in psychiatric care. The Tavistock Clinic treated both adults and children, with their first patient being a child. However, it mainly focused on military psychology, including shell-shock, now termed PTSD. In 1948, with the creation of the NHS, the Tavistock Clinic launched its children's department, which developed many works by Robertson and Bowlby on attachment theory. In 1959, it opened an adolescent department and in 1967 it was absorbed into the London Child Guidance Clinic.

Early years

GIDS was founded in 1989 by Dr Domenico Di Ceglie, a child and adolescent psychiatrist. It was one of the first child gender services in the world. After its opening, "it got two referrals over the whole year." It was initially based at St George's Hospital before moving to the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust in 1994. The clinic saw 12 patients that year, increasing to 24 two years later.

In its early years, the service took a primarily psychoanalytic approach reflecting object relations theory, drawing from Di Ceglie's training. Di Ceglie dubbed children referred to the clinic as suffering "atypical gender identity organization. In the early 2000s, some of Di Ceglies colleagues at Tavistock published articles in the Guardian arguing that medical transition was a form of "mutilation" and that rights won in the European Court of Human Rights for transgender people were a "a victory of fantasy over reality".

Di Ceglie estimated in 1993 that only 5% of his patients would "commit themselves to a change of gender". Puberty blockers were considered a usable option by the end of the 1990s but only for patients aged 16 or over who had first tried extensive therapy. In 2000, a retrospective audit led by David Freeman looked at the records of 124 patients the service had seen since opening. The audit showed it was very rare (2.5% of the sample) for young people referred to GIDS to have no associated problems and that children do not "grow out of it" and problems increase with the onset of puberty.

In 2009, Dr Polly Carmichael, a consultant clinical psychologist, succeeded Di Ceglie as the clinic's director. In that same year, GIDS became a nationally commissioned NHS service.

Expansion in the 2010s

In 2011, in response to changing international standards for gender care, the clinic began a research study allowing a "carefully selected group of young people" to receive puberty blockers after the age of 12. In 2014, prior to the study's completion, the clinic received NHS approval to offer them without mandating enrollment in a research study. In 2012, the service was extended to a satellite site in Leeds. Endocrine support was also extended to Leeds Children's Hospital at the Leeds General Infirmary site in 2013.

Between 2014-2015, 697 youth were referred to GIDS and in 2015-2016 1,419 were. In September 2015, GIDS overshot it's 18-week waiting time target for the first time. The same year, an external report by Femi Nzegwu stated that GIDS was "facing a crisis of capacity" and recommended capping referrals. By 2016 average wait times rose to nine months.

In February 2019, it was revealed that the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) had announced a £1.3 million grant for a voluntary study following young people referred to GIDS, to compare outcomes for those who elect to medically transition and those who don't.

In 2020, over 2,000 children were referred to GIDS and in 2021 more than 5,000 children had been with waiting lists of over 2 years. In January 2021, the Care Quality Commission rated GIDS as "inadequate" citing the high caseload.

Increased scrutiny

In the mid 2000s, gender-critical psychoanalysts and psychologists became GIDs' most prominent critics, opposing gender transition altogether, particularly in young people.

In 2018, Dr David Bell wrote a critical report of GIDS based on conversations with other GIDS staff. He argued that transgender children who desired medical transition were suffering from other psychological factors such as internalized homophobia, intergenerational trauma, social media, and commodification of the body. He further argued that most transgender children would desist and that medical transition should be a last resort for adults. In November 2018, parents of 17-25 year old patients complained in a letter to the Trust board that their children were transitioning too quickly and they felt psychosocial factors made them want to transition.

Dr Marcus Evans, a longstanding member of the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust governance board, resigned that week in response to Bells' report whose arguments he supported. His wife, Sue Evans, had resigned from work as a psychoanalyst a decade previously. Together, they wrote a book in 2021 advancing their views on how to help a young person overcome their wish to transition and supporting gender exploratory therapy. Reviewers noted the book was full of prejudicial value judgements about transgender people. Marcus Evans went on to co-found the Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine, which the Southern Poverty Law Center described as a hub of anti-LGBT pseudoscience. Subsequent to the Bell report it was revealed that 35 psychologists had resigned since 2016, including six psychologists who claimed there was "over-diagnosis" of gender dysphoria and a push for early medical intervention, because "psychologists fear being branded transphobic."

In October 2019, a lawsuit was launched against GIDS by the mother of a patient at GIDS and Sue Evans Later, Evans passed their role as complainant to Keira Bell, a previous service user and detransitioner. In December 2020 following the High Court judgement, GIDS suspended all new referrals to endocrinology. The Court granted a stay on further implementation of the judgement until 22 December 2020 or until appeals are exhausted. The judgment was overturned by the Court of Appeal in 2021.

In December 2020 Dr Bell, a former governor of the Trust who was elected by the medical staff and who had produced in February 2019 a report on the methods of the GIDS, reported that he now faced "disciplinary action" from the Trust. The threats to take disciplinary action lapsed when Dr Bell retired in 2021.

In the early 2020s The Telegraph and gender-critical figures alleged that transgender youth charity Mermaids may have exerted undue influence on GIDS's clinical decisions, particularly concerning the prescription of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones to minors. In October 2024 an inquiry by the Charity Commission found no evidence to suggest that Mermaids had inappropriate influence or ties to GIDS.

Closure

In 2020, due to a significant rise in the number of referrals to GIDS, NHS England and NHS Improvement commissioned paediatrician and former President of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health Hilary Cass to lead a review into gender identity services for children and young people.

In March 2022, Hilary Cass published the interim report of the Cass Review. The report found that the existing model was "neither safe nor viable", partly as the rise in referrals had left GIDS staff overwhelmed and led to "unacceptable" waiting times, and recommended the creation of new network of regional centres. It criticised the care at GIDS, saying that its clinical approach "has not been subjected to some of the usual control measures" expected of an innovative treatment and sidelined the patients' other mental health needs.

In July 2022, the NHS decided to close GIDS and replace it with regional healthcare centres. The regional centres are intended to provide more "holistic care", linking to other mental health services. In response to the decision, Susie Green, then CEO of Mermaids, a campaign group for youth who question their gender, was "cautiously optimistic", but expressed concerns that priority would be given to mental health over medical care, saying that gender diversity should not be treated as a mental disorder.

In February 2023, documentary journalist Hannah Barnes published a book on GIDS, titled Time to Think: The Inside Story of the Collapse of the Tavistock's Gender Service for Children. Barnes describes the work saying, "I wanted to write a definitive record of what happened because there needs to be one." At least five newspapers reviewed the book.

After a delay, GIDs closed in March 2024, and was replaced with two new services at Great Ormond Street in London and Alder Hey in Liverpool, which are intended to be the first of eight regional centres.

Services

Services provided include:

• Assessments, to assess primary medical aims and necessary support;
• Gender development support, including access to therapy, tailored support and therapy groups;
• Physical intervention, including endocrinological intervention such as puberty blockers and sex hormones;
• Mental health support, usually working alongside CAMHS;
• Ongoing support post social or medical transition and referral to adult gender identity services.

No surgical transition options are available through GIDS.

People referred to GIDS may also contribute to NIHR studies into gender dysphoria in children.

Referrals

In the financial year 2018–19, 31 referrals were made for children aged 5 or under. 30 referrals were made for adults over the age of 18. In 2018–19, there was a year-on-year increase of 6%, a relative plateau compared to previous year-on-year increases. Similarly, there was only a 0.1% increase in referrals between the 18–19 and 19–20 financial years.

Children who present to GIDS may identify with a number of different labels, including non-binary, transgender, genderqueer, questioning or otherwise as simply dysphoric or gender non-conforming. GIDS say that the way children identify is changing, which may be due to cultural and societal shifts.

Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) provides the NHS support for children with mental health issues. However, CAMHS is organised by local government area and thus coverage varies significantly. The development of CAMHS within a four-tiered framework started in 1995. In 2000 the NHS Plan Implementation Programme required health and local authorities to jointly produce a local CAMHS strategy. GIDS took referrals from all mental health care professionals, especially Tier 2 and 3 CAMHS specialists. GIDS was distinct from CAMHS as is it is nationally run, not by the local authority. It sat in Tier 4 of the CAMHS framework, as a highly specialised service.

Controversy

As the only gender identity clinic for children in England and Wales, GIDS has been the subject of much controversy related to the broader topic of gender dysphoria and transitioning in childhood.

Pathologization

Transgender people who have been through GIDS have described the strict assessment procedures as demeaning, invasive, and disempowering. Patients reported being asked irrelevant prying sexual questions and a lack of power over their own health decisions coupled with a requirement to perform their gender in ways amenable to the staff.

High resignation rate

A 2019 Sky News report found that 35 psychologists resigned between 2016 and 2019. Six psychologists who resigned raised concerns about the over-diagnosis and medicalisation of young people experiencing gender identity difficulties. In February 2019, Tavistock trust member Marcus Evans resigned, citing similar concerns. In July 2019, Kirsty Entwistle wrote a public letter about the GIDS service, saying professionals were often labelled "transphobic" if they raised doubts. Clinicians have stated that concerns over children's welfare were "shut down".

Bell Report

Following a letter to the board at Tavistock, an internal report was commissioned to look at the functioning of GIDS. Dr David Bell authored the report which found that the service was "not fit for purpose". It considered that the service could result in "damaging consequences" to children's lives and failed to fully consider a child's mental health background. However, it did not identify any "immediate" issues with regards to safety and in 2018 the Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated the effectiveness of the Trust as "outstanding".

Conversely, there is a long wait time for a first appointment at GIDS, averaging at two years as of January 2020. GIDS blame high referral numbers and low staff numbers for this wait time.

Leeds lawsuit (Bell v Tavistock)

In October 2019, a legal complaint was lodged against GIDS at its satellite site in Leeds. The suit was brought by "Mrs. A", a mother of a 15-year-old patient with autism, and Sue Evans, a former nurse at the Leeds GIDS satellite site. It alleges that advice around hormone therapy was "potentially misleading" and that true informed consent could not be given under such circumstances. The suit describes hormone therapy as "experimental" and states that there is "robust evidence" to show long-lasting medical effects of hormone therapy. Some time after January 2020, Evans passed on her role as complainant to Keira Bell "who was prescribed puberty blockers by GIDS when she was 16. She had a double mastectomy aged 20, and now regrets transitioning, which has left her with 'no breasts, a deep voice, body hair, a beard, affected sexual function and who knows what else that has not been discovered'. She may well be infertile as a side effect of the drugs." In a judgment delivered on 1 December 2020, the judges said that it was "highly unlikely that a child aged 13 or less would be competent to give consent to the administration of puberty blockers", and that it was "doubtful that 14 or 15 year olds could understand the long-term risks and consequences" of this form of treatment. Where the young person is 16 or over, "we recognise that clinicians may well regard these as cases where the authorisation of the court should be sought prior to commencing the clinical treatment." The judges also criticised GIDS for failing to publish a 2011 study relating to puberty blockers. Immediately following the High Court judgement, GIDS suspended all new referrals to endocrinology. The Court granted a stay on further implementation of the judgement until 22 December 2020 or until the appeal process was complete, whichever was later. Amnesty International and Liberty issued a joint statement emphasising their concern on "the wider implications this will have on the rights of children and young people of all genders, particularly on consent and bodily autonomy." Consortium issued a statement stating that the ruling "could have a potentially devastating impact on young people seeking access to medical services." Leave to appeal against the decision of the High Court was granted in January 2021. The appeal was heard on 23 and 24 June 2021.

In September 2021, the Court of Appeal overturned the judgment of the High Court and once again allowed people under 16 to consent to receiving puberty blockers. In March 2024, NHS England announced that it would no longer prescribe puberty blockers to minors outside of use in clinical research trials, citing insufficient evidence of safety or clinical effectiveness. The Sandyford clinic in Glasgow, which is the only specialist gender clinic in Scotland, announced in April 2024 that it was pausing the prescription of puberty blockers.

Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) position

The RCGP report on transgender healthcare in the UK found several flaws in the NHS approach. It called for a "whole system" change, including addressing waiting times and the lack of research around gender dysphoria in children. The report noted the expansion of gender identity services into all four UK nations and "welcomes the forthcoming postgraduate diploma in Gender Identity Healthcare Practice". The report also noted that "in England, for example, GICs have seen a 240% overall increase in referrals over five years, with referrals to the Tavistock and Portman clinic alone increasing 8.43% between March 2018-19."

Sonia Appleby employment tribunal case

In July 2020, it was reported that Sonia Appleby, the "Named Professional for Safeguarding Children" at the gender identity clinic, had been in dispute with her employers since November 2019.

In September 2021, it was reported that Appleby was awarded £20,000 by an employment tribunal because the NHS's Tavistock and Portman trust's treatment of her damaged her professional reputation and "prevented her from proper work on safeguarding". The trust will not be lodging an appeal.

Academics Judith Suissa and Alice Sullivan listed her alongside Allison Bailey, Maya Forstater, and J. K. Rowling as women who have experienced campaigns of harassment because they speak publicly on sex and gender identity.

See also

• Transitioning (transgender)
• Transgender health care
• Transgender rights in the United Kingdom
• Childhood gender nonconformity
• Gender dysphoria in children
• Transgender youth

References

1. Barnes, Hannah (31 March 2024). "'Why the Tavistock gender identity clinic was forced to shut ... and what happens next". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
2. ^ Brooks, Libby (19 January 2023). "'A contentious place': the inside story of Tavistock's NHS gender identity clinic". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
3. Dicks, H.V., (1970). 50 Years of the Tavistock Clinic. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Reissued by Routledge, 2014, ISBN 978 1 138 82194 1
4. "The London Child Guidance Clinic in Islington". Lost Hospitals of London. Archived from the original on 10 January 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
5. Barnes 2023, p. 18.
6. The last word of the clinic's name was initially Clinic and varied over time, shifting to Unit before being standardised in the late 2000s as Service.
7. ^ Stevens, Jenny (16 November 2016). "Meet the Doctor Who Runs the Only Clinic for Trans Children in the UK". Vice Media Group. Archived from the original on 24 December 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
8. ^ Barnes 2023, p. 15.
9. ^ Osserman, Jordan (2020). Frosh, Stephen; Vyrgioti, Marita; Walsh, Julie (eds.). "Psychoanalysis and Trans". The Palgrave Handbook of Psychosocial Studies. Cham: Springer International Publishing: 1–20. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-61510-9_13-1#doi. ISBN 978-3-030-61510-9.
10. L. Rogers, "Boys may be girls", The Sunday Times, 4 July 1993
11. Barnes 2023, p. 13-14.
12. Di Ceglie, Domenico; Freedman, David; McPherson, Susan; Richardson, Phil (2002). "Children and Adolescents Referred to a Specialist Gender Identity Development Service: Clinical Features and Demographic Characteristics". International Journal of Transgenderism. 5 (4): s3 – s11. doi:10.1136/archdischild-2023-326681. ISSN 0003-9888. PMID 38594046.
13. Barnes, Hannah (2023). Time to Think: The Inside Story of the Collapse of the Tavistock's Gender Service for Children. Swiff Press. ISBN 9781800751118.
14. ^ Barnes 2023, p. xvii.
15. "Meet Children with gender identity issues 'need help from all sides'". BBC News. 17 July 2019. Archived from the original on 20 February 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
16. "The service director's view". The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. Archived from the original on 20 February 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
17. Butler, Gary; De Graaf, Nastasja; Wren, Bernadette; Carmichael, Polly (2018). "Assessment and support of children and adolescents with gender dysphoria". Archives of Disease in Childhood. 103 (7): 631–636. doi:10.1136/archdischild-2018-314992. PMID 29650510. S2CID 4785372. Archived from the original on 1 March 2021. Retrieved 7 March 2021.
18. ^ "The crisis at the Tavistock's child gender clinic". BBC News. 30 March 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
19. ^ Doward, Jamie (23 February 2019). "Governor of Tavistock Foundation quits over damning report into gender identity clinic". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Archived from the original on 18 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
20. Hayward, Eleanor; Bannerman, Lucy (29 July 2022). Ames, Jonathan (ed.). "Tavistock child gender clinic forced to close over safety fears". The Times. News Corp.
21. ^ Doward, Jamie (3 November 2018). "Gender identity clinic accused of fast-tracking young adults". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Archived from the original on 6 December 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
22. Cravens, R.G.; McLamore, Quinnehtukqut; Leveille, Lee; Hodges, Emerson; Wunderlich, Sophie; Bates, Lydia (12 December 2023). "Group dynamics and division of labor within the anti-LGBTQ+ pseudoscience network". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
23. Wuest, Joanna; Last, Briana S. (1 March 2024). "Agents of scientific uncertainty: Conflicts over evidence and expertise in gender-affirming care bans for minors". Social Science & Medicine. 344: 116533. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.116533. ISSN 0277-9536.
24. ^ Donnelly, Laura (12 December 2019). "Children's transgender clinic hit by 35 resignations in three years as psychologists warn of gender dysphoria 'over-diagnoses'". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 18 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
25. ^ "NHS 'over-diagnosing' children having transgender treatment, former staff warn". Sky News. 12 December 2019. Archived from the original on 18 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
26. ^ Hurst, Greg (12 October 2019). "Mother sues Tavistock child gender clinic over treatments". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
27. ^ "Update on the Judicial Review, Tuesday 1 December 2020". The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. December 2020. Archived from the original on 6 December 2020. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
28. ^ Siddique, Haroon (17 September 2021). "Appeal court overturns UK puberty blockers ruling for under-16s 17 September 2021". Guardian. Archived from the original on 17 September 2021. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
29. Bannerman, Lucy (5 December 2020). "David Bell: Tavistock gender clinic whistleblower faces the sack". Times Newspapers Limited. Archived from the original on 5 December 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
30. Cooke, Rachel (2 May 2021). "Tavistock trust whistleblower David Bell: 'I believed I was doing the right thing' 2 May 2021". Guardian. Archived from the original on 13 March 2022. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
31. Siddique, Haroon (17 November 2022). "Mermaids: why has the trans charity been in the news?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2 December 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
32. Baska, Maggie (28 May 2023). "Ex-Mermaids CEO slams claim that Tavistock gender clinic links were inappropriate". PinkNews. Archived from the original on 30 December 2024. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
33. Melley, James (24 October 2024). "Trans charity Mermaids was mismanaged, says regulator". BBC News. Archived from the original on 24 October 2024. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
34. Marsh, Sarah (22 September 2020). "NHS to hold review into gender identity services for children and young people". Guardian. Archived from the original on 13 March 2022. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
35. "Terms of Reference – Cass Review". cass.independent-review.uk. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
36. Thomas, Rebecca (28 July 2022). "Failing children's gender service to be replaced by local hubs". The Independent. Archived from the original on 28 July 2022. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
37. Brooks, Libby (10 March 2022). "NHS gender identity service for children can't cope with demand, review finds 10 March 2022". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 13 March 2022. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
38. Bannerman, Lucy (10 March 2022). "Tavistock gender clinic not safe for children, report finds". The Times. Archived from the original on 29 March 2022. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
39. "NHS to close Tavistock child gender identity clinic". BBC News. 28 July 2022. Archived from the original on 28 July 2022. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
40. Hayward, Eleanor (28 July 2022). "Tavistock gender clinic forced to shut over safety fears". The Times. Archived from the original on 28 July 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
41. Ghorayshi, Azeen (28 July 2022). "England Overhauls Medical Care for Transgender Youth". New York Times. Archived from the original on 10 August 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
42. Lloyd, Will (15 February 2023). "Hannah Barnes: Inside the collapse of the Tavistock gender clinic". New Statesman. Archived from the original on 18 February 2023. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
43. Freeman, Hadley (11 February 2023). "How the Tavistock gender clinic ran out of control". The Times. Archived from the original on 11 February 2023.
44. "Time to Think — what went wrong at the Tavistock gender clinic". www.ft.com. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
45. "Time to Think, The Inside Story of the Collapse of the Tavistock's Gender Service for Children: cause for concern". The Irish Times. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
46. Moore, Suzanne (14 February 2023). "Time to Think review: the book that tells the full story of the Tavistock's trans scandal". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
47. "How the Tavistock Trust's gender identity clinic failed its patients". TLS. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
48. Cooke, Rachel (19 February 2023). "Time to Think by Hannah Barnes review – what went wrong at Gids?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
49. Barnes & Clare (23 May 2023). "23 May 2023 Tavistock: Top doctor questions need for change at gender clinic". BBC News. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
50. Campbell, Denis (7 August 2024). "Delayed puberty blocker clinical trial to start next year in England". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
51. ^ "About us". GIDS. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
52. "Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust". www.cqc.org.uk. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
53. ^ "Referrals to the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) level off in 2018–19". The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. 28 June 2019. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
54. ^ "Gender Identity Development Service referrals in 2019–20 same as 2018–19". The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. 29 May 2020. Archived from the original on 23 December 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
55. ^ "Current debates". GIDS. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
56. "How to refer to GIDS". GIDS. Archived from the original on 15 April 2022. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
57. Pearce, Ruth (6 June 2018). Understanding Trans Health: Discourse, power and possibility. Policy Press. pp. 66–67. doi:10.51952/9781447342342. ISBN 978-1-4473-4234-2.
58. Entwistle, Kirsty (18 July 2019). "An open letter to Dr Polly Carmichael from a former GIDS clinician". Medium. Archived from the original on 6 December 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
59. Barnes, Hannah; Cohen, Deborah (19 June 2020). "NHS child gender clinic: Staff concerns 'shut down'". BBC Newsnight. BBC News. Archived from the original on 19 June 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
60. "Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust". www.cqc.org.uk. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
61. "About us". GIDS. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
62. Bartosch, Josephine (5 December 2020). "Why I was right to blow the whistle on the Tavistock Clinic over puberty blockers". Telegraph Media Group Limited. Archived from the original on 5 December 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
63. "Puberty blockers: Under-16s unlikely to be able to give informed consent 1 December 2020". BBC News. December 2020. Archived from the original on 6 December 2020. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
64. Turner, Janice (1 December 2020). "Keira Bell: 'I couldn't sit by while so many others made the same mistake'". The Times.
65. "Amnesty International UK and Liberty joint statement on puberty blockers". www.amnesty.org.uk. Archived from the original on 10 April 2021. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
66. "Consortium Statement on Bell v Tavistock Outcome". www.consortium.lgbt. Archived from the original on 10 April 2021. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
67. Topping, Alexandra (19 January 2021). "High court grants leave to appeal to UK gender identity service 19 January 2021". Guardian. Archived from the original on 20 January 2021. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
68. Siddique, Haroon (23 June 2021). "High court ruling on puberty blockers 'based on partisan evidence' 23 June 2021". Guardian. Archived from the original on 26 June 2021. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
69. "Bell & anr (claimant/resp) –v- The Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust (def/appellant)". Courts and Tribunals Judiciary. 25 June 2021. Archived from the original on 25 June 2021. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
70. John, Tara (15 March 2024). "England's health service to stop prescribing puberty blockers to transgender kids". amp.cnn.com. CNN. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
71. McCool M (19 April 2024). "Scotland's under-18s gender clinic pauses puberty blockers". bbc.co.uk. BBC. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
72. ^ "RCGP calls for whole-system approach to improving NHS care for trans patients". www.rcgp.org.uk. 25 June 2019. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
73. Kirkup, James (8 July 2020). "Are whistleblowers being silenced at the NHS gender clinic?". The Spectator. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
74. Connett, David (4 September 2021). "NHS gender identity clinic whistleblower wins damages". Guardian. Observer. Archived from the original on 4 September 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
75. "NHS child gender identity clinic whistleblower wins tribunal". BBC News. 5 September 2021. Archived from the original on 19 September 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
76. "Lawyer in the news: Elliot Hammer 20 September 2021". law gazette. Law Society Gazette. Archived from the original on 3 October 2021. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
77. Suissa, Judith; Sullivan, Alice (10 March 2021). "The Gender Wars, Academic Freedom and Education". Journal of Philosophy of Education. 55 (1). Wiley: 55–82. doi:10.1111/1467-9752.12549. S2CID 233646159.

External links

• Official website

• Transgender health care
• Defunct National Health Service organisations
• 1989 establishments in the United Kingdom
• 2024 disestablishments in the United Kingdom
• Government agencies established in 1989
• Government agencies disestablished in 2024
• Transgender history in the United Kingdom