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Gender Identity in children and young people - OBSOLETE Sept 2024

Checked: 21-09-2023 by Next Review: 21-01-2024

Overview

The Gender Identity Development Service run by Tavistock & Portman NHS Foundation NHS Trust is due to close in March 2024.

A number of new services for Gender Incongruence in Children & Young People are being set up in line with NHS England interim service specification.

These services have yet to be established and currently all referrals for gender incongruence in children & young people are being managed by NHS Arden & Greater East Midlands Commissioning Support Unit (Arden & GEM).

Arden and GEM are holding the referral details of all children and young people up to the age of 18 who had previously been referred to the service at the Tavistock & Portman NHS Foundation Trust as well as receiving new referrals. Referrals will be sent to one of the new providers once they are operational and when a patient has reached the top of the waiting list; about 3 months before they are planned to be seen. At this stage patients will be given a choice of which provider they would prefer to be seen by with the available options will increase over time.

Restrictions on Puberty Blockers - May 2024

The government has introduced regulations to restrict the prescribing and supply of puberty-suppressing hormones, known as ‘puberty blockers’, to children and young people under 18 in England, Wales and Scotland. See links below for details:

Some children and young people may be concerned or distressed by these changes. If they are already under the care of CYP mental health, they can contact their team for advice. If not, their GP team should assess and sign post or refer for mental health support as required.

Referral

A CAMHS referral is not required first unless there are other serious mental health needs alongside.

Arden & GEM accept referrals from health, social care, and education professionals, including directly from GPs. Unfortunately, they are unable to accept self-referrals from young people or their families.

General practitioners and other non-CAMHS/paediatric referrers: Please download and complete both the referral form and the risk assessment form on the website: Send these directly to the referral management service via: agem.cyp-gnrss@nhs.net. Please note that handwritten referrals will not be accepted.

Word versions of the Referral form and Risk Assessment are now available.

An EMIS coded combined Referral Form and Risk Assessment is available within Resource Publisher area in EMIS.

Resources

Happy Maps has a section on Primary School age-group Gender Identity, Puberty and Sex

Fflag - Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays is a voluntary organisation and registered charity in the United Kingdom which offers support to parents and their lesbian/gay/bisexual and transgender children.

The NHS England Gender Dysphoria Clinical Program page has links to Service Specifications for Gender Identity for adults and children.

Gender Identity Support line - (provided by the Gendered Intelligence charity) - this has been recommended by the Exeter GIC clinic and may be useful to support patients during the long wait for an appointment.

Efforts are made to ensure the accuracy and agreement of these guidelines, including any content uploaded, referred to or linked to from the system. However, BNSSG ICB cannot guarantee this. This guidance does not override the individual responsibility of healthcare professionals to make decisions appropriate to the circumstances of the individual patient, in consultation with the patient and/or guardian or carer, in accordance with the mental capacity act, and informed by the summary of product characteristics of any drugs they are considering. Practitioners are required to perform their duties in accordance with the law and their regulators and nothing in this guidance should be interpreted in a way that would be inconsistent with compliance with those duties.

Information provided through Remedy is continually updated so please be aware any printed copies may quickly become out of date.