AFTER 35 years, the NHS Gender Identity and Development Service (GIDS) clinic closes its doors for good this Sunday.

This service catering for children and young people with gender issues, and based at north London’s Tavistock and Portman Foundation Trust, announced its closure in 2022 following criticism from an independent review conducted by Dr Hilary Cass. 

It is to be replaced by two new regional gender clinics, and previous treatment using so-called “puberty blockers” — drugs which delay the changes of puberty — has been restricted, with the NHS announcing last week: “We have concluded that there is not enough evidence to support the safety or clinical effectiveness of puberty-suppressing hormones to make the treatment routinely available at this time.”