Review of NHS gender services for children has major implications for mental health services

Cass report calls for move away from mainly medical treatment as part of dramatic shift in approach to gender dysphoria

• Thousands of children unsure of gender identity ‘let down by NHS’
• Key findings of the NHS gender identity review

A long-awaited review by consultant paediatrician Hilary Cass into the NHS’s gender services for children calls for a dramatic shift in the type of treatment offered to children and young people with gender dysphoria.

The report proposes that instead of being offered mainly medical treatment, young people referred to NHS gender services should “receive a holistic assessment of their needs to inform an individualised care plan”, meaning that questions of gender identity should be treated alongside other possible mental health concerns.