now the high court has ruled that
children under 16 who say they want to
change
gender are unlikely to be able to give
their informed consent to treatment with
drugs
that block puberty the case was brought
by a young woman who regretted her
decision to have treatment
and argued that a court order should be
needed for children to take the
medication
transgender rights campaigners have
criticized the decision
and the only nhs clinic to offer the
treatment to children
says it will appeal against the ruling
our social affairs correspondent alison
holt
has more details for curabal emerging
from the high court this judgment was
about decisions made as a teenager that
started her on the road to transitioning
from female to male
she argued she was too young to
understand the impact of that treatment
the court agreed more checks are needed
i'm delighted at the judgment of the
court today it was a judgment that will
protect vulnerable people
i wish it had been made for me before i
embarked on the devastating
experiment of puberty blockers at 16
kira was desperate to be a boy she was
given drugs to delay puberty then male
hormones
clinicians say for some children this is
the right move
but kira believes it was a mistake for
her
the discussions were very brief and
there was no real investigation into
why i had gender dysphoric feelings and
how i got to that stage
i spoke briefly of depression and
anxiety
but again it was kind of assumed by
everyone that transitioning would
alleviate that
her case was against the tavistock the
uk's only gender identity clinic for
children
it argued that puberty blocking drugs
are only prescribed if a child can give
informed consent but today's judgment
ruled it was doubtful
a child under 16 could really understand
the long-term implications
and for 16 and 17 year olds the courts
may also need to be involved
this mother who wants to remain
anonymous was also involved in bringing
the action
her daughter who has autism is on the
clinic's waiting list
and the long-term effects of puberty
blockers they're not really known
they're given for extended period of
time at a time when your developing body
needs to be
exposed to hormones it doesn't just help
the physical development
it helps the psychological social and
emotional development of a child
in a statement the tavistock says the
trust is disappointed by today's
judgment
and we understand that the outcome is
likely to cause anxiety for patients and
their families
it continues we are working to provide
support for patients concerned about the
impact
on their care it's a very important
issue and i'm happy to be here
and 18 year old sonia calls the judgment
disheartening and wrong
she says young people who want to
transition like her already face
long waits for specialist help it's
taking
more than two three years just to get a
first appointment and that's before you
even get to
the prospects of discus discussing
hormone replacement therapy and puberty
blockers
it take for me personally it took a huge
toll on my mental health
because i couldn't see light at the end
of the tunnel i had no hope
whilst it's considering the implications
of today's judgment
the tavistock says it's suspending all
new referrals of under 16s for drug
treatments
alison holt bbc news