Clinical judgements and the clinical counselling at the Tavistock Centre, which since 1989 has provided the UK’s only gender identity clinic for children and young people, now seem set to be examined by the courts in clinical negligence claims brought by some former patients.

The NHS trust that runs the clinic, already set to close following the February 2022 interim review by Hilary Cass, former president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, is reportedly facing a mass action lawsuit, with a particular focus on the use of so-called puberty blocker drugs.

Cass’ review built on the findings of the Multi-Professional Review Group (MPRG) set up in 2021 by NHS England (which has not yet formally reported) and a 2020 Care Quality Commission review. Her report criticised the provision of children’s gender identity services by only one centre and recommended the establishment of regional services.

But the concerns identified were not only structural. Cass agreed with the MPRG’s criticism of the centre’s “predominantly affirmative, non-exploratory approach, often driven by child and parent expectations and the extent of social transition that [had] developed due to delay in service provision”.