By Faith Ridler For Mailonline
Published: 10:10 GMT, 17 February 2019 | Updated: 10:19 GMT, 17 February 2019
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Doctors at England's only NHS transgender clinic for children have warned that lobby groups and pushy parents could expose young patients to 'long-term damage'.
The Gender Identity Development Clinic in Tavistock has an 'inability to stand up to pressure' from campaigners and parents demanding fast-track transitions, clinicians have said.
The clinic, part of the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust in north London, is also providing 'woefully inadequate' care, with some staff citing 'very serious ethical concerns' about their work, a recent report said.
The report, made by former staff governor David Bell, said some children 'take up a trans identity as a solution' to 'multiple problems such as historic child abuse in the family, bereavement, homophobia, and a very significant incidence of autism spectrum disorder'.
The Gender Identity Development Clinic in Tavistock has an 'inability to stand up to pressure' from campaigners and parents demanding fast-track transitions, its own clinicians have said
It also claimed the children may have been 'coached' by lobby groups and said the histories of 'highly disturbed or complex' patients were not properly explored, the Sunday Times reported.
The Bell report said many children questioning their identity may have 'learnt through online resources [or] coaching from from parents or peers exactly what to say in order to get the results they want'.
One staff member said: 'You suddenly see groups of kids who at initial interview give exactly the version
