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By Kit Million Ross, Monday Mar 1, 2021
I can recall, in precise detail, the exact moment where I realised just how difficult accessing gender-affirming healthcare would be for me.
Hunched over my laptop, aged 21, in the very early days of my own coming out and transition as a non-binary person, grinning from ear to ear as I purchased my first chest binder, and deciding to ride this wave of gender euphoria and research the process of getting a referral to an NHS Gender Identity Clinic (GIC).
What I found was soul-destroying. Reams of Reddit posts detailing wait times getting longer and longer, people self-medicating with hormones purchased online, a total lack of clarity regarding pathways for people who want surgery but not hormones, and the heart-breaking realisation that, in all likelihood, I wouldn’t have access to any medical gender care before I turned 30.
Mayoral candidate Sian Berry has outlined a plan to improve the rights of London s transgender community. Credit: GLA/Newsquest The Green Party’s Sian Berry has outlined plans to make London “the most trans inclusive city in the world” as part of her bid to become the capital’s next mayor. The mayoral hopeful, who is currently a member of the London Assembly, has today outlined plans to launch a commission into the needs of trans and non-binary Londoners to form the basis of a London-wide trans rights action plan. Ms Berry said that there is “a lack of meaningful London-wide listening” into the needs and experiences of trans and non-binary people and that a commission could help challenge the “unacceptable” barriers that they face to things such as healthcare and employment.
The Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust in London was told by the Care Quality Commission it needed to significantly improve its services and waiting times.