Puberty blockers: children under 16 should not be referred without court order, says NHS England

NHS England has ordered a pause on referrals of children under 16 for puberty blockers, after the High Court ruled that under 16s were unlikely to fully understand the long term effects of the treatment and give informed consent.1

Implementation of the High Court judgment, which will have far reaching consequences for treating children with gender dysphoria, has been stayed until 22 December or until the determination of any appeal by the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust.

The trust’s gender identity development service …