Children barred from changing NHS number

[ArabellaScott]

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/03/20/children-barred-from-getting-new-trans-identity-nhs/

'Health Secretary orders doctors to stop issuing new numbers and medical records to under-18s following damning safeguarding review '

https://archive.ph/krLxW

'Transgender children will be banned from getting a new NHS record following an intervention by Wes Streeting.
The health service has been ordered to stop issuing new NHS numbers to <a class="break-all" href="https://archive.ph/o/krLxW/www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/01/24/children-who-think-they-are-wrong-gender-surges-50-fold/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">under-18s who want to change their gender, following a damning independent review.
Until now, adults or children of any age have been <a class="break-all" href="https://archive.ph/o/krLxW/www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/02/06/what-parent-believes-child-is-transgender/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">allowed to request a gender change on their medical record at any time.

This involves a new NHS number and medical record being issued to change the sex marker, and no distinction is made between requests from adults and those from children.

The review, conducted by Alice Sullivan at the Social Research Institute in University College London, highlighted serious concerns about this practice because it means data on biological sex can be lost, creating safeguarding and clinical care risks.

Mr Streeting, the Health Secretary, declared that “<a class="break-all" href="https://archive.ph/o/krLxW/www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/08/06/child-under-5-among-thousands-nhs-gender-care/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">children’s safety must come first” as he confirmed the changes on Thursday.
He said: “It’s completely wrong that children’s NHS numbers can be changed if they change gender, and I’ve made it clear this must not happen.

“We must deliver <a class="break-all" href="https://archive.ph/o/krLxW/www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/12/21/wes-streeting-facing-backlash-labour-mps-puberty-blockers/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">safe and holistic care for both adults and children when it comes to gender, and that also means accurately recording biological sex – not just for research and insight, but also for patient safety.'

Good news.

👍

Ty Arabella.

Good news, although given the recent publicity about how not having correct sex identifiers on NHS patient records can be dangerous, surely being allowed to do this later is a problem.

Thanks Arabella. This is incredibly important. And suggests that (unlike the prime minister) there's a politician who prioritises safeguarding children and is confident enough to speak out.

This is excellent news.

I can’t help wondering if there’s a series of events that need to happen within the nhs before former action occurs in schools; it makes more sense to do things like this asap.

It makes no sense from any perspective other than an ideological one

At least Streeting is listening to experts in the field and trying to correct the nonsensical situation. I find I respect him more and more, especially as he's changed his previous position, in the face of facts.

Great news - although nobody should be able to change their sex on their medical records regardless of age - if they want to receive appropriate screening and care from the NHS that is. It's utterly ridiculous that this happened in the first place.

I'm also coming round to Wes Streeting; I have a lot of respect for people who can change their views in light of new information, rather than stick their heels in to save face.

Your demographic record says gender, not sex.

there needs to be both.

No. This is about children and young people below the age of 18. They need an accurate sex marker for the NHS. Gender identity (for those caught up in the belief) is completely irrelevant in terms of medical care. Unless of course you're one of the individuals who the NHS is experimenting on with dangerous drugs and brutal surgery.

Quick work from Streeting. Good.

How else would they explain statistics of men having hysterectomies or women having prostate cancer without changing NHS numbers. Surely if women can have penises and men can give birth there was no need to change them in the first place when it's just a letter that means nothing.

Good. If adults choose to mess with their health that's their body and their choice to conceal/confuse medical information, but children should be protected.

I do however have sympathy for those adults who are vulnerable and were raised in ideologically drenched schools and under highly irresponsible politicians. Some of them will now be genuinely confused about whether men can grow cervixes as Mr Lammy said, and whether their choices can delete or adapt their biological reality.

I have zero sympathy.

They are adults.

Books are available.

Great news. This should never have been allowed to happen. Unless you're having to change identity for life threatening reasons (ie witness protection) there is no justification for changing NHS numbers. It's bizarre that gender identity is being kept secret for people by institutions. If the sex marker is changed on medical records how does the screening team know that the person is actually the opposite biological sex? How does anyone imagine that was meant to work?

ASAP... definitely.

The current statutory schools' KCSIE guidance makes a clear distinction in risk between LGB and gender questioning children. This is so important in understanding why someone's self-declared gender identity shouldn't be just affirmed: a gender identity belief can be indicative of other underlying factors, as per the Cass Report (which is linked in the statutory guidance).

I'm guessing the next KCSIE guidance will be available for the public to see in May, just like last year. If they remove this critical information about risk profiles, a lot will be lost. Wes Streeting has stepped forward but it's unclear what Bridget Phillipson will do. If she can't act now, to improve and build upon what has already been written into this guidance, she is complicit in continuing the medical scandal that is unfolding right now.

Not only should the KCSIE guidance be improved upon, but the Working Together safeguarding framework also sits under the DfE. Bridget Phillipson has an opportunity to widen the protection of autistic and LGB children beyond schools, in all other public bodies which are currently involved in the gender clinic pipeline. Including Children's Services, where they are failing to recognise this risk.

Please wake up Bridget.

How we ever permitted the medical records of children to be falsified in the first place is unfathomable. The clinical risks must be high for this change to come in with such urgency.

Next must surely be rectifying the historic records of both children and over 18s.

I thought the LGB/gender questioning guidance was draft only? Certainly, that is what it said, emblazoned across the top of that section, when I read it in September for my statutory training.

I've heard nothing since.

It is still a draft. It was produced under the last government and my guess is Phillipson is dithering between demands of the trans extremists embedded in labour, the civil service, unions etc versus the growing evidence about the catastrophic harm that's been done to children by allowing transactivists to gaslight them in schools.
The guidance isn't perfect by any means but it's a good start to try to untangle the mess that's been allowed to happen in schools.

Among the cases highlighted by Ms Sullivan was a serious safeguarding breach where a baby that was only three weeks old had its NHS number and gender changed.

Just trying to understand wth would a 3 week old baby have had its number and gender changed?

Gosh no I agree with you on this.

I was just highlighting how wrong this is. It should be sex.

Feel the need to add clarification, under 18s have no need to have a gender marker on their record.

There are a lot of very misleading books, some of them aimed at autistic people. I therefore have a some sympathy for some adults who have been led down the garden path.

A significance of this is that sex records in schools will be forced to be accurate NOW.

if not the school is actively transitioning a child

There was a jackine Wilson book where the mum pretended a baby was the opposite sex...