Children as young as four being referred to gender services clinics because they feel transgender

Adorable cute little girl feeling excited about going back from school with her mother by the hand. A pretty girl with a backpack walks on the street with her mother. Credit: Getty CHILDREN as young as four are being referred to gender services clinics. They were among 3,724 kids who had specialist treatment between April 2024 and last month. It’s been revealed children as young as four were among 3,724 youngsters referred to gender services clinics for specialist treatment Credit: Getty GP Dr Renee Hoenderkamp questioned why children with conditions such as ADHD were being referred to gender services clinics Credit: Instagram / drreneehoenderkamp Twenty-three were aged four to six despite critics saying they are too young to feel transgender. A further 75 were aged between seven and ten. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Our stats, from a freedom of information request, show those sent to the NHS Gender National Referral Support Service by youth mental health specialists. GP Dr Renee Hoenderkamp said: “Many will have serious mental conditions, like ADHD, which they should be treated for. “But the pathway for that is not through a referral to a gender services clinic. “You have to question who is referring them as well, because I know what conversation I would have with a four-year-old’s parents who want to be a dog or a princess or whatever. “Parents should be guiding their children back to what they actually are, while still allowing them to explore.” NHS England’s own review, led by Dr Hilary Cass and published in April 2024, found children who show signs of gender confusion mostly grow out of it before puberty. Most read in The Sun Her review led to regional NHS hubs replacing the scandal-hit Tavistock clinic, and ended the routine prescription of puberty blockers to under-18s. But she said there should still be no minimum age for referrals and an NHS spokesman said: “Dr Cass’s report made clear services should support families as early as possible.”