NI Health Minister confirms assessment of Northern Ireland’s gender identity services provision

Health Minister Mike Nesbitt has announced that he has asked Baroness Hilary Cass, who led the national Independent Review of Gender Identity Services for Children and Young People, to conduct an assessment of the gender identity services provision in Northern Ireland.

The assessment will also specifically consider the proposed move to a Regional Lifespan Gender Service in Northern Ireland. In a redesign of existing service provision, the Lifespan Gender Service brings together the existing Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Knowing Our Identity Team and the Adult Gender Service into one model of care, under a single management structure.

The Minister said: “I am delighted that the eminently qualified Dr Hilary Cass has agreed to my request to provide an assessment of the actions being taken in Northern Ireland. Last year she published her wide-ranging review into gender identity services for children and young people in the UK.

“Whilst understandably much of the focus of her report centred on the recommendation on puberty blockers – which Northern Ireland rightly adopted – she also came to other important conclusions. In finding that most young people experiencing gender-related distress would not benefit from a medical pathway she instead called for a much stronger focus across the UK on psychological support, as well as a more holistic approach to care. 

“That is exactly what I want Northern Ireland to be delivering. Much of the previously approved £806,000 business case for the new Lifespan Gender Service is to invest in new and additional psychological and psychiatric support, as well as a greater multi-disciplinary approach. From my reading of the Cass Review that is exactly the direction of travel she has recommended.

 “While I am content with the process undertaken to develop the revised service, in response to a number of questions being raised, I believe an independent expert assessment of the service may go some way to address these issues. I am delighted that Baroness Cass has agreed to complete that assessment which will commence in November 2025.”

Notes to editors:

1. The Independent Review of Gender Identity Services for Children and Young People, commonly referred to as the Cass Review, was commissioned by NHS England and NHS Improvement in 2020. It led to the publication of a final report in 2024.
2. Baroness Cass is a retired Consultant Paediatrician and a former president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.
3. The Regional Lifespan Gender Service in Northern Ireland will provide age-appropriate support and treatment for individuals experiencing gender dysphoria or who are exploring their gender identity. It is important to note that referral to the service is not gender affirming. It is an administrative step that initiates access to comprehensive evaluation by specialist multi-disciplinary teams. A referral or assessment does not imply automatic access to affirming treatments or pre-empt clinical outcomes.