Choosing a gender service

Which services can I choose from?

Check out our pages about NHS gender clinics and about private gender clinics to see what’s available. Due to the long waiting times for NHS services, many people opt to be referred to both a private and NHS service.

How do I choose a service?

To ensure that you choose an appropriate service, it is important to find out:

• How long is the waiting list? Are you likely to be seen promptly by the service?
• Will your GP work with them? If they ask your GP for blood tests or to prescribe, will your GP agree?
• Are the prices reasonable? Do they have fees or subscriptions and are you tied into a contract for a specific amount of time? How do their pricing structures compare to other services?
• Do they perform regular blood monitoring and testing? Will they regularly monitor your health if you are prescribed hormones?
• What’s their reputation like? Do past patients recommend the service? What are people saying online?
• Will they confirm your referral? Will you get written confirmation you have been added to a waiting list?
• Are there physical examinations? Will they perform medically unnecessary examinations of your chest or genitals?
• Do surgeons take their referrals? If they write a letter recommending you for surgery, will surgeons accept it?
• What is the level of contact? Do they respond quickly to questions? How often will they check in with you?

A well-run service will be happy to help you with questions on these subjects. You may also find useful information on these subjects, and other people’s thoughts and experiences of services, by searching /r/transgenderuk for information.

What else is useful to know?

If you do not want to publicly change your gender presentation before starting hormones, you may want to check if the gender service is happy to prescribe hormones to you without evidence of public changes such as a deed poll name change.

If you would like your GP to agree to shared care with a private gender service, they may be more likely to do this if the gender service is staffed by clinicians who also work for NHS gender services. Private gender services will normally list which staff they employ, and you can search their names to find out whether they are also employed by the NHS.

If you want to get a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC), you may want to check whether the service has staff who are qualified to provide the Medical Report A evidence for your GRC application.

How long are waiting times?

You can find out about wait times for NHS services on our NHS gender clinics pages.

How much do private services cost?

You can find out about fees and costs for private gender services on our private gender clinics page.

Errors or omissions

Is there something missing from this page? Have you spotted something that isn’t correct? E-mail info@transactual.org.uk to let us know.

A disclaimer: TransActual do not provide medical, health, or legal advice. The content of this page is intended for information purposes only. It is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment from a medical professional. It is not a substitute for advice from a legal professional. We strongly suggest you consult a healthcare professional or legal professional for specific advice about your situation. TransActual do not advocate or recommend the purchase of any specific product and we do not endorse or guarantee the credentials or appropriateness of any health care provider, any product or any provider of legal services.