What are support services?
Getting help and information from an organisation that provides specialist one-to-one support relating to gender.
What do support services do?
- Mood
Reduces anxiety and uncertainty
Why might I want to use support services?
Changing things about your gender can bring up lots of questions and unexpected emotions. Often, it can be helpful to talk to other people and get their input.
How do I get support?
In the UK, there are several specialist services available to provide you with information and support. If these services cannot help you themselves, they may be able to point you to other people who can help.
Gendered Intelligence provides phone, WhatsApp, and email support for those aged 17.5+ who need information and emotional support while waiting for gender affirmative healthcare.
Mermaids provide phone, online chat, and email support for transgender youth aged up to 25 in the UK.
Mindline Trans+ is a helpline for adults in the UK who identify as trans or non-binary, run by mental health charity Mind.
There is local support available:
- in the Brighton and Hove area from Switchboard Trans and Non-binary Link
- in the London area from the Spectra London Trans Peer Mentoring Programme
- in the Liverpool area from the Mersey Care Trans Support Service
- in Scotland from the Transgender Support Service at LGBT Health and Wellbeing
- in Sussex from The Clare Project
- in Wales from the XIST service at Umbrella Cymru
If you are on a gender service waiting list or are a current gender service user, you can also get support from:
- Leeds Gender Identity Service: Leeds Gender Outreach Workers
- Northern Region Gender Dysphoria Service: NRGDS Peer Support Service
- Nottingham Centre for Transgender Health: Gendered Intelligence Support Line
- NCTH East Of England: Gendered Intelligence Support Line
- Sheffield Porterbrook Clinic: Sheffield Peer Support Workers or the Gendered Intelligence Support Line
- Welsh Gender Service: XIST at Umbrella Cymru
- West of England Specialist Gender Identity Clinic (The Laurels, Exeter): Gendered Intelligence Support Line
If you are 12-18 and in the North of England, you can also access Gender Space.
If you are a student at a school, college, university, or any other educational setting, you can access the Gendered Intelligence Mentoring Service for a fee.
Are there other options?
Other sources of support you could consider are:
You might want to consider these in combination with accessing a trans support service.
Errors and omissions
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