Thousands waiting years for a gender clinic appointment in Scotland

Thousands of people are waiting years to be seen at one of Scotland's gender clinics.

Data from Public Health Scotland shows that, at the end of March this year, a record 6,435 people were waiting to see an NHS specialist for their first appointment.

The majority of those waits was more than two years - but more than 1,000 patients had been waiting for more than five years for an initial appointment.

The Scottish government acknowledged access to gender services remained "unacceptably long" and said it was working with boards to support improvements.

Scotland's five NHS specialist gender clinics have faced growing pressures in recent years with significant increases in the number of people questioning their identity or experiencing gender dysphoria.

The data - first collected in 2023 - shows 84% of referrals were waiting over a year to be seen by an NHS specialist, with 4,163 patients waiting over two years for a initial appointment.

Just over two-fifths of referrals in 2025/26 were received for people aged 18 to 24 years and over a fifth were for those aged 25 to 34 years.

The number of referrals to the only dedicated service for children, the Sandyford clinic in Glasgow, dropped by 46% last year.

However, that is likely to reflect major changes in services for young people ordered by the Scottish government following a major review into gender services for children and young people, published in 2024.

It said care for under 18s should be delivered within "age-appropriate" paediatric services across the country.

The Cass review also recommended a halt to the use of puberty blockers until further researcher was carried out.

A trial led by King's College London is set to examine the impact of the drugs on their physical, social and emotional wellbeing.

The Scottish government said it was now providing funding to health boards on a recurring basis to support improvements across gender identity clinics.

It added this included the recruitment of additional staff to expand multidisciplinary teams, improve communications with patients and to develop new resources and processes to support people on waiting lists.

A spokesperson said: "The Scottish government recognises that the waiting times to access these services remain unacceptably long, and the impact that this can have on those waiting and their families.

"We continue to work closely with health boards to reduce waiting times, ensure patients receive compassionate care and to provide access to support for patients who are waiting."