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Welcome to our Child &
Adolescent Gender Services.

Our Child & Adolescent Gender Service is the only private clinic in Australia specialising in assessment, diagnosis, family support, and clinical management of gender dysphoria in older children and adolescents.

Our practice is informed by Australian Standards of Care Treatment Guidelines. We are also informed by scientific and clinical understandings of different forms of gender dysphoria, and distinct challenges and prognoses associated with each. We take a careful, person-centred, multi-disciplinary and evidence-based approach to assessment of management of gender dysphoria informed by latest developments in the field.

Our senior clinical psychologists including Dr James Morandini, Dr Georgia McClure, and Dr Sarah Bowman are leading clinicians and researchers in the field of paediatric gender dysphoria. They have worked in community and public health gender services in NSW, have treated hundreds of young people with gender related difficulties, and have published widely on paediatric gender dysphoria in scientific journals.

Find out more about our approach

to general mental health services

Services:

Assessment and diagnosisof gender dysphoria in children and adolescents (up to 18 years of age)

Psychological treatment
of co-occurring psychological disorders in children and adolescents with gender

Psychoeducation and family therapy
regarding gender dysphoria and hormonal or surgical interventions

Gillick Competence Assessments
for young people seeking gender related medical interventions

There has been a marked increase in the number children and adolescents seeking care for gender dysphoria/gender identity in recent years. As a profession, psychology has been slow to catch up with this development and provide evidence-based support for young people experiencing gender difficulties.

Both Dr James Morandini and Dr Georgia McClure (senior clinicians) have extensive clinical experience working with gender diverse young people. Dr Morandini continues to work as the Clinical Lead at The Gender Centre – having treated hundreds of transgender/gender-questioning children and adoelscents. Dr McClure worked for many years as lead psychologist at Westmead Children’s Hospital Gender Identity Clinic, specialising in puberty suppression assessment for gender dysphoric young people.

Services:

Assessment and diagnosis

of gender dysphoria and any co-occurring mental health disorders in older children and adolescents (up to 18 years of age)

Psychological treatment

of gender-related distress, co-occurring mental health disorders in children and adolescents with gender dysphoria

Education

regarding gender dysphoria and various treatment options

Support

support for young people as they explore their gender identities, and for families as they navigate challenges such as decisions regarding gender affirming medical interventions and conflicts related to gender identity


Why Choose King Street Psychology Clinic? 
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All our clinical psychologists and clinic registrars have specialised training and supervision in assessment and management of gender dysphoria.

We are aware of the complexity of this area of practice and aim to provide support that is balanced and respectful as well as rigorous and research-informed.  

We are committed to providing a safe, inclusive, and respectful environment for all young people and their families who come to us with varied perspectives and life experiences.  

We are committed to promoting understanding of gender dysphoria in children/adolescents, awareness of the state of evidence regarding gender-related medical interventions, clinical controversies in the field, and current best practice approaches for medical and allied health practitioners working with this population.


Our Gender Dysphoria Services:
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Assessment and Diagnosis: Our clinical psychologists/registrars conduct comprehensive psychological assessment of older children and adolescents. We seek to understand children’s gender concerns in the context of their broader neurodevelopmental, developmental, social, and mental health functioning. We provide diagnostic opinion and treatment recommendations which includes the young person’s broader mental health. We also provide multidisciplinary assessment and treatment for  Autism and ADHD, conditions which are present in almost 30% of gender diverse young people (Warrier et al., 2020).
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Education and Therapy: We provide a range of education and psychological therapy services to gender diverse/questioning young people and their parents. This can include information sessions explaining different types of gender dysphoria, different ways of managing gender dysphoria, exploring pros and cons of different treatments, and providing open-ended exploration of gender related distress. For young people who do pursue social or medical transition, we can provide support in navigating gender-related milestones (i.e., coming out, transitioning at school) and challenges, as well as general mental health challenges. For caregivers struggling to manage discord within the family, or attempting to make difficult decisions or manage their own feelings regarding their child’s transition, we also provide parent-focused therapeutic support.
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Education and Counselling regarding Puberty Suppression and Hormonal Interventions: We provide comprehensive education and counselling regarding puberty suppression and masculinising or feminising hormone treatments with young people and their parents. This involves psychological assessment, individual and family counselling, education with children and parents regarding pros and cons of different treatments, fertility counselling, and assessment of medical decision-making competence (Gillick competency) in the young person. We often work with young people and families in providing assessment, education, and counselling prior to referrals to public sector gender clinics such as Westmead Gender Clinic and Maple Leaf House who provide assessment and treatment specific to medical affirming interventions such as puberty suppression and hormone therapies. However, clients are able to access these services directly without a referral from us.
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Our team is actively involved in clinical research in the area of gender dysphoria, have published:

Morandini, J. S., Kelly, A., de Graaf, N. M., Carmichael, P., & Dar-Nimrod, I. (2022). Shifts in demographics and mental health co-morbidities among gender dysphoric youth referred to a specialist gender dysphoria service. Clinical child psychology and psychiatry, 27(2), 480-491.

Morandini, J. S., Kelly, A, de Graaf, N., Dar-Nimrod, I., & Carmichael, P (2021). Is Social Gender Transition Associated with Mental Health Status in Children and Adolescents with Gender Dysphoria? Archives of Sexual Behavior 52(3), 1045-1060.

Hilton, M. N., Boulton, K. A., Kozlowska, K., McClure, G., & Guastella, A. J. (2022). The co-occurrence of neurodevelopmental disorders in gender dysphoria: Characteristics within a paediatric treatment-seeking cohort and factors that predict distress pertaining to gender. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 149, 281-286.


Bowman, S. J., Casey, L. J., McAloon, J., & Wootton,B. M. Assessing gender dysphoria: A systematic review ofpatient-reported outcome measures. Psychologyof Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity.


Bowman, S. J., Hakeem, A., Demant, D., McAloon, J.,& Wootton, B. M. Assessing Gender Dysphoria: Development and Validationof the Gender Preoccupation and Stability Questionnaire–2nd Edition(GPSQ-2). Journal of Homosexuality,1-25.