Boiling Point

Perhaps the trickiest part of rounding off a story like this is the lack of finality around the subject. Nobody knows when, or if, the Labour government will release their draft ban bill on conversion therapy. If they do, there is no indication about whether transgender communities will be included in that bill.

Much of this story has been about looking back at the stories, the timelines, of everything that has happened so far, so it felt right to conclude this investigation by looking forward. This was why I spoke to Southampton University's LGBTQ+ society this week. Although the mission to ban conversion therapy is a collaborative effort across the entire community, the legacy of trans rights lies with the future generation. It caught me off guard quite how much hope there was amongst the group in the wake of their vigil last month commemorating transgender day of remembrance.

Raphael Rafferty, the society president, spoke about the importance of building a community within the university: ""It is genuinely so important for people to come together and feel like they have the space, and give them the open space to exist as themselves no matter what, and give them a sense of normalcy in everyday life where everything can become polarising and a media scandal."

Their events include swimming socials, collabs with our other societies across the student union, and Christmas lights displays with the intention of bringing their members together. While they never overtly get involved with protests, the committee signpost members to where they are happening so they are aware of which routes to take for safety.

The society are currently working on introducing a gender expression fund so students can access gender-affirming items like clothes for a different gender identity.

Raphael added: "We feel we have quite a big responsibility to make sure all our spaces feel safe, so as not to put our members too much in the spotlight.

"How much trans people just want normalcy, to live happy lives like the rest of society. We believe we should be accommodated for additional needs like any disability. Few people understand how isolating it can be to be trans."

As for the sense of community, Raphael reinforced that there is still a lot of hope. The line that stuck with me was: "We are never going away." This community has been through so much over the last year, and yet the bonds between its members are still so strong. Now we reach boiling point as the community waits for a result. Next year, the government will release its plans for how gender-affirming care can be introduced for young people in the UK. They have also promised more gender identity clinics, one for each UK region. 2026 will be a very important year, as we look to the future, and The Trans Cure? comes to a close.

Speaking of which, the story will be released next Friday, which is impossible to believe. When work started on the investigation back in September, that deadline seemed so far away, but I cannot wait to share these stories with you, and shine light on an issue that still not nearly enough people are talking about.