Valeria Rocca

Revealed: Streeting met with and expressed sympathy for pro-conversion therapy parents group Bayswater QueerAF has uncovered video footage of the Health Secretary Wes Streeting saying he’d met with Bayswater parents and expressed his sympathy for the “traumatic experiences” families with trans children...

Of course, this is not the first time @wearequeeraf.com has made government ministers aware of these allegations, as we did in this reporting by @sasha98.bsky.social and @vrocca.bsky.social

www.wearequeeraf.com/revealed-str...

While this may appear unrelated to him being trans, Noah says in his mother’s mind, the two are intimately connected. “She said that she didn't actually want me to get the grades that I wanted because it would mean going off to uni, and that she kind of hoped that I would fail so she'd have more time to desist me.” Noah believes her fear has led his mother to attempt to sabotage his A levels, embroiling him in regular hours-long arguments that distract him from his studies.

Charlotte’s mother has been more successful in creating barriers between them and their extended family, weaponising the idea that trans people are dangerous to children to prevent them seeing their niece. “My mum told me that as long as I present as Charlotte I'm not allowed to see her, because it's not fair on the child to be caught in this situation,” they said. “I don't feel comfortable talking to that side of the family because I know how much my mum talks and what my mum says.”

When he came out for the second time, his mum’s abuse intensified. “When people would identify me as male in public, things really took a turn,” said Liam. He recalls his mother “shouting at me, shouting at people in public, shouting at trans people in public”.

Charlotte’s parents have become an overbearing presence in their life. “[My mum] wakes up at three or four in the morning to send me these long text messages about how terrible me being trans is,” they said. The messages also repeatedly deadname Charlotte. “The hardest thing is when [I say] please use this name for me, and I’m being very firm about it, she tells me she's going to ring the Samaritans because she's so depressed,” they said.

[CN: descriptions of emotional and psychological abuse]

I think this behaviour would be pretty clearly recognised as abusive if it were directed at cis children and young adults. Do it to trans CYP and @rthonwesstreeting.bsky.social will sit down to have a chat about policy with you.

“My parents very clearly do not love me”: Children of Bayswater Speak Out We speak to several children of Bayswater Support Group members. Their experiences highlight the harm groups like Bayswater do to young trans people, and the gateway they provide to broader far-right ...

Excellent reporting by @sasha98.bsky.social
and ‪‪‪@vrocca.bsky.social here for @transsafety.network

It has a number of first-hand accounts that detail the vile behaviour of parents in the Bayswater group 👇
transsafety.network/posts/my-par...

Revealed: Streeting met with and expressed sympathy for pro-conversion therapy parents group Bayswater QueerAF has uncovered video footage of the Health Secretary Wes Streeting saying he’d met with Bayswater parents and expressed his sympathy for the “traumatic experiences” families with trans children...

A few months ago, we revealed the connection between Wes Streeting and the group for @wearequeeraf.com

www.wearequeeraf.com/revealed-str...

‘One day they may thank us for that “abuse”’: Inside the Bayswater… On Discord, parents discussed destroying their children’s belongings and blocking access to Childline to ‘stop’ them being trans

Which was a two-part investigation into their lobbying of government policies and what advice was shared behind closed doors

www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2024...

The parents group at the centre of a rollback of trans rights A Conservative MP enlisted Bayswater Support Group in push back on trans education in schools

This is a follow up to our reporting for @tbij.bsky.social, where we first exposed the group
www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2024...

“My parents very clearly do not love me”: Children of Bayswater Speak Out We speak to several children of Bayswater Support Group members. Their experiences highlight the harm groups like Bayswater do to young trans people, and the gateway they provide to broader far-right ...

I had the opportunity with @sasha98.bsky.social and @transsafety.network to speak to young trans people whose parents joined the Bayswater Support Group. Their stories show the negative impact that the kind of advice promoted by the group had on their lives

transsafety.network/posts/my-par...

“My parents very clearly do not love me”: Children of Bayswater Speak Out We speak to several children of Bayswater Support Group members. Their experiences highlight the harm groups like Bayswater do to young trans people, and the gateway they provide to broader far-right ...

Devastating details of the everyday harms of anti-trans parent 'support' group Bayswater, both on LGBTQ+ children and young people themselves and the parents who become embroiled.

Important continued work from @vrocca.bsky.social & @sasha98.bsky.social for @transsafety.network

The young people who @vrocca.bsky.social and @sasha98.bsky.social spoke to, detailed how their parents tactics became increasingly controlling and abusive the more time that they spent on Bayswater forums.

“My parents very clearly do not love me”: Children of Bayswater Speak Out We speak to several children of Bayswater Support Group members. Their experiences highlight the harm groups like Bayswater do to young trans people, and the gateway they provide to broader far-right ...

transsafety.network/posts/my-par...

@sasha98.bsky.social and Valeria Rocca spoke to several children of Bayswater members who highlighted the harm the group do to young trans people and the gateway into broader far-right politics that they provide.

Content warning: discusses conversion abuse

As the political influence of pro-conversion therapy parents continues unabated, @vrocca.bsky.social and I spoke to some of the children and young adults who have been victimised by Bayswater members. CW: child abuse.

🆕 Following the exclusive @wearequeeraf.com scoop by @sasha98.bsky.social and @vrocca.bsky.social - a cross party selection of LGBTQIA+ political groups have called for the health secretary's resignation 👇

www.wearequeeraf.com/revealed-str...

Revealed: Streeting met with and expressed sympathy for pro-conversion therapy parents group Bayswater QueerAF has uncovered video footage of the Health Secretary Wes Streeting saying he’d met with Bayswater parents and expressed his sympathy for the “traumatic experiences” families with trans children...

🆕 Health Secretary Wes Streeting met with and expressed sympathy for members of a parents’ group that promotes conversion therapy and has been found to engage in child abuse against trans children, QueerAF can reveal.

www.wearequeeraf.com/revealed-str...

Revealed: Streeting met with and expressed sympathy for pro-conversion therapy parents group Bayswater QueerAF has uncovered video footage of the Health Secretary Wes Streeting saying he’d met with Bayswater parents and expressed his sympathy for the “traumatic experiences” families with trans children...

So @tbij.bsky.social with @sasha98.bsky.social & @vrocca.bsky.social exposed Bayswater support group promoting conversion therapy & abusing behaviour.

THEN Wes Streeting thought it was a good idea to meet with them & get their advice on the puberty blocker ban.
www.wearequeeraf.com/revealed-str...

🚨Exclusive: QueerAF has uncovered video of Health Secretary Wes Streeting saying he’d met with Bayswater parents, and expressed his sympathy for the “traumatic experiences” families.

Earlier this year the group were exposed as one that abuses trans children 👇
www.wearequeeraf.com/revealed-str...

The ministerial meetings records released on Thursday (after we filed copy) show Streeting met with Bayswater again in government, less than a month after we revealed the extent of their abuse and links to Tory politicians.

Screenshot of first day of our crowdfunder, that reads: QueerAF's LGBT+ History Month crowdfunder by QueerAF in Margate, Kent, United Kingdom QueerAF, the UK’s beloved queer newsletter and largest advocate of queer creatives, needs your help to stay strong and fighting for you £665 of £5000 target

With the tireless work of queer journalists, our small but mighty non-profit LGBTQIA+ publisher is holding the highest offices in the UK to account 💪

We need your help to keep that work up 🏳️‍🌈

If you value stories like this, please support our Crowdfunder 👇 www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/queeraf2025/

Revealed: Streeting met with and expressed sympathy for pro-conversion therapy parents group Bayswater QueerAF has uncovered video footage of the Health Secretary Wes Streeting saying he’d met with Bayswater parents and expressed his sympathy for the “traumatic experiences” families with trans children...

Real trans kids demanding autonomy take a sledgehammer to this carefully constructed image. No wonder Streeting refuses to listen to them.

www.wearequeeraf.com/revealed-str...

When he professes his empathy for trans youth, he frames it around his having wrestled with his own sexuality. In doing so, Streeting reveals that he conceives of trans youth as abject, in need of sympathetic authority figures to guide them towards the right decisions.

14/ Our take: @sasha98.bsky.social and @vrocca.bsky.social

Not giving agency to, or legitimising the opinions of, the children whose rights are at stake suits Streeting’s agenda.

Bayswater’s access to power relies on rendering their children as political pawns. Its status as a parents’ group lends it authority, even though most members would never admit to their children that they are part of the group.

Streeting has met with trans children, but only alongside their parents or adult campaigners. Their presence helps Streeting to maintain the belief that trans kids lack the agency and maturity to make consequential decisions.

13/ Analysis

First, it emphasises the reluctance of UK institutions to recognise trans and young people as victims of a climate of hate that has pervaded British society.

But it is also telling that Streeting refuses to meet with one of the only groups of trans kids organising on their own.

12/ Analysis by @sasha98.bsky.social and @vrocca.bsky.social

Bayswater being invited to participate in the puberty blocker ban consultation so shortly after the extent of their abuse towards trans children was exposed in the press reveals two things:

11/ Community Reaction:

A spokesperson for Trans Kids Deserve Better, told QueerAF they were “absolutely appalled” by Streeting's actions.

They were not invited to participate in consultation despite being one of the only organised groups made up of people directly impacted by the ban.

10/ A DHSC spokesperson:

Declined to respond to any of our questions about Streeting or the department's relationship with Bayswater Support Group, but insisted the government's approach to trans healthcare was "putting young people's safety first".

Puberty Blocker ban consultation featured eight explicitly anti-trans groups Analysis of the targeted consultation about the ban shows anti-trans groups were heavily featured.

9/ Wes Streeting banned Puberty Blockers

Eight explicitly anti-transgender groups were featured in the consultation, and despite 59% of groups opposing making the order permanent - Streeting sided with the 27% who supported it.

www.wearequeeraf.com/puberty-bloc...

Puberty Blocker ban consultation featured eight explicitly anti-trans groups Analysis of the targeted consultation about the ban shows anti-trans groups were heavily featured.

8/ The group took part in the Puberty Blocker consultation

Just a month after the TBIJ investigation, Bayswater was invited to take part in a consultation on an indefinite ban on puberty blockers for trans kids by the Department for Health and Social Care.

www.wearequeeraf.com/puberty-bloc...

7/ Examples of the abuse Bayswater Parents do

They spoke about sending their children to non-affirming therapists, cutting them off from supportive friends and teachers, removing their internet access and destroying their gender-affirming medications, clothing and pride flags.

Revealed: Streeting met with and expressed sympathy for pro-conversion therapy parents group Bayswater QueerAF has uncovered video footage of the Health Secretary Wes Streeting saying he’d met with Bayswater parents and expressed his sympathy for the “traumatic experiences” families with trans children...

I Wrote about Wes Streeting's relationship with Bayswater Support Group, a conversion therapy advocacy group, for @wearequeeraf.com with @vrocca.bsky.social

www.wearequeeraf.com/revealed-str...