

The Sunday Mail	Sunday November 7, 1999

The only strange thing about **** is her surname

Sex swap woman hits back at critic’s prejudice

By Marion Scott

The Children’s Panel member at the centre of a sex change storm has broken her silence about the smear campaign that threatened to destroy her.

**** ******* has faced calls to quit her post simply because she was born a man.

Yesterday, she spoke out for the first time to reveal the hurt she had suffered.

**** said: “The only strange thing in my life is the appalling behaviour of prejudiced and ill-informed people. “My private life has been held up to ridicule, I’ve been harassed and my family has been hurt and embarrassed.

“But I’ve done nothing wrong. I’ve got nothing to hide. And I don’t intend to give up my work. It’s far too important for me.”

**** ******* is a respected Aberdeenshire Children’s Panel member, responsible for helping children whose lives are beset with problems.

But those who want to hound her out of that job are only interested in the fact that she is a transsexual.

She said: “Being a transsexual doesn’t change how I do my job. When youngsters and parents meet with Children’s Panel members they are more concerned with their own problems to wonder about my sexuality or whether I look a bit odd.”

In fact, **** does not look odd. It’s been said, in another life, **** was once a “very handsome man”.

Today, she’s a very handsome woman. Standing 6ft tall, her hair in a conservative bun, **** favours smart suits, understated jewellery, and a smattering of make-up.

There’s no trace of heavy male features, tell-tale six o’clock shadow, clumsy gait or deep voice.

Gossip

**** ******* is poised, elegant and striking. Unless some evil gossip monger pointed the finger, no one would ever know the truth.

Unfortunately for ****, that’s what has happened.

Her privacy has been invaded with scant attention to the damaging effects such sensational revelations may have on her three children.

It’s sad to think that in the final year of the 20^th century, individuals like **** ******* should be held up to ridicule.

There’s little mileage in praising the fact she works ceaselessly to help others, or that she lives quietly in a small village, diligently going about her business, not bothering anybody. Or that she has made no attempt to conceal her past to her employers, her neighbours, Aberdeenshire Council and even the Scottish Executive.

The only positive thing that’s emerged is that ****’s supporters are out of their chairs and fighting her corner.

Most angry is Alan Burns, Chairman of Aberdeenshire Children’s Panel.

He said: “**** has been subjected to a horrendous ordeal. There were suggestions that other Panel members were uncomfortable with her situation and that parents were concerned. Neither of these is true. We’ve had no complaint from any other Panel member or anyone else.

“**** has kept us fully informed of her personal situation. We’ve discussed the matter with her, with other relevant officials and with the Scottish Executive.

“There was never any suggestion from any person that **** should not continue as a Children’s Panel member.

“She is valued by all of us. She is a very able member of our team. We would all be saddened and disappointed if she felt she could not continue because of this unwarranted intrusion into her life.

“Every Panel member brings their own particular strengths. Because of her own circumstances, **** may well bring a deeper understanding and insight into some of the problems faced by children and their families.”

When first selected as a Children’s Panel member in 1993, **** was living as a man.

After open discussion with officials, there was no objection to her continuing when she became a woman.

To safeguard her and the children she and her two team members has in their caseload, **** was simply steered away from continuing any cases she’d started as a man.

Children

**** was brought up as Warwick Bryden *******. He met the woman who’d be his wife and the mother to their three children when he was in his 20s.

By the time Warwick reached his 40s, he was compelled to take a life-changing decision that few of us can even contemplate.

It was not an easy decision. Warwick was a father. He lived in a village more at home with knitted tea cosies than e-mail. He held a managerial position in a local firm.

But Warwick felt he could no longer ignore one overwhelming fact. He was a woman trapped inside a man’s body.

**** said: “The hardest part was telling someone what I’d been hiding for all those years. This wasn’t something I arrived at overnight. It’s been a part of my life since I was four.

“If there was a some magic pill that could have made everything better, I’d have taken it.

But I’d reached a stage in my life where I could no longer manage my problems or continue to hide them.”

Fear, bewilderment and anger have driven a rift through ****’s family and she has become estranged from the children she cherishes.

**** said: “I can cope with the decisions I’ve made for my life. But I’m very worried about my children.

“I don’t want them to be made a spectacle. Perhaps one day they will decide to speak to me about it. But that will have to be their decision.

Comfort

“My one big concern is that I do not hurt them.”

The biggest comfort in ****’s life right now is the work she’s doing with the Children’s Panel.

She said: “I do great a great kick out of seeing youngsters and parents with problems going through the system and reaching the stage where they no longer need the support of the Children’s Panel.

“It’s fulfilling seeing these young people blossoming, going on to reach their full potential and enjoying life.”