BBC radio show Woman’s Hour is being condemned for its debate on trans children.

Presenter Jenni Murray instigated the talk by referring to recent reports that said puberty blockers were being given to trans children under the age of 11.

She announced it by saying: ‘What should we do with boys who like pink frocks and girls who live in dungarees?’

Speaking to feminism activist Dr Finn Mackay and psychotherapist Michelle Bridgman, they were asked to agree or disagree whether trans children should be given medical treatment.

Mackay said children should be free of rigid gender conformity, and parents should not be told to go to a doctor just because a boy wants to wear pink dresses or play with dolls.

Bridgman said this is not a discussion about gender roles and playing with different toys. She said this was not about children who do not fit into gender norms, this is about young trans boys and girls who can become suicidal.

‘This is about children who have a profound belief,’ she said.

‘What I would like to nail is that these children do get very unhappy. If you speak to parents, you hear it’s definitely not about wearing pink dresses.

‘They just want their children to be happy.’

Charities Trans Media Watch and Mermaids condemned the discussion, calling the show out for spreading misinformation. They said they do not consider it appropriate for people with no medical expertise to be presented as experts in criticising the experiences of people with a recognised medical condition.

‘I am disappointed that Woman’s Hour has yet again positioned trans identities as something that should be up for discussion, instead claiming that free speech is more important than the damage that such academic debates do to real people,’ said Trans Media Watch’s Helen Belcher.

‘This is not about offence. Misinformation like this, which contradicts the medical consensus, causes harm, especially when you consider the majority of trans teenagers report self-harming.’

Susie Green of Mermaids, a charity dedicated to supporting young trans people and their families, said: ‘In the light of the prejudice and discrimination that our children face daily, to have a presenter from the BBC so ill-informed and determined to misrepresent and play to people’s fears was disgraceful.’

She added the inference parents are getting a referral when their son wants to wear girls’ clothes is ‘ludicrous and totally disrespectful of the pain and anxiety that these children and their families suffer from.’

Non-binary musician CN Lester said: ‘I believe it goes against broadcasting standards and journalistic integrity to purposefully orchestrate an argument about a topic the producer is ignorant of.

‘This is the opposite of free and informed discussion – it’s choreographed outrage and opposition at the expense of some of the most vulnerable in society.’

Trans Media Watch has said they have received a message from a producer of Woman’s Hour, noting their criticisms, and ‘may be in touch should we return to this in future’.

In a statement, a BBC spokesman said: ‘Woman’s Hour regularly features discussions about gender, aimed at an adult audience.

‘Thursday’s programme featured the contrasting views of a psychotherapist who works in the field of gender identity and a feminist who believes that the definition of gender and gender norms is too narrow.

‘We will continue to cover gender issues from a range of perspectives in the future.’

A 2014 study by Pace, a mental health charity for LGBTI people, found nearly half of all young trans people in the UK have attempted suicide.