33 Bedford Row Chambers’ Dr S Chelvan has been appointed Legal Advisor to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU2) Coalition on Conversion Therapy in the UK. Dr Igi Moon, Chair of the MoU2 Coalition, said following Dr Chelvan's appointment:
“I am extremely pleased to announce that Dr S Chelvan of 33 Bedford Row Chambers was unanimously elected as Legal Advisor to the MoU2. Dr Chelvan will be part of a growing Coalition representing a broad range of distinguished organisations including NHS England, NHS Confederation, NHS Scotland, The Royal College of Psychiatrists, The British Psychological Society, The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, The United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy as they work with Government in protecting LGBT+ people by banning conversion therapy across the UK. The MoU2 are looking forward to Dr S Chelvan bringing his legal and academic knowledge and expertise to the Coalition and we are excited at the potential to bring about change that will improve the lives of LGBT+ people.”
The MoU2 adopts the following definition for conversion therapy:
'[A]n umbrella term for a therapeutic approach, or any model or individual viewpoint that demonstrates an assumption that any sexual orientation or gender identity is inherently preferable to any other, and which attempts to bring about a change of sexual orientation or gender identity, or seeks to suppress an individual’s expression of sexual orientation or gender identity on that basis.'
To access the background MoU2 documents via the BACP website, please click here