Brighton student sets up fundraiser to pay for transgender surgery

A University of Brighton student has set up a Go Fund Me page to fund his transitioning surgery privately after waiting for over 36 months to get it through the NHS.

Matthew Trenner set up the page up four days ago and has already reached over £1300 of the £7000 target.

The page itself has been received warmly, with students especially, as it has over 150 page shares and hundreds of comments sending their wishes to him.

On the fundraising page, he mentions how he has been transitioning since 2016 and feels the only solution now after the 36 month NHS wait is to privately fund the surgery.

Matthew is aiming to raise the £7000 so he can afford top surgery. He writes: "Having top surgery would open up a new life for me. I'd stop binding, meaning my back can have a break after years of restricting my movement.

"I'd be able to be topless in the heat, and even try to learn to swim. I'd be able to start looking at myself in the mirror without feeling repulsed. I would just be able to breathe."

Many students are empathising with Matthew on his messages of living on a budget, as many students do.

His GoFundMe page says: "As a student, money is not something I can just throw around – if you follow me on social media you'll probably be aware that I am selling everything I can just to scrape by."

Matthew says "I'm just so thankful that people are invested in helping me start the best part of my life, it means more than anyone can imagine."

"People have been so generous and its so overwhelming. I never thought I would have the courage to ask for help for such a personal thing but it just speaks volumes when you receive this much kindness from other humans!"

The link to Matthew's fundraising page can be found here.