Child Autism & ADHD Assessment

Our child assessments are fully NICE guideline compliant diagnostics that tells you if your child has ASD or ADHD. They are typically made up of the following steps:

1. Pre-assessment pack
2. Two clinical interview appointments
3. Observational assessment in clinic (ADOS-2)
4. QbTest
5. Multi-disciplinary team diagnostic meeting
6. Feedback and the written report

This enables us to gather as much information as possible about the child’s development, and the concerns that have led to an assessment being booked. A second pack is sent to the child’s school as this allows us to gain perspective from both sets of people who spend the most time with the child: parents and teachers.

We require that this information is received by the office prior to the clinical interview appointment taking place.

We meet with you on two separate occasions to gather information relevant to ASD and ADHD. The appointments may take place with different clinicians and they cover aspects of the ADI-R and ACE, the clinical interviews used on our ASD and ADHD pathways.

We meet with your child in clinic to complete the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-2. This is an independent observation of your child’s social communication and skills. Depending on the age and verbal ability of your child, they will be asked to complete a mix of play-based tasks and be asked questions.

Older children and teenagers might find some of the activities childish; however, this is a standardised assessment that must be administered according to manual instructions. Parents and carers will not be asked into the room with the child and the clinician unless the child has very limited verbal skills or is very young.

The QbTest takes place with the child in clinic, under the supervision of a trained test administrator. The test is computer-based so provides objective data on the core ADHD symptoms of activity, attention and impulsivity. Results are compared with those of peers the same age and gender.

The test involves reacting when a certain symbol appears on a computer screen, with a motion tracking system (infrared camera and head-band) worn to provide activity analysis. It takes around 20 minutes to administer but please set aside one hour for the appointment.

Once all the stages of the assessment are complete, the multi-disciplinary team will meet to review all of the information they’ve gathered. The information is considered alongside the DSM-V diagnostic criteria and a conclusion reached about whether your child has ASD, ADHD, both or neither.

You will then be offered an online feedback appointment, where your child’s lead clinician will discuss whether a diagnosis has been made and go through the report they have prepared to explain the clinical reasoning for that decision. You’ll be able to ask questions during this appointment. A copy of the report will be sent to you, and (if you request) to your child’s GP, school, and other relevant organisations.

If the clinicians determine their assessment does not support a diagnosis of either ASD or ADHD being made, they will suggest the next steps you could take, or alternative assessments you may wish to undertake next. They will not provide any diagnosis other than ASD or ADHD, and cannot undertake further testing – but they will always be happy to suggest next steps based on their clinical expertise.