Autism Assessments for Children
The journey to an autism diagnosis can often be complex and overwhelming, requiring a systematic approach and collaboration between various professionals. In this guide, we aim to provide you with a step-by-step overview of the diagnosis pathway to help you navigate the process with confidence and clarity.
Initial consultation
The first step to accessing an autism assessment for your child is for you and your child to attend a 90 minute Initial Consultation together. To book please click here.
In the Initial Consultation you will meet with a clinician where they will talk through your concerns, discuss areas of need and the impact a diagnosis may have. Sometimes labels can be very useful to put support in place at school, work or home. Sometimes they are a burden, and can weigh heavily unless the right advice and support is available.
The appointment will start with both you and your child in the room together. If you are concerned about speaking openly in front of your child, we suggest bringing some headphones with a device so your child can watch or listen to something whilst you talk. Alternatively, if two parents / carers attend, one of you can take your child out to our waiting area for part of the appointment. If your child is 14 or over, and feels comfortable being alone, they may do this without adult supervision.
This appointment is useful if you are not sure if your child would meet the threshold for an autism diagnosis, or just to understand more about the process. Following this appointment, the clinician will suggest whether going ahead with a full autism assessment is warranted and a detailed written report will be sent out to you highlighting our recommendations and an ongoing plan.
If you are seeking support for someone under 18, please book the appointment under the name of the child. We require your child to attend the appointment with you.
At this stage, preliminary questionnaires will be sent out to parents to fill in as well as teachers from school.
What to Expect from a full assessment:
If you decide to proceed with a full assessment, the next step is booking the ADOS-2 and ADIR appointments.
ADOS-2 — The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (2nd Edition) is the gold-standard diagnostic tool. Your child will attend our Ridgway Mews therapy centre to complete a series of activities with one of our trained experts (no preparation needed). The session lasts up to 90 minutes — younger children may want to bring a snack — and will be video recorded for review by our multidisciplinary team.
ADIR — A developmental history interview focused on early childhood (ages 4–5), completed by parents online.
Once both appointments are complete, our multidisciplinary team will review all information and determine whether the threshold for an Autistic Spectrum Condition diagnosis has been met. You'll first be informed of the outcome via a courtesy call, followed by an extended one-hour feedback session with our lead clinical psychologist to discuss the report and recommendations.
The feedback session is designed to be a safe, welcoming space for questions. We'll suggest areas that may benefit from ongoing support and aim to help every autistic person thrive in an inclusive environment.
Diagnosis Pathway
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1. ADi-R with a clinician (up to 3 hours)
ADi-R with a clinician (up to 3 hours)
This is a developmental history interview which will focus on your child’s early childhood between the ages of 4-5, as well as current behaviour depending on their age. We will need one or both parents for this. This is an online appointment.
Please be advised that all information disclosed during this appointment may be documented in the clinical report, as this information is essential for the diagnostic process.
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2. ADOS
The ADOS is a semi-structured activity based assessment administered by a trained clinician (up to 1.5 hours). Your child will be observed in our clinic, they do not need to bring anything or prepare for it. This will be recorded on a video camera so the multidisciplinary team can review it as part of their decision making process.
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3. School phone call
One of our clinicians will liaise with your child's school to collect information about their learning and behaviour. This will usually take 20 minutes of their time.
We may need to arrange a school observation, this is at the discretion of the team. This will cost £300.
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4. Multi-Disciplinary Team Discussion
Following the completion of the assessment, the multi-disciplinary team will meet to carefully consider all the information available and make a decision about whether your child does or does not meet the criteria for Autistic Spectrum Condition . We will let you know the outcome of this meeting via a courtesy call.
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5. Clinical report
Your clinical report will be sent to you approximately four weeks after your final assessment appointment. You will also receive a Young Person’s report that you may wish to share with your child and where appropriate, a letter confirming a diagnosis. You will be offered feedback appointment times when the report is sent through.
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6. Feedback session
You will receive a feedback session with the lead Clinical Psychologist to discuss the outcome of your report and their recommendations going forward. This appointment is held online.