Autism Assessment NHS

[SENmum1515]

So my son is 2 1/2 years old and when he turned 2 he was seen by the Health Visitor and she referred him for an autism assessment. It’s been about six months however I’m not sure how long the waitlist will be. I have found a right to choose provider that offers them within 12 to 16 months. Do you think it’s worth going through right to choose or would it mess up or referral through the NHS. Could you please share your experiences with your childs referral process and I’d love all the advice I can get.

I would follow up to make sure a referral has been made if it has been 6 month, you should have received an appointment letter by now. My experience was the doctor referred my child to the community paediatrician for an autism assessment, it was a year wait but she was diagnosed at her first appointment. I know it isn’t always the case them being diagnosed at the first appointment, some children have a few appointments before they get diagnose, but I had a lot of reports that they had read prior to the appointment so they was able to diagnose.

The process varies from area to area. As does how long you wait.

you should have received an appointment letter by now.

Not necessarily. It depends on the area. Not all areas would have sent a letter with an appointment by now.

My son was referred in 2021. We had an initial appointment but no assessment. We have just had a diagnosis privately after waiting 4 years and still no closer to an NHS assessment.

Oh really do you mind telling me what region your in?

We’re in Bristol.

I live in Devon and NHS waiting lists are over 8 years here. I had a really good experience for my son with right to choose. If your GP made the referral, he might be able to move the referral pack over to an right to choose provider. You can look around, there might well be an alternative provider that has shorter waiting times than 12 to 18 months. We only waited 4 months. It's more complicated if you yourself or the school have referred to the NHS. You might have to start from scratch, as right to choose can only be accessed via GP referral. My daughter has been on NHS waiting list now for almost 5 years. It's for ASD, so I'm not too bothered as there is no medication/therapy/anything that comes with a diagnosis for ASD. But my son has ADHD, so we pushed for right to choose to get the meds.