Getting an adhd diagnosis

[Ivyside]

Please can anyone offer any advice about how I can get an adhd diagnosis that would be recognised by my child’s primary school, do I have to go through my gp? I can afford a private diagnosis but will it be recognised? How long is it likely to take via the nhs? My son is 8.

Also, if he does have some form of adhd as I except he does, would he get any support at school? He is academically fine in terms of he is where he should be but he has real problems in terms of focus, he is very easily distracted and if left unsupervised at school he won’t actually work he’ll just stare out the window. I guess I want to know if a diagnosis would mean he’ll get more support from the school, as at the moment he just gets told off, what he needs is urging along.

Support in schools is based on needs, not diagnosis. The school must make their best endeavours to meet DS’s needs, even without a diagnosis. Have you spoken to the SENCO? Has the school tried things like movement breaks?

NHS waiting times vary area to area, there is usually a wait though. Some private services accept you going direct, some like a GP referral. Schools and LAs can’t refuse to accept an independent assessment just because it is private.

Ok thank you. The school’s acting SENCO did observe him in class as they recognise he has severe concentration problems, she wasn’t of the opinion that it was adhd, but said they’d keep an eye on it. She’s since left the school. I don’t know much about it at all to be honest, I just feel in my gut that my son struggles with certain things more than his peers and he ticks many of the symptoms listed for adhd, I suspect he may just be in the scale of it, and I think it would help him to have a diagnosis in place as it would make the school more inclined to give him a little more support.

When school resumes, request another meeting. Whether DS’s difficulties are because of ADHD or something else, the school should provide support.

Yes I will do, I’ve been too laid back in my approach to it unfortunately, I realise that now.