Getting an assessment for autism if you are a young person

Your GP (or other health / social care professional) will refer you to one of the two Child Development Services (CDS) serving the borough. A team of different professionals at the CDS will then meet with you and work through a series of assessments to establish whether there is evidence of autism. Sometimes, if you have existing mental health difficulties (e.g. depression or anxiety), you may instead be referred to the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS). This is a slighlty different pathway but will still involve a team of professionals working with you to decide whether there is evidence of autism. For more information, please visit the Assessment and Diagnosis page for children.

Your GP (or other health / social care professional) will refer you to the CLCH Adult Autism Assessment and Intervention Service. 

The Service offers an assessment and diagnosis service to adults who may have an Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD). In addition, the service also offers time-limited psychological interventions to adults with a diagnosis of ASD. The service is exclusively for adults who do not have a learning disability.

The process typically involves the following steps:

1. Referral. Any health or social care professional can refer to the service.
   
   
2. Screening. Referrals to the service will be screened to establish whether there are indications of an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). 
   
   
• If difficulties are indicative of ASD and these impinge on the person’s life, their referral is accepted. The person is placed on waiting list
  
  
• If difficulties are not evident but some suggestion of ASD, the person would be invited in for in-person screening
  
  
• If the difficulties are not indicative of ASD, the referral will not be accepted
  
  
3. Assessment. You will be invited to have an assessment with the team of autism specialists. This will involve: 
   
   
• Gathering information about your developmental and background history. This will be done through standardised measures and a clinical interview. 
  
  
• Observation to assess your behaviour and communication with structured assessment tools. 
  
  
• Consideration of whether alternative diagnoses may be more helpful (e.g. social anxiety or ADHD)
  
  
• Sometimes, a cognitive assessment, so that the team can better understand your learning skills.  
  
  
4. Assessment completion. Autism specialists in the team will discuss the results of your assessment and compare it against strict diagnostic criteria. The team will let you know whether they believe that a diagnosis of ASD would be helpful in explaining your difficulties. You will receive a draft report of the team's findings, including a description of your needs and what post-diagnostic support may be needed. 

For more information on the process, please download the "Adult Autism Assessment and Intervention Pathway" leaflet.  

Waiting for a diagnostic appointment can be an anxious time. The Centre for ADHD and Autism Support has produced an advice booklet for adults that answers some frequently asked questions and provides information on what you can expect whilst you wait.

If your GP is based in another borough

Please note that the service you are referred into depends on where your GP is located - not where you live. If your GP is based outside of the borough, they will refer you into equivalent services in their own boroughs.

Please check the Local Offer for the borough where your GP is located for more information on their own autism assessment pathways. 

If you have a learning disability

You will be referred to the Community Learning Disability Team who specialise in autism assessments in young people and adults with a diagnosed learning disability. 

Approaches to Autism