Who will conduct my child's assessment?

All clinicians conducting assessments for Spectrum Autism Diagnostic Services are registered with the Health & Care Professionals Council or equivalent professional registry body. They will also have a minimum of two years post-qualification experience of administering the ADI-R or ADOS-2 assessments. Our clinicians go through our rigorous compliance procedure to ensure that their qualifications meet our requirements and that they are Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checked and Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) registered.

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Does my child need a GP referral?

A GP does not need to refer your child or young person directly to our service. However, the majority of children who use our service are currently on, or waiting to be referred to, their local NHS waiting list for an autism assessment.

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Will the assessment be recognised by our Local Authority?

There is no basis in law for an Autism Diagnostic Assessment to be declined by a Local Authority simply because it is obtained privately.  What is important is that the assessment is carried out within the guidelines set out by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE).​

All Autism Diagnostic Assessments completed by Spectrum Autism Diagnostic Services will either meet or exceed the criteria set out in NICE Guidance.

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Do you diagnose PDA?

As Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) is not a recognised diagnosis in the Diagnostic Statistical Manual – Fifth Edition (DSM-V) and therefore it cannot be formally diagnosed. Current understanding is that PDA is a distinct behavioural profile within autism, characteristic of extreme anxiety presenting as avoidance of everyday demands and expectations, to an extreme extent.

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Whilst it is not possible to diagnose PDA in its own right, if our assessment identifies demand avoidance as part of your child or young person's behaviour profile, we will describe this in our report as an autism diagnosis with a demand avoidant profile. We will also signpost to more information and resources for those supporting children and young people with a demand avoidant presentation.

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How quickly can we start the assessment process?
As soon as you have completed and returned our screening information form, this will be passed to our clinical team for review. We aim to review all screening forms within 7 days and give you an outcome as to whether we are able to proceed with your child or young person's assessment. At the present time, we are able to provide prompt clinical appointments, however please bare in mind that information also needs to be sourced from your child/young person's educational setting, therefore holiday periods need to be taken into account.

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At what age range can your child or young person be assessed and diagnosed with autism?

We provide autism assessments for children and young people aged between 5 and 25. However, in some situations we may be able to offer autism assessments for children as young as 3.

 

What are the diagnostic criteria that Spectrum use?  
We use The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 5th Edition (DSM-5) which is an internationally agreed set of diagnostic criteria to help clinicians to identify different conditions. For autism, the DSM-5 is organised into five categories of diagnostic criteria (labelled A to E). Criteria A broadly speaks to social, communication, and relationship differences, while criteria B speaks to routine, structure, repetition, special interests, and sensory issues. The other criteria are used to help differentiate autism from other conditions. 

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What if my child or young person is adept at social masking? Will you still be able to identify if they have autism? 
Yes! Our pathway is incredibly thorough which means that we take information about a child or young person’s presentation from a range of sources. Our clinicians are also sensitive to the differences that may be observed in those who are skilled at social masking, particularly seen in girls and young women. We allow our clinicians to use their clinical judgement and experience in coming to an outcome.  

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Are only girls/young women able to social mask?

At Spectrum  we specialise in identifying Autism in both females and males who may social mask or engage in camouflaging behaviours to fit in in social situations. We are aware that the ability to mask or camouflage is often considered a female trait of autism, yet whilst it is more common in autistic females it is not gender specific and males may also social mask.  Our clinicians have the expertise and flexibility to consider a range of evidence are able to spot the subtle differences which indicate Autism, even in those children and young people who social mask.

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Do you include the ADOS-2 and/or ADI-R standardised scores in the final report? 
Although we do score the ADOS-2 and ADI-R in a standardised way, this is solely to inform the clinical decision-making process and we do not include these scores in our reports. Instead we prefer to provide qualitative information and examples of the differences that were observed or reported to support our findings. Whilst we use the scores as a guide, we understand that there are limitations to standardised scoring and that we encourage our clinicians to use their expert judgement and to draw on information from all sources of evidence to inform the outcome.  

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How do you include my child or young person’s views and perspectives?  
Including and listening to a child or young person’s views is fundamental to our autism diagnostic pathway. As part of the ADOS-2 assessment, your child or young person’s clinician will spend time obtaining their views, hopes and aspirations as this is an essential part of understanding your child or young person’s profile. Where a child has reduced language or finds it tricky to communicate, we will endeavour to capture this information via observation and also from speaking with the adults who know a child or young person well at home and school.  

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How do I talk to my child or young person about being on the autism spectrum?  
For young people who are able and willing to be part of the outcome call and feedback meeting, we highly recommend that they participate for a short time to hear the discussion and have the opportunity to ask any questions. The reason we schedule a feedback meeting for after you have received the final diagnostic report is that we recognise that many people will need time to process all the information they have received and may have questions or comments to ask our clinician which arise after the initial outcome call. We recommend that where possible, you discuss the report and outcome with your young person and encourage them to consider any questions or concerns they may have which can be addressed to the clinician in the feedback meeting.  

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For younger children, we recommend that you share some of the resources detailed in our reports which many other parents have found helpful in discussing autism with their children. You know your children better than anyone else and we strongly recommend that you use your own judgement in terms of how much information they might be able to process. Sometimes, a child or young person may be reluctant to engage with talking about autism and this is understandable. Usually, simply providing access to some resources and letting them know that you are available to talk about this whenever they wish and then leaving it be is the best option.

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What does Neurodivergent mean?

Neurodivergent is an umbrella term for different ways of thinking or experiencing the world that differ from what is considered ‘typical’ in society (also referred to as neurotypical). It encompasses conditions such as autism, dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyscalculia, Tourette’s syndrome, and others. The idea behind this term is that everyone's brain works differently, so there isn't one way of thinking or experiencing things that applies to everyone. This concept has become increasingly important as people start to realise that those who are neurodiverse don't need to be ‘fixed’ or ‘cured’ - they just need support and understanding. Neurodiversity can be seen as a strength rather than a limitation since those with these conditions often have unique perspectives and ideas which can be extremely valuable.

 

What is Neuro-affirmative language and why does Spectrum choose to use this?

‘The way we talk about our children is how they will talk about themselves. I choose to surround my family with voices that raise us up.’ – Emma Ward, Neurodivergent Advocate.

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Many neurodivergent advocates including autistic adults have shared how the language that is used to describe autism is often deficit-based and negative. At Spectrum, we have listened to this feedback and we have chosen to adapt the language we use in our reports. When we speak with or about a child or young person, we ensure that we are respectful and neuro-affirmative in our communication. For example, instead of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) which is specified in the DSM-V diagnostic criteria as the given diagnosis, we prefer to describe a child or young person as being on the autism spectrum because autism is a different way of processing and should not be considered a disease or disorder. Similarly, rather than speak about ‘deficits’, we prefer to describe a child or young person’s ‘differences’. As our understanding of autism grows and we receive more feedback from the autistic community, we will continue to adapt and evolve our use of language.

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Do you assess for any other neurodiverse conditions such as Attention Deficit Hyper-Activity Disorder (ADHD)?  

At present, we only provide a diagnostic assessment for autism. However, if during the autism diagnostic pathway our clinicians observe any other symptoms which may indicate another condition, these observations will be detailed in your child or young person’s report. Where appropriate, we will also try to sign post you to other services or helpful information to guide you related to this.