We can deliver autism and ADHD assessments for people aged 13+. There is no upper age limit.

You can view our prices and payment options here.

A limited number of bursaries are available each year, subject to charitable funding. Each application is assessed on individual merit and against the following criteria:

– Household income
– In receipt of Government assistance (e.g. Universal Credit, Personal Independence Payments)
– Caring Responsibility

To find out more please contact us

No, you are welcome to self-refer for yourself or a loved one. We will need access to your medical history which you can request from your GP prior to your assessment. We will discuss this with you during initial contact.

The main differences are around the cost and timescale. There is a cost to private assessments whereas NHS assessments are free. A benefit to choosing a private assessment is that we are often able to meet clients and complete our assessments within a much shorter timeframe compared to the NHS. Private assessments also come with more flexibility with appointment times and the process may feel more personalised and tailored to individual’s needs.

Our post assessment support may also differ from the NHS as you will have the option of a follow up appointment with additional signposting and support offered. Our private assessments offer a personalised approach where our team will support you throughout the process and help you access any support you need after the assessment. 

Both assessments are different, however there are some overlapping traits. Both assessments will aim to understand a person’s neurodevelopmental needs but the tools and processes are different.

Autism assessments will focus on key areas of the autism diagnostic criteria which are social communication, interaction and restricted and repetitive interests and behaviours.

ADHD will focus on key areas of hyperactivity, impulsivity and how the person is affected by inattention, difficulty staying focused and executive dysfunction, and how these impact functioning across different settings including home, work and school.

The diagnostic tools we use for each condition will differ, however you may wish to be assessed for both as many people who have autism also have ADHD and vice versa (known as comorbidity). Our team can support you in which diagnostic pathway you would like to take.

We aim to complete your assessment within 13 weeks of you contacting us. The assessment process has several stages. You can find out more here.

To help us perform the assessment, we will need to see any relevant records about you. These include GP records (including any pre-existing diagnosis of co-occurrent conditions such as dyslexia and dyspraxia), school or college reports, speech, language and occupational therapy reports. It will be useful to gain knowledge of your developmental history such as when you started walking, talking, how you interacted as a child and anything else that may support the assessment process. If you are employed, it would be useful to see any appraisal reports related to your work. If you have any specific questions, it may be useful to write these down prior to the assessment so you feel fully informed and comfortable.

We offer flexibility, enabling you to choose from various locations, including our sites in Mansfield, Nottingham, Sutton, Worksop, Newark and Kirkby. If you’d prefer, we may be able to conduct the assessment in your home. ADHD assessments can also be done remotely via video calls.

The assessment journey can be an emotional time and your diagnosis can help you get the clarity you have perhaps been needing for a very long time. Receiving a diagnosis is a positive outcome, enabling you to understand yourself or your loved one and to access any support that you may find useful.

Everyone will feel differently about the outcome of their assessment. We believe that every outcome is positive, ensuring you have the clarity you need to help understand yourself or your loved one better and to access the right support.
If your assessment confirms you or your loved on are not autistic or do not have ADHD, you may still feel you need additional support. Our specialist team can help direct you to organisations who can offer you this support.

As the assessment process is tailored to each individual, we are unable to offer a discount for multiple people. 

The assessment processes can be confusing and upsetting if it’s not the outcome you were expecting. It is important to identify the reasons for querying your diagnosis.

Reasons may include:

• it’s not what you expected
• you feel let down by the process
• you do not understand the diagnosis
• you’re finding it difficult to accept the diagnosis

It can be difficult to take in everything that professionals say when they give you a diagnosis. You can ask for a follow-up appointment with us to ask more questions. Use the time between appointments to prepare by writing your questions and gathering any paperwork. If you choose to book a post diagnosis appointment, we can go through your report in detail and breakdown the assessment process and discuss how our conclusions were drawn. This can help you understand whether there were any factors you may not have been aware of.

If you are still unsure, you may want to ask for a second opinion with a different provider or seek advice from an independent advocate. Sometimes, conditions like ADHD, anxiety, or sensory processing disorder can overlap with autism or cause similar behaviours. If you disagree with the autism diagnosis but feel there is something else, it might be worth exploring whether another condition (or a combination of conditions) could be responsible for your symptoms.

Some individuals choose to self-identify with autism based on their lived experiences, especially if formal assessments don’t align with their understanding of themselves. While self-diagnosis isn’t a formal medical diagnosis, it can still be an important part of self-awareness and self-advocacy.

You will receive a formal written report which states whether you meet the criteria for diagnosis. The report will explain why the conclusion was made. The report will summarise the assessments or tests conducted during the evaluation which could include interviews, questionnaires and observations. The report will often reference the specific criteria from diagnostic manuals (like the DSM-5 or ICD-11) and explain how your behaviour and history align with certain criteria. Our report will also include a discussion of your strengths, challenges and specific areas where you may struggle or excel.

Recommendations for support options will also be in the report. This may include signposting and any support recommendations regarding reasonable adjustments for home, education or employment which could support you to improve your day to day functioning (e.g. communication aids or sensory breaks).

The report may include detailed observations made during the assessment process, such as how you responded to certain activities or questions. This helps clarify why certain behaviours were important in reaching the conclusion.

If a diagnosis of autism/ADHD has not been deemed appropriate, there may be further recommendations for referrals such as CAMHS (children) or other mental health support.

You may book a follow up appointment to go through your report in more depth.

This will depend on many factors including your age, where you live, the outcome of your assessment and what sort of support you need. Our team is experienced in signposting to local support including mental health services, specific support groups and social care. We can also recommend strategies to put in place for yourself/child or loved one and recommend reasonable adjustments for education/employment depending on your needs. This will be unique and person centred for each client and our assessors can discuss this with you in more depth after the assessment. We will also follow up with you after a period of time to check if any further support is needed.

Please contact us as soon as possible if you would like to cancel an appointment. Cancellations with less than 48 hours notice, or non-attended appointments without any prior notice, will be charged at full price.

You can view our terms and conditions here. 

We are proud to deliver an excellent service for all of our clients, but if you feel you would like to make a complaint, please email us at assessments@portland.ac.uk.

You can read our Complaints Procedure here.