What to expect from a child and young person’s autism assessment (ages 11-18)

No, your assessment will be funded by the NHS if you book through RTC.

To be referred to our Children and Young People’s Autism Service under RTC, you must:

• Be aged 8 to 18 years.*
• Live and be registered with a GP in England (excludes Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland).
• Provide an email address and/or a mobile phone number 
• Be able to provide photo ID
• Agree to the use of an online patient portal 
• Agree to an online video consultation/assessment 

Please note: If you are aged over 17 years 9 months, you will be referred to our Adult Autism Service.

When your referral has been processed:

• You will receive a Welcome email. 
• This email contains a link to set up your MedQare patient portal account.  

Important to know:

• Your assessment will take place via a Teams video call.
• All our communications are online using our patient portal.

The MedQare patient portal is the secure online system you’ll use during your assessment.

You’ll use it to:

• Receive messages from our team.
• Complete forms and questionnaires.
• Upload documents.
• View and manage appointments.
• Receive your assessment report and other correspondence.

Please check your portal regularly once it’s been set up. It’s also a good idea to check your email, including your junk or spam folder, for messages from Psychiatry UK.

Your own experiences and views are an important part of your assessment, but we’ll also need information from a parent or guardian.

They’ll be asked to complete specific forms about your development and things they’ve noticed or experienced while knowing and supporting you.

This helps us understand more about your experiences at different stages of your life.

It’s OK if you and your parent or guardian don’t always see things in exactly the same way. Different people can notice different things, and all of this information helps the clinical team build a fuller picture.

We’ll also need information from your school, college or other education setting.

They’ll be asked to complete specific forms about things they’ve noticed and their experiences of teaching or supporting you.

This helps us understand what things are like for you in different situations.

Again, it’s OK if what your school or college says is different from what you or your parent or guardian say. You might find some things easier in one place than another, or behave differently depending on where you are and who you’re with.

We’ll need to confirm your identity as part of the assessment process.

Make sure you have suitable photographic ID available for your assessment. We’ll let you know what identification is accepted and what else we need from the parent or guardian if they are attending with you.

Please tell us if there’s anything that could make it easier for you to take part in your assessment.

For example, you might need:

• More time to answer questions.
• A question repeated or explained differently.
• Written information or prompts.
• Breaks during an appointment.
• Support with communication or sensory needs.

Everyone is different, so tell us what works for you. You can also tell us during an appointment if you need a break or if something isn’t working for you.

Read our guide: Accessible Communications and Assessments.

Your assessment takes place across three appointments on the same day:

1. Initial Assessment.
2. Structured Observation appointment.
3. Outcome Appointment.

The Initial Assessment and Structured Observation appointment can take place in either order.

Once you’ve completed both, the clinical team will review and discuss all the information gathered during your assessment. You’ll then have your Outcome Appointment, where we’ll explain the assessment outcome and what happens next.

There’s nothing you need to revise or practise before your assessment, and you don’t need to prepare any answers.

The clinicians want to get to know you and understand your own experiences.

You don’t need to:

• Learn lots about autism beforehand.
• Work out what answers you think we’re looking for.
• Practise what you’re going to say.
• Behave in a particular way.

If you don’t understand a question, you can ask us to explain it again or in a different way.

Your assessment will take place securely online using Microsoft Teams.

Before the day:

• Check that your camera and microphone work.
• Make sure your device is charged or plugged in.
• Check your internet connection.
• Have your photographic ID ready.
• Find a quiet, private place where you’re unlikely to be interrupted.
• Have anything nearby that helps you feel comfortable or take part.

You can use our Teams Device Test to check your equipment beforehand.

This appointment is a little different.

You’ll meet a trained assessor who’ll spend some time talking and doing activities with you. This gives them an opportunity to learn more about the way you communicate and interact.

There’s nothing you need to practise or prepare beforehand, and you don’t need to behave in a particular way.

The Structured Observation appointment is only one part of your assessment. What happens during it will be considered alongside all the other information we’ve gathered.

Step 2: Your referral and patient portal

After your Initial Assessment and Structured Observation Appointment, the clinical team will bring together everything they’ve learnt.

They’ll consider:

• What you’ve told us.
• Information from your parent or guardian.
• Your forms and questionnaires.
• Information from your school, college or education setting.
• What the clinicians learnt during your appointments.
• Any other relevant information available to the team.

No single answer, questionnaire or appointment decides whether you’re autistic.

The team looks at all the information together before reaching an assessment outcome.

Once the clinical team has reviewed and discussed your assessment, you’ll meet with your clinician for your Outcome Appointment.

They’ll explain:

• The outcome of your assessment.
• How the clinical team reached its decision.
• What the outcome means for you.
• Any recommendations or next steps.
• What happens after your assessment.

You’ll be able to ask questions or ask your clinician to explain anything you’re unsure about.

We’ll also prepare a written assessment report explaining your outcome and recommendations in more detail.

Tell us.

It’s fine if you need:

• A break.
• More time to answer.
• A question explained differently.
• Another way to communicate with us.

You don’t need to sit still, make eye contact or behave in a particular way for your assessment.

We want to understand what things are like for you, so please tell us if there’s something that would make taking part easier.

If the clinical team finds that your experiences meet the diagnostic criteria for autism, your clinician will explain what this means.

Your report may include recommendations for things such as:

• Practical strategies that could help in everyday life.
• Support or adjustments at school or college.
• Support with other needs or conditions, where relevant.
• Information, resources or services that might be useful to you.

Being diagnosed as autistic might help you understand more about some of your experiences, strengths and the things you find difficult.

If you’re diagnosed as autistic, you’ll also have a Post-Diagnostic Review around six weeks after your assessment. This gives you time to read your report before meeting with us again to talk about your diagnosis, your recommendations and any questions you have.

If the clinical team finds that your experiences don’t meet the diagnostic criteria for autism, your clinician will explain how they reached this decision.

They’ll talk to you about whether there are other things that might help explain some of your experiences and discuss any recommendations or suggested next steps.

These will also be included in your assessment report.

Not receiving an autism diagnosis doesn’t mean that the things you find difficult aren’t important. Your assessment can still help you understand more about your strengths, needs and experiences, and what support might help.

Sometimes there isn’t enough information for the clinical team to reach a clear conclusion.

This might happen if information about your early development is unclear, there are other needs or conditions that could be affecting your experiences, or the information gathered doesn’t allow the team to confidently confirm or rule out autism.

If this happens, your clinician will explain why the outcome is inconclusive and what needs to happen next.

This might include gathering more information, recommending another assessment or suggesting other support.

Your report will also explain the outcome and any suggested next steps.

After your assessment, we’ll prepare a written report explaining the outcome in more detail.

It will bring together information about:

• Your development and experiences.
• Your strengths and areas where you might need support.
• Your forms and questionnaires.
• Information from your parent or guardian.
• Information from your school, college or education setting.
• What the clinical team learnt during your assessment.
• How the team reached the assessment outcome.
• Recommendations or suggested next steps.

Your report will be available through the MedQare patient portal. A copy will also be shared with your GP.

Take some time to read it when you’re ready. You don’t need to understand or act on every recommendation straight away.

Your clinician will explain your assessment outcome, recommendations and any suggested next steps during your Outcome Appointment.

These will also be included in your assessment report.

The assessment can still give you useful information about your strengths, needs and experiences. Your clinical team might also recommend other support or further assessment if they think this could be helpful.

Your clinician will explain why the clinical team couldn’t reach a clear conclusion and what they recommend happens next.

Your report will also explain this.

Depending on your individual circumstances, the next step might be to gather more information, consider another assessment or look at support for particular needs identified during your assessment.

Your assessment report may include recommendations or links to information, organisations or services that could be helpful.

You may also be able to get support from:

• Your parent, guardian or another trusted adult.
• Your GP.
• Your school or college.
• Other healthcare professionals involved in your care.
• Organisations or services recommended in your assessment report.

You can also find information and resources in our Information Hub.