Children's Commissioner: Waiting times for assessment and support for autism, ADHD and other neurodevelopmental conditions (15 October 2024)

Summary

Research by the Children’s Commissioner shows around 400,000 children in England were still waiting at the end of 2022-23 to receive their first appointment after being referred to Community Health Services and Children’s Mental Health Services. This is equivalent to around 3% of England’s total child population. 

Unlike adults, children with neurodevelopmental conditions are assessed in both Community Health and Mental Health Services – meaning using existing national data, it is impossible to answer how long children are waiting for diagnosis with neurodevelopmental conditions like ADHD and autism in England.  

This report uses the Children’s Commissioner’s legislative powers to draw on unpublished data on neurodevelopmental condition diagnoses from NHS England to provide a novel and more joined up national picture of children’s waiting times across both mental health and Community Health Services. Data is taken from the financial years 2022-23 and 2023-24.