
Will a Private Autism Assessment and Diagnosis be Recognised?
One of the many considerations that individuals thinking about a private autism assessment have is whether the assessment and subsequent diagnosis will be recognised by public services, such as the NHS and Local Authority SEND Services.
In order for a private diagnosis to be recognised or accepted by public services, it must be robust and of the same standard of an NHS autism assessment or above.
The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) produces evidence-based recommendations for health and care in England and Wales. The NICE guidelines outline best practice for the diagnostic assessment of autism, the guidelines are followed by the NHS. NICE guidelines for the diagnostic assessment of autism outline that an autism assessment should:
- be coordinated by a case coordinator who is the single point of contact
- be undertaken by a multi-disciplinary team
- gather information about current concerns
- gather details of the child’s or young person’s experiences of home life, education and social care
- include a developmental history
- include an individual assessment of social and communication skills and behaviours through interaction and observation
NICE also recommend that professionals consider using structured assessment tools such as the ADOS-2, ADI-r or RAADS-R.
Public bodies should accept a private assessment which is compliant with NICE guidelines and is supported by a full report outlining the evidence gathered and rationale for the diagnostic assessment.
NHS Services

Individuals are entitled to access private assessment and treatment if that is their preference or wish. Guidance developed by the Department of Health for NHS patients who wish to pay for additional private care Department of Health clearly states that where a patient opts to pay for private care, their entitlement to NHS services remains and may not be withdrawn.
Patients have the right to pay for additional private healthcare while continuing to receive care from the NHS, who state that when opting for private care ‘you should not need to have any of the same tests twice’. A robust autism assessment and thorough report will provide enough information for the NHS to recognise the diagnosis.
Requesting an Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment
(Children and Young People in England)
The duties that education, health and social care have toward children and young people with special educational needs (SEN) and disabled children and young people in England are outlined in the statutory guidance SEND Code of Practice (2015). The Code of Practice outlines the duties, policies and procedures relating to Part 3 of the Children and Families Act 2014 and associated regulations.
The guidance outlines how local authorities should work in partnership with health, social care, parents and young people to ensure that children and young people with SEND are identified and that their needs are met.
It also provides guidance for early years settings, schools, and colleges around the identification of and response to a child’s SEND needs.
If your child’s school think that your child requires special educational provision, they may have mentioned requesting an Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment (EHCNA). This is also something that parents can request. An EHCNA is undertaken so that the local authority can understand whether the child needs special educational provision to be secured via an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). The process for requesting an EHCNA and for deciding whether to issue an Education, Health and Care Plan (and the timelines for this) is also outlined in the SEND Code of Practice (2015).

The guidelines state:
When considering whether an EHC needs assessment is necessary, the local authority should consider whether there is evidence that despite the early years provider, school or post-16 institution having taken relevant and purposeful action to identify, assess and meet the special educational needs of the child or young person, the child or young person has not made expected progress.
To inform their decision the local authority will need to take into account a wide range of evidence, and should pay particular attention to:
- information about the nature, extent and context of the child or young person’s SEN
- evidence of the child or young person’s physical, emotional and social development and health needs, drawing on relevant evidence from clinicians and other health professionals and what has been done to meet these by other agencies
Therefore, your private autism diagnostic report can be submitted as supporting evidence within your request for an Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment.
The Local Authority SEN Team make decisions regarding the statutory assessment process. Parents have a right to appeal decisions made by the Local Authority. When a parent appeals to the first tier tribunal, they will be asked to submit evidence. A private autism assessment can be submitted as evidence and must be considered as part of the appeal.
Requesting an Individual Development Plan
(Children and Young People in Wales)
The Additional Learning Needs Code for Wales 2021 provides statutory guidance on the system in Wales for meeting the ALN of children and young people, relating to the Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018.
Education providers are expected to identify, and respond to, the needs of learners with ALN.
The code places a decision making duty on every maintained school in Wales with regard to school age children, and on the Local Authority for children below school age.
When a school (or Local Authority) identifies, or is made aware, that a child or young person at the school may have ALN it must decide whether that child or young person does actually have Additional Learning Needs. If after considering the evidence the school (or LA) decides the child does have additional learning needs, the school (or LA) must prepare an Individual Development Plan (IDP).

Parents can request that a school (or Local Authority) issue an Individual Development Plan, the school must respond to this request by considering whether the child does have ALN. Your private autism assessment report can be submitted as evidence as part of the request.
A private autism assessment can also be used as evidence if parents disagree with the school’s decision, including as part of an appeal to The Education Tribunal for Wales.
Paying for an Autism Assessment
The number of individuals awaiting an NHS autism assessment continues to grow exponentially, there are currently around 140,000 people on NHS waiting lists.
Sadly, the less typical presentations of autism are still not being picked up by front line professionals, meaning that some autistic children and adults are not even being referred for assessment. As recognition improves, we can only expect longer waiting lists.
As a result of the current pressures, more and more people are investing in private autism assessments for their children or themselves. An autism diagnosis can make a huge difference to both children and adults [see more here] and can aide in being able to access the right support.
If you are considering investing in an autism assessment, get in touch with our friendly team today.
Categorised in: Assessments, Practical Advice