Introduction
All of the myths below are things that we hear on a regular basis from parents, schools and the wider community. This page seeks to clarify these myths and offer suggestions for support. It has been co-produced by health and education.
Why people want or don't want assessments
School won’t offer support to my child without an assessment or diagnosis of Autism/ ADHD .
Somerset schools work with families to ensure that all young people are supported based on their individual needs (see Somerset’s Graduated Response Tool). Parents and schools working together is the best way to support a young person to succeed. Most children and young people in Somerset will have their needs met with Universal support through high-quality teaching, including those who are neurodivergent.
There are no benefits to an assessment with CYPNP .
The most common benefit we hear from people who have accessed an assessment with our service, is that they now understand themselves more clearly. They can identify their strengths and needs, and they see how their brain may work differently to others.
This sense of understanding and identity is the biggest benefit of an assessment.
Involving the young person in the assessment process
My young person doesn’t need to know they are having an assessment with CYPNP .
We will explain to all young people we see, why we are seeing them and what the possible outcomes of an assessment might be. We will always explain what Autism and ADHD is to young people.
We would always encourage you to have begun this conversation with your young person before they get to see us. We will support you to carry on this discussion during our assessment process (Autism and ADHD Pathway).
We shouldn’t mention neurodiversity ahead of an assessment. We should avoid talking about terms like Autism and ADHD .
Only appropriately trained medical practitioners can diagnose Autism and ADHD . However, it is helpful for all children to understand their unique brains and learning style. Being open to the fact that we are all different and have different brains, normalises support being offered. Young people see that everyone has different support needs.
It is ok to share that some differences in our brains can be understood using the words Autism or ADHD . It can be helpful to share this with your young person and to find out about it together if they identify with these ideas. It is helpful to remind them that an assessment with CYPNP will help to understand if they have Autism and/or ADHD .
There are no challenges to an assessment with CYPNP .
Having an assessment is a complex process. It means families and young people spending time with us and answering questions, these can seem personal and intrusive.
Some young people find interacting with others very difficult. There are ways we can try and adapt assessments to put young people at ease.
An assessment may not give the answer you were expecting or hoping for, and this can bring up many different feelings.
Completing the next steps form/requesting an assessment
It’s only the school who can complete a Next Steps Form.
This is not true. Any professionals who are working with the child in health, education or social care can complete the form. The person who knows the child best should be completing the form, this will often but not always be schools.
If the form is completed by another service, then collaboration with schools should occur.
Parents should always be involved and the best referrals are often completed together. We welcome all young people completing their part of the form and insist on it for all secondary aged young people.
We submitted a Next Steps Form, and it was rejected. This must be because the school don’t see our young person’s differences, or they didn’t fill it in properly.
We consider all information on the next steps form very carefully. It is common for the evidence to be different between what is seen at home and at school. The information is all considered equally, including that from the young person directly.
When we are unable to offer an assessment, this is often because we believe that there is some helpful work which can be done with a young person first. This may provide the support needed at this time.
You can always phone our phone advice line to discuss why a referral was not accepted at this time.
Once a Next Steps Form is rejected, then we can’t refer our child again.
If we were unable to accept your young person, you are welcome to submit another Next Steps form in the future. This is most likely to be successful if there is significant new evidence, either of things that have been put in place to support your Young Person or of things which have dramatically changed.
Submitting the same form without a change in information or circumstances will result in the same outcome.
My child or young person has a private diagnosis, do they still need to make a next steps referral to ratify the private diagnosis?
No, they do not need to complete a Next Steps referral form in this instance. The Local Offer page includes information around ratification of private diagnoses, which can be found here: Position statement on private Autism and ADHD Assessments. Please refer to the information on this page and share with parents where applicable.
What a diagnosis will give
Having a diagnosis of Autism or ADHD will allow us to access new areas of support.
Almost all support available for young people and their families in Somerset is available without a diagnosis.
Parents and carers of young people either with a diagnosis or accepted onto the pathway for an assessment can access free ADHD training via the Educational Psychology Service. Link LDA are also able to support young people with a diagnosis or who have been accepted onto the CYPNP assessment pathway, where there are significant risks associated with Learning disability/Autism.
The only unique support after diagnosis is a parent education workshop around understanding of ADHD delivered via the CYPNP . Young people with ADHD are also followed up annually, more frequently if they are on medication.
Having a diagnosis will stop my young person from being disciplined or excluded from school.
Excluding a young person from school is always a last resort. Schools will work with families and young people to prevent this happening wherever possible. Support for any possible neurodivergence can be provided in school without a diagnosis. Our Somerset schools are all working in neuro-inclusive ways and are regularly supported by training from CYPNP , EPS and external services. For instance, many schools continue to participate in SCERTS training, which is based on a relational approach to supporting children and young people through the SCERTS model (The SCERTS model).
Further support whilst young people are on our waiting lists is available through the phone advice line.
A diagnosis will mean that my young person can access specialist educational provision such as a special school.
A diagnosis does not typically influence which school a young person should attend. We are unable to make comments on suitable schools as part of our assessment work.
A diagnosis will mean my child can get an EHCP .
Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) are always based on a young person’s needs and not diagnosis. Many people who receive a diagnosis of Autism or ADHD will be very well supported and understood under their school’s universal and SEND provision and will not need an EHCP (see Somerset’s Graduated Response Tool).
A small number of young people will need an EHCP . Often when there are complex needs across multiple areas of education, health and social care.
If you and your school feel your child needs an EHCP , this shouldn’t be delayed whilst awaiting an assessment with CYPNP .
A diagnosis means my young person can claim benefits like Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payment.
Young people who need significantly more support with everyday living tasks may be entitled to certain benefits. Details can be found through the Department for Work and Pensions website. None of these benefits need a diagnosis in order to apply.
No diagnosis (except in a small number of cases with a terminal illness) automatically qualify for financial assistance. Each case is reviewed looking at the amount of support your young person needs. If you think your young person needs support, you do not need to wait for your assessment before applying.
A diagnosis will change the situation and challenges we face.
We know how incredibly difficult it can be to support a young person who has additional needs. We know that lots of people can pin many hopes on things feeling a lot easier and better after an assessment.
Whilst we hope that an assessment will help you, your young person and the people around them, to understand their differences and reframe some of the thinking behind their behaviours, it is very unlikely that a diagnosis will change all the challenges you face.
My child has a diagnosis and now they need a full time ‘one to one’ in school.
Support in school is unique for every child. Even children with very significant needs are very rarely best supported by one adult with them at all times.
The best approach to supporting you child or young person involves understanding and sharing their needs, creating a supportive environment and collaborating with key school staff. This will build confidence and help develop feelings of safety, independence, and belonging.
It is best to speak to your child’s school teacher and/or SENCO about the support that is already in place, and what next steps might look like.
The CYPNP will not be able to suggest one to one support for your child as part of our assessment, this is because we believe it is very rarely in a child’s best interests.
A diagnosis of Autism or ADHD means my child should be on the SEN register at school.
Receiving a diagnosis of Autism or ADHD does not necessarily mean that your child should be placed upon the SEN register.
Every school is required to identify and address the Special Educational Needs (SEN) of the pupils that they support. Where it is considered that a child is not making expected progress despite trying a range of Universal strategies (see Somerset Graduated Response Tool), they may require additional support.
These children are added to the schools SEN register and identified as requiring SEN support. This is a dynamic list that children can be added to or removed from at any time, depending on how appropriate it is for their needs.
Other myths
My child will definitely receive a diagnosis of Autism and/or ADHD if they have an assessment.
For some young people this is the outcome of their assessment. Autism and ADHD are discovered as helpful ways to understand a young person.
For some others, their assessment won’t lead to a formal diagnosis. In these cases, we will seek to support you to understand your young person’s unique story and experiences. Their differences may be the result of other things such as difficult life experiences, learning difficulties or other areas of their health or development being delayed.
We will always carefully consider all information from the young person, their parents and their school as well as take a full medical and developmental history as part of our assessment.
Having a diagnosis of Autism or ADHD will allow my young person to access medication.
There is no medication which treats Autism or ADHD as it is not something that needs treating or curing.
In some cases, medication may be used to support a young person with ADHD . Usually this is only considered after other strategies have been trialled. Many young people may never use medication or just use it for short periods of time within their life. Others will find medication a helpful tool. The decision is very individual and will need to be considered carefully.
I have heard of a treatment that claims it cures Autism and ADHD !
Autism and ADHD are neurodevelopmental differences. They are not diseases or deficits and do not ever need to be cured.
There is no “treatment” that would change your young person’s way of being in the world. These that claim to do this are unsafe and unresearched.
If you are struggling to manage your young person’s differences and need support please reach out via our phone advice line.
I believe my child masks their difficulties in school, does this mean they can’t have an assessment?
Many young people present differently in different environments and we all mask to some extent. Autistic and ADHD masking is complex and needs carefully considering. We will always consider assessments for young people who present differently across environments.
Often the most helpful information about masking comes directly from the young person who can explain what it is like for them. Ensuring the next steps form is completed with the young person’s views and experiences at the centre, make it most likely that we can see evidence of masking that would indicate an assessment is helpful.
Further details of masking can be found on the Local Offer Website (Autism and ADHD SENCO Discussion Group).
The CYPNP can inform parents and schools about where their children are on the waiting list.
Due to capacity, we unfortunately are not able to support this for either parents or schools. Putting resources into this would slow down the appointment booking, letters going out and reports being produced. The CYPNP would not want to use clinical time for this as the knock-on effect would be the waiting time would increase further.
All families are notified when a young person is accepted onto our waiting list and will be contacted when we are able to offer appointments. It is really important schools keep their own records around this.
ADHD should always be treated with medication and my child with ADHD can’t attend school without this.
Medication is one of many approaches to supporting children and young people with ADHD . Other approaches are also effective and are usually tried first. These include psychoeducation and individualised support.
For some people, medication is very helpful and for others, it makes very little difference. The choice to take medication is down to individuals and their families, in consultation with their clinical team. Medication has risks as well as benefits.
Many children and young people may only need to take their medication some of the time. Some will not take it in the holidays or at weekends, where there is less need to pay attention and concentrate for long periods. These medication breaks can be helpful ways of managing ADHD and the side effects of medication.
Schools cannot insist that a child or young person is medicated before attending school or send them home for attending unmedicated. There is currently an ongoing shortage of medication which can make obtaining regular supplies difficult for families (as of December 2024).
