Neurodevelopment Assessment Pathway Service – Warrington

General introduction

We are a team of health care professionals, including doctors, nurses and therapy staff, who work together to support families with a child who has a suspected neurodevelopmental condition or disability.

This service provides assessment and diagnosis for possible neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism and ADHD.

Although we can identify strengths and needs and provide medication support for children diagnosed with ADHD, the main focus of the service is assessment and diagnosis.

Ongoing support is provided by other services such as the specialist nurses team, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and physiotherapy.

We work together to assess and support children and young people with a wide range of needs such as:

delay in development – skills taking longer than usual to develop
physical, vision and hearing impairment
learning difficulties or likelihood of additional needs in school
social interaction and communication issues – autism spectrum disorder
attention and hyperactivity difficulties (over 6 years old)
sensory differences – sensitivity to smell, taste, sights, sounds, touch and movement
difficulties with coordinating movements
difficulties completing everyday activities such as dressing and using the toilet

How to access this service

The pathway has been designed to make sure that children get the support they need at the right time.

The pathway includes:

referrals can be made directly to the Child Development Centre using the Warrington Neurodevelopment Assessment Pathway Service referral form. Referrals should be emailed to us using the email address in the 'Contact us' section. Important: although we welcome supporting information for assessments, please do not send any photographs or videos
a graduated approach - where needs are identified at the earliest opportunity, so that families have quicker access to support
early intervention - where only appropriate referrals move on to the assessment and diagnostic phase, and other requests for support are directed to early help services
a multi‑disciplinary approach - we look at the child and family as a whole, helping us provide access to support both before and after our assessment process

Criteria for referral

Our team provides a service to children up to the age of 16 years and 11 months, and to families who live in Warrington and have a Warrington GP or school.

If you live outside Warrington, there may be a similar service available in your area.

We will accept referrals from:

schools, nurseries and other educational settings
allied health professionals - including health visitors, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists and mental health services (CAMHS)

The most helpful way to make a referral is for the professional and parents to complete the form together.

If a child or young person is not attending a school or nursery, a referral will be accepted from the relevant health professional working with the child.

We no longer accept referrals from GPs.

When we receive the referral form, we review the information to decide whether there is enough evidence of a possible neurodevelopmental condition to continue with an assessment. If we need more information, we will return the form to the referrer with a request for further details.

It is important that referrals to the neurodevelopmental pathway are complete and contain relevant, up‑to‑date information.

Useful information

Neurodevelopmental Pathway (NDP): Frequently Asked Questions

This document aims to answer questions regarding the neurodevelopmental pathway (NDP) for the assessment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism in Halton, Warrington and Cheshire West.

Read our Neurodevelopmental Pathway (NDP) FAQs.

Assessments

Our assessments page explains what happens during a neurodevelopmental assessment, who is involved and what you can expect at each stage of the process.

I think my child or young person might have autism or ADHD, what should I do?

If you are starting to notice signs that your child or young person may have autism or ADHD, there are several steps you can take.

Parents and carers should first seek information about the differences that people with autism or ADHD may present with. You can do this by using trusted NHS information:

Other useful resources can be found in the following document:

services to support health and wellbeing in Warrington

You may also wish to contact your local SEND parent/carer forum for advice and support:

www.warrpac.org

After exploring these services, you may want to speak with the 0–19 Service, your child’s nursery worker or your child or young person’s Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) at school for further guidance and discussion.

This is known as a graduated approach, and local support services should be explored and accessed before any referrals to the NDP are submitted.

If, after exploring these resources, you or the professional feels that your child or young person needs to be referred for an assessment, it is recommended that you complete the referral together.

Input from people who know your child or young person in different settings is crucial to ensure a comprehensive and informative referral is made.

Useful websites

Special educational needs and disability (SEND) | warrington.gov.uk
A wide range of support to children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and their families.

Warrington Parents and Carers
Support and information for parents of disabled children and those with additional needs within Warrington.
Telephone: 07587349338 / 07587349339. Email: warrpac@gmail.com.

ADDvanced solutions
Addvanced Solutions support children, young people and their families living with neurodevelopmental conditions, learning difficulties and related mental health needs.
Telephone: 01925 32086

Assessments