Child Combined Autism & ADHD Assessment
Welcome to Lycali. This guide explains your child's combined autism and ADHD assessment journey, from registration and questionnaires through to educational information, clinical appointments, multidisciplinary review and recommendations.
Important: Before Your Child's Assessment
All required registration, consent, developmental history, screening and educational-setting forms must be completed before any assessment session can take place.
Please review your welcome letter, terms and conditions and invoice carefully. If mandatory documentation is outstanding, the assessment appointments may need to be rearranged.
At a Glance
Follow the stages below to understand your child's combined assessment pathway.
Initial Enquiry & Registration
Once you contact Lycali, our team will review your enquiry and explain the combined autism and ADHD assessment pathway for your child.
If you decide to proceed, you will be asked to complete our registration process so that your child can be securely registered within our clinical management system.
- Child and parent/carer contact details.
- GP information.
- Relevant developmental and medical background.
- School, nursery or college details.
- Communication and accessibility requirements.
- Consent preferences and parental responsibility information.
Please check that the information is accurate and let us know if your child requires any reasonable adjustments or additional support.
Your Welcome Letter & Documents
Following registration, Lycali will issue a welcome letter explaining the next steps in your child's assessment.
Your welcome information will include three important documents.
Terms & Conditions
Information about the assessment service, bookings, payments, cancellations, non-attendance and responsibilities.
Invoice
Confirmation of the agreed assessment fee, payment arrangements and any additional charges, if they apply.
Consent to Treatment
The relevant consent form for your child's assessment, to be completed by the appropriate person where required.
Please read all documentation and complete the required forms, including the Consent to Treatment form, before your child's first assessment appointment.
Please follow the payment instructions outlined in your invoice.
All mandatory forms must be completed before any assessment session is carried out.
Payment & Assessment Booking
Your invoice will confirm the agreed cost of your child's combined autism and ADHD assessment and the payment arrangements.
Once payment has been received and the required documentation completed, Lycali can progress the assessment booking.
Our administration team will coordinate the clinical appointments and confirm the dates, times, locations or formats and any preparation needed.
Combined assessments involve more than one clinical component and may involve different clinicians and assessment methods.
All requested questionnaires and consent documentation must be completed before the relevant sessions take place.
Pre-Assessment Questionnaires Through WriteUpp
Before your child's assessment, parents/carers will be asked to complete questionnaires exploring their developmental history, communication, attention, strengths and support needs.
All required questionnaires will be issued through WriteUpp, Lycali's clinical management system.
The relevant questionnaire links will be provided separately. Please complete them as soon as they are issued.
Child Developmental History Questionnaire
This explores your child's early development, communication, social interaction, attention, behaviour, sensory experiences, education, health, family background and daily functioning.
It also helps us gather educational-setting details and information about previous support.
Child Combined Autism & ADHD Questionnaire
This explores social communication, friendships, routines, interests, sensory processing, attention, concentration, organisation, impulsivity, hyperactivity, emotional regulation and everyday experiences.
Please set aside sufficient uninterrupted time to complete each questionnaire carefully in one sitting.
Questionnaires cannot be saved part-way through and cannot be resubmitted once submitted.
Please review your answers before selecting Submit.
Allow Enough Time
Have relevant developmental history and background information available before starting.
Cannot Save Progress
Partially completed questionnaires cannot be saved and resumed later.
One Submission Only
Once submitted, the questionnaire cannot be resubmitted using the same form link.
If you would like a copy of the submitted questionnaire responses, please contact Lycali.
We can share a copy, subject to appropriate identity and information-sharing checks.
If you realise an answer needs correcting after submission, please contact our team.
All required WriteUpp questionnaires, registration documents and consent forms must be completed before any assessment session can take place.
Educational Setting Information
As part of your child's combined assessment, we will usually seek information from their school, nursery, college or other educational setting.
This helps the clinical team understand communication, social interaction, attention, activity levels, executive functioning and support needs across different environments.
A teacher, SENCo, key worker, pastoral lead, teaching assistant or another professional who knows your child well.
The Educational Setting Questionnaire will be issued through WriteUpp.
Lycali will arrange for the relevant questionnaire to be issued to the educational professional where appropriate.
Providing Educational Setting Details
Please make sure Lycali has the correct contact information for your child's current educational setting.
If there is likely to be a delay in completing the developmental history questionnaire, please email the details below to info@lycali.co.uk as soon as possible.
Please allow enough uninterrupted time to complete the WriteUpp questionnaire. It cannot be saved part-way through or resubmitted once submitted.
All required educational-setting information must be received before the relevant assessment session can proceed.
Additional Screening Questionnaires
Additional screening questionnaires may be required to support the autism and ADHD components of the assessment.
- AQ-50 Parent Questionnaire.
- SNAP-IV 26 Parent or Teacher Questionnaire.
- Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).
Any required additional screening questionnaires will be issued separately through WriteUpp.
If your child has already completed relevant Lycali autism, ADHD or neurodevelopmental pre-screening, the clinician may not need to request the same questionnaires again.
Please check your inbox, junk and spam folders for questionnaires issued through WriteUpp.
If the expected questionnaires have not arrived within five working days of booking, please contact Lycali.
Some questionnaires may also be issued directly to your child's educational setting where appropriate.
Parent/Carer ADI-R Developmental Interview
The autism assessment component includes a detailed developmental history interview, such as the ADI-R or an equivalent clinical assessment approach.
The interview explores your child's early development, communication, social interaction, play, interests, routines, sensory differences, behaviour and everyday functioning.
A parent or caregiver who knows your child's early developmental history well should attend.
Both parents/carers may attend together where appropriate.
The child does not usually need to attend this appointment unless the clinician advises otherwise.
The administration team will arrange the appointment and confirm who needs to attend.
Your Child's ADOS-2 Assessment
The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Second Edition (ADOS-2), involves structured activities and clinical observations with your child.
These activities explore communication, social interaction, play and behaviours relevant to an autism assessment.
The clinician will select the appropriate module according to your child's age, language and developmental profile.
Understanding the ADOS-2 Modules
Toddler Module
Used for very young children with limited or emerging language.
Who attends? A parent or caregiver is normally present throughout the assessment.
Module 1
Used for children who are pre-verbal, use single words or have limited phrase speech.
Who attends? A parent or caregiver is usually present to support engagement and reassurance.
Module 2
Used for children who use phrase speech but are not yet verbally fluent.
Who attends? Parent/carer involvement is determined by the child's needs and standardised assessment requirements.
Module 3
Used for verbally fluent children and young people.
Who attends? The child usually attends directly with the clinician. Parent/carer attendance will be confirmed in advance.
Module 4
Used for verbally fluent older adolescents and adults.
Who attends? The young person normally attends directly with the clinician.
The clinician will select the appropriate module using the clinical information available and your child's language and developmental presentation.
The ADOS-2 is one part of the wider autism assessment and does not independently determine diagnosis.
You will be advised about attendance and appointment arrangements beforehand.
Young DIVA ADHD Interview
The ADHD component includes the Young DIVA, a structured clinical interview exploring ADHD-related experiences and their impact on everyday life.
The clinician will gather information from developmental history, parent/carer experiences and the child or young person where appropriate.
- Attention and concentration.
- Organisation and planning.
- Impulsivity and decision-making.
- Hyperactivity and restlessness.
- Working memory and task completion.
- Executive functioning.
- Emotional regulation.
- Education and learning experiences.
- Friendships and relationships.
- Family life and everyday routines.
- Strengths and individual support needs.
A parent or caregiver who knows the child's developmental history and current functioning well should attend this appointment.
We encourage the child or young person to attend for part or all of the appointment where developmentally and clinically appropriate.
Both parents/carers may attend together where appropriate.
The clinician will confirm the appropriate attendance arrangements.
Multidisciplinary Review, Report & Feedback
Following completion of the required assessment components, the clinical team will consider the information gathered across both the autism and ADHD pathways.
This includes parent/carer developmental information, educational-setting evidence, screening questionnaires, structured interviews and clinical observations.
- Relevant developmental and family history.
- Parent/carer information.
- Educational-setting information.
- ADI-R or developmental interview findings.
- ADOS-2 observations and assessment findings.
- Young DIVA and ADHD interview findings.
- Clinical formulation and diagnostic conclusions.
- Individual strengths and support needs.
- Sensory, communication and executive functioning needs.
- Home and educational-setting recommendations.
- Further support and next steps.
You will receive a written report and feedback in accordance with the agreed assessment arrangements.
Diagnosis is not guaranteed. The assessment may support an autism diagnosis, an ADHD diagnosis, both diagnoses or neither diagnosis.
Our aim is to provide meaningful recommendations based on your child's strengths, needs and experiences, regardless of the diagnostic outcome.
What Happens After Your Child's Assessment?
Following the assessment, you may wish to explore practical strategies, specialist therapies, educational recommendations or post-diagnostic support.
- Post-diagnostic psychoeducation.
- Lycali's Navigate Pathway.
- Parent/carer guidance and strategies.
- Speech and Language Therapy where appropriate.
- ADHD-informed or neurodivergent-informed coaching.
- Psychological therapies where appropriate.
- Sensory and emotional regulation strategies.
- Executive functioning and organisation support.
- Educational adjustments and school recommendations.
- Further multidisciplinary support.
- Consideration of ADHD medication referral pathways.
Lycali's Navigate Pathway offers structured psychoeducation, needs-led goal setting and practical strategies following a neurodevelopmental diagnosis.
Medication assessment and prescribing are not automatically included in the combined diagnostic assessment.
If medication is being considered, appropriate referral, prescribing and follow-up arrangements will need to be discussed separately.
Assessment Fees & Additional Charges (If They Apply)
The cost of your child's combined autism and ADHD assessment will be confirmed before booking and outlined in your invoice.
Please refer to our published fees page for current assessment prices and payment options.
Some appointments may involve additional travel or external clinic hire costs.
These charges do not apply to every appointment or assessment.
They may be relevant where a clinician needs to travel or where external clinic facilities need to be hired away from Lycali's main Broadstairs base.
If additional charges apply, these will be confirmed before booking and clearly outlined in your invoice.
Cancellation & Non-Attendance Policy
Lycali operates a 24-hour cancellation policy for booked assessment sessions.
Please contact us as early as possible if you or your child are unable to attend.
At Least 24 Hours' Notice
Please provide at least 24 hours' notice if you need to cancel or rearrange a scheduled appointment.
The full late-cancellation charge will not apply where sufficient notice is given.
Less Than 24 Hours' Notice
Appointments cancelled with less than 24 hours' notice are chargeable at the full booked session rate.
This is because clinical time has been reserved for your child's assessment.
Did Not Attend (DNA)
If a scheduled assessment session is missed without cancellation, it will be recorded as a Did Not Attend.
DNA appointments are charged at the full booked session rate.
How to Cancel
Please notify Lycali's administration team as soon as you know that an appointment cannot go ahead.
Email: info@lycali.co.uk
Please refer to your welcome letter and terms and conditions for full cancellation arrangements, including any applicable statutory rights.
Useful Links & Information
Learn more about Lycali's assessments, multidisciplinary clinicians, locations and fees.
Need Support?
If you have questions about registration, questionnaires, educational-setting information, clinical appointments or payment, please contact Lycali.
If you have difficulty accessing questionnaires issued through WriteUpp or would like a copy of submitted responses, our administration team can help.
Email: info@lycali.co.uk
Website: www.lycali.co.uk
All required registration, consent, pre-assessment and educational-setting forms must be completed before the relevant assessment sessions can take place.
All questionnaires will be issued through WriteUpp. Please allow sufficient time to complete them in one sitting, as they cannot be saved or resubmitted.
Please also review your appointment confirmation, invoice, any additional charges (if they apply) and cancellation policy.