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Trouble getting the right support for 15yr old son!

Wickit

Hi all,

New here so forgive me if I asking in the wrong area.
My wife, myself and the school my son attends all think he has some form of autism. He ticks most of the boxes when it comes to the symptoms, and I am keen to get diagnosed and supported by professionals before he leaps into the adult world and work.

We have conflicted information from his school that asked us to get a referral from the GP for a EHC assessment not a autism one, which we did!

Now we are left a little confused what to do next, also hearing that a assessment via the NHS can take up to two years, we are worried that this is too long.

We have also heard we can get a private assessment and can be a very expensive thing to go through and something we would not be able to afford!

Has anyone been in the same situation, we are finding thinks such a drain as he is one of triplets of which one suffers from depression(Waiting on CAMHS!!!).

Any advise at this time would be very grateful

  • Hi, 

    I got diagnosed at your son's age. 

    I got refused EHCP and we had to apply for one again, which thankfully I have got now. 

    Does that son of yours attend CAMHS?

    I would personally not recommend private assessments just from personal experiences. 

    I totally understand how draining it can be, because I am nearly 17 and I have to deal with a lot of professionals. 

    Would an application to an SEN provision be helpful? 

    Or some sort of SEN professional within the school so that they can help you?

    Let me know, 

    I am very keen to help you as I have had troubles like that too. 

    Many thanks 

  • Hi Wickit,

    If you're looking for more information and advice about getting an ASD diagnosis, you might want to look at our advice page on the subject - https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/topics/diagnosis - which goes through the process of getting referred and assessed, what to expect from you GP and so on. It's true that waiting times for autism assessments can be very long, although this is likely to vary based on NHS resources in your area.

    If you have further questions, you may like to contact our Autism Helpline team. They can provide you with information and advice about getting a diagnosis. You can call them on 0808 800 4104 (Monday to Friday 10am to 3pm.Please note that the Helpline is experiencing a high volume of calls and it may take a couple of attempts before you get through to speak to an adviser.

    Hope this is of some help,
    Ross - mod