The neurodevelopmental team is made up of professionals who specialise in different areas. Your child will be assessed by a multidisciplinary team, which could include Neurodevelopmental Nurses, Occupational Therapists, Community Paediatricians, Clinical Psychologists, Educational Psychologists or Speech & Language Therapists depending on their needs and age.
A neurodevelopmental assessment aims to observe your child across different settings, providing activities to see how they behave, engage in tasks and communicate with people. Your child may be observed at school, at home in a virtual appointment, or at a Neurodevelopmental Service clinic. This may differ for assessments with private (independent) providers.
As their parent or carer, you will also have the opportunity to speak to clinicians about your child's early life and the differences you have noticed as they develop. The appointments will be child friendly and the team will work as flexibly as possible around you and your family.
This page will explain in more detail what you can expect from a neurodevelopmental appointment.
It can be useful to ask for reasonable adjustments to help your child feel comfortable on the day of the assessment if they are needed.
You can do this by contacting the service directly to discuss any needs your child has, or to send them a copy of a health passport or one-page profile that would give them information on how your child likes to be communicated with.
You might want to discuss:
Requesting reasonable adjustments before your appointment will allow the neurodevelopmental team to adjust the activities or environment to help your family feel more comfortable during the assessment.
The Neurodevelopmental Service covers Norfolk & Waveney with separate clinics covering different areas.
Norfolk
Norfolk Community Health & Care cover Norwich, North Norfolk and West Norfolk.
If you live in the Norwich area your appointment will likely be booked for:
The Children’s centre
Norwich Community Hospital
Bowthorpe Road
Norwich
NR2 3TU
If you live closer to King's Lynn, your appointment will likely be booked for:
St. James Clinic
Extons Road
King’s Lynn
Norfolk
PE30 5NU
Waveney
James Paget Hospital covers Great Yarmouth and Waveney.
If you live in this area your appointment will likely be booked for:
Newberry Child Development Centre
Newberry Clinic
Lowestoft Road
Gorleston
NR31 6SQ
Neurodevelopmental services use a number of different clinics in Norfolk and Waveney, not just the venues mentioned above.
Find more detailed information about Norfolk Community Health & Care clinics here
Your child's assessment will likely involve several appointments before a diagnosis can be reached to gather a range of observations and information. Some of these appointments may be via the telephone, virtually or through observations in school. Others may require you to attend a neurodevelopmental clinic locally.
When you arrive at the clinic on the day of your appointment, one of the team will collect you from reception and show you to the room.
Who can Come?
Younger children should be accompanied by an adult, up to a maximum of two parents, family members, guardians or adults who know your child well. Only your child being assessed should attend as unfortunately, there won't be enough room to accommodate additional siblings in the clinics.
What Should I Bring?
Some assessments can take up to 1.5 -2 hours to complete, and understandably, children can get thirsty or hungry. So, it would be helpful to bring a snack and a drink with you as these cannot be provided.
The Assessment
The clinicians will introduce themselves and allow a few minutes for everyone to get settled. The neurodevelopment service specialists understand that children and their parents and carers can feel anxious, so every effort will be made to make the environment comfortable for all. Staff won't be wearing uniforms and their interactions with your child will be as fun and friendly as possible.
Depending on their age and the nature of the assessment, a clinician will complete games, puzzles and stories with your child along with talking to them and observing them.
After the Assessment
Every child will be discussed at a multi-professional panel meeting throughout their assessment and when a final conclusion is made, you will be offered a feedback appointment with a paediatrician or a member of the NDS team.
All observations are made in line with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – Fifth Edition (DSM-5) and diagnostic discussions are based on these criteria.
The decision is a team decision and is not made by one professional alone.
Different assessments may be used to determine whether your child has neurodevelopmental differences. Your child may only need one or two of these assessments to establish an outcome, while others may require several across different appointments.
An autism assessment is a semi-structured assessment focusing on communication, interaction, play and restricted and repetitive behaviours. It's designed to seek an understanding of a broad range of information about your child and to help them conclude whether your child is autistic or not.
Please note: No single assessment is diagnostic and will be reviewed jointly with all other neurodevelopmental assessments before a final diagnostic decision is reached.
Depending on their age your child will play games and complete puzzles and stories with a clinician from the team. No physical tests, reading or writing are involved, just playing (for younger children) with talking and observations for older children.
Information is assessed through:
Part of the assessment should identify the type of support that would be appropriate for your child and where this can be accessed after the assessment.
Different assessments can be used to determine whether your child has neurodevelopmental differences. Your child may only need one or two of these assessments to establish an outcome, while others may require several over different appointments.
An ADHD assessment involves completing activities with your child to get to know them and observe their interactions and behaviour. We look at focus, organisation, activity levels and communication. We really value the child's views and listen carefully to their thoughts, feelings and experiences.
A diagnosis of ADHD can be considered in young children but would not usually be confirmed until a child is at least 6 years of age.
Children might complete games, puzzles, and fun movement activities. The session might involve writing and drawing, and may also include answering some questions about day-to-day life. They may complete a QBTest assessment which involves completing a task on a computer wearing a soft headband with a ball attached to help monitor their movement, concentration and impulsivity. This test can take 15-20 minutes depending on your child's age.
Depending on the neurodevelopmental needs your child has, other assessments may be carried out during your appointment. If you'd like more information on what assessments involve, contact the Neurodevelopmental Service for more details.
Part of the assessment should identify the type of support that would be appropriate for your child and where this can be accessed after the assessment.
Different assessments can be used to determine whether your child has neurodevelopmental differences. Your child may only need one or two of these assessments to establish an outcome, while others may require several over different appointments.
Examples of assessments that may be conducted include:
School Observation
A school or nursery observation is a direct observation that happens in your child's educational setting. They are usually carried out discreetly and without your child's knowledge so they can observe them as naturally as possible.
Find the School Observation guide here
Early Developmental History Assessment
This assessment is conducted with your child's parent or carer and allows the team to gather information about your child's early development and life experiences to help identify differences in behaviour.
Find the Early Developmental History assessment guide here
Cognitive Assessment
A cognitive assessment may be required to have a deeper understanding of your child's strengths and differences in various areas. It may also be used to understand if your child may have any specific learning difficulties that can help to explain certain strengths and differences that your child has.
Find the Cognitive Assessment guide here
Occupational Therapy Assessment
An occupational therapy assessment is used to understand a child's ability to engage in their everyday activities. It may include activities to explore gross and fine motor skills, visual perception, responses to sensory input and levels of independence. It's carried out by an Occupational Therapist who works as part of a multidisciplinary team assessing your child.
Find the Occupational Therapy Assessment guide here
Speech & Language Therapy Assessment
A speech and language assessment may be required for further understanding of how your child understands what is said to them, their language skills and the language they use in conversation. It is carried out by a Speech and Language Therapist who works as part of a multidisciplinary team assessing your child.
Find the Speech and Langauge Assessment guide here
Psychology Assessment
A psychology assessment helps the team to understand how your child's life experiences may be impacting them. They will also talk about their previous and current mental health and how these are related to neurodevelopmental conditions.
What Age Can My Child be Assessed for ADHD?
ADHD assessment can be considered in young children, but a diagnosis of ADHD would not usually be confirmed until a child is at least 6 years of age and settled in school.
What if my Child is too Anxious to be Assessed?
All assessments are child-focused and adapted to an individual child's needs. In some cases just seeing a child in their natural environment can give the neurodevelopmental team a lot of information to help add to their assessment.
The diagnostic decisions made by the team are based on many factors, and not on one assessment alone. If your child doesn't engage with one part of the assessment, information can be used from other sources such as questionnaires and nursery/school observations.
Can my Child Access Support Before the Assessment?
Schools, settings and services should support your child's needs regardless of a diagnosis, so you can access support immediately.
Contact your child's key worker or special educational needs coordinator (SENCO) to discuss support in their education setting, and check the Norfolk SEND Local Offer, Suffolk SEND Local Offer, or Family Action for family support.
Find useful resources from the neurodevelopmental service here
Let us know what you think!
We've been working together in Norfolk and Waveney with families and professionals to put together information, advice and resources that are helpful to families. Let us know what you think, and anything we could change or add to make it even better.
If you live in Norfolk
You can contact the Healthy Child Service team by calling Just One Number on 0300 300 0123 or texting Parentline on 07520 631590. Our opening hours are 8am-6pm Monday-Friday (excluding bank holidays) and 9am-1pm on Saturdays.
If you are 11-19 you can text ChatHealth on 07480 635060 for confidential advice from one of our team.
If you live in Waveney
Norfolk SEND Local Offer provide information and advice on services for young people with additional needs in Norfolk.
Suffolk SEND Local Offer provide information and advice on services for young people with additional needs in Waveney.
Mencap is a national charity who support people with learning disabilities. They offer a free Learning Disability Helpline with advice and guidance. Call 0808 808 1111 to speak to a trained professional.
Kooth offers online counselling, advice and emotional well-being support for anyone aged 10-18, seven days a week until 10pm.
