Key Takeaway
NHS assessment bottlenecks have knock-on effects, leading to delays in medical help and lack of access to specialist supportThat NHS boards have imposed minimum two-year waiting times for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism assessments shows a health service struggling to deal with the consequences of huge changes in understanding of and social attitudes to these conditions. Sharp rises in…
Published September 25, 2026 · Category: News
Overview
NHS assessment bottlenecks have knock-on effects, leading to delays in medical help and lack of access to specialist support
That NHS boards have imposed minimum two-year waiting times for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism assessments shows a health service struggling to deal with the consequences of huge changes in understanding of and social attitudes to these conditions.
Details
Sharp rises in referrals for clinical assessments over the past six years mean nearly 1 million people in England are on ADHD waiting lists, with the average wait already over a year (64 weeks). About 295,000 await an autism assessment.
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Source
Originally published at www.theguardian.com.
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What is "Two-year NHS waiting times reveal system’s struggle with rise in ADHD and autism awareness" about?+
NHS assessment bottlenecks have knock-on effects, leading to delays in medical help and lack of access to specialist supportThat NHS boards have imposed minimum two-year waiting times for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism assessments shows a health service struggling to deal with the consequences of huge changes in understanding of and social attitudes to these conditions.Sharp rises in referrals for clinical assessments over the past six years mean nearly 1 million people in E
Who reported this story?+
This story was reported by The Guardian World.