Important Information Regarding ADHD and Autism Referrals
Important information regarding ADHD and Autism referrals
If you are concerned that you, or a child you care for, may have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), there are several ways to arrange a referral depending on your needs and the services that are available locally.
Please see the links at the bottom of the page for the information relevant to your specific needs.
In response to the increasingly varied quality of providers undertaking Right to Choose Autism and ADHD assessments, Hereford and Worcestershire Integrated Care Board – ICB (the organisation that plans and oversees health services in the area) has developed local specifications for adult ADHD diagnostic assessments and under 18 Autism and ADHD diagnostic assessments. The locally accredited providers listed here are all NICE compliant, compliant with the local specifications, quality assured and accredited by the ICB. Please note that Right to Choose cannot be used as a means of obtaining a second opinion on a diagnostic decision.
Right To Choose (RTC)
If you need a referral for a physical or mental health condition, in most cases you have the legal right to choose which hospital or service you go to. The service may also be a private organisation (provider), but it must have a contract with the NHS to supply services to it within England. There are now many private clinics offering RTC ADHD and ASD assessments. However, the nature and extent of the service that each provider offers is variable and often not clear to either the patient or the GP completing the referral. Below are some important points to explore if you are considering a RTC referral;
- What level of qualification will the clinician you see have?
- Does the organisation have robust policies and procedures in place?
- If medication is needed can the service start medication and monitor it regularly?
- Will you regularly need to travel long distances to be seen or have tests done?
- Is there a separate waiting list to commence treatment once you have been seen for diagnosis?
- Is the organisation well established and likely to be viable for the many years over which your treatment may continue?
Shared Care Agreements (SCA)
A SCA is a contract between a specialist and a patient’s GP that transfers responsibility for the day to day prescribing of a medication to the GP whilst the specialist retains overall responsibility for the patient’s care and their treatment plan. The GP must feel sufficiently familiar with the medication to prescribe it safely but is not expected to have a specialist level of knowledge about it or the condition it is prescribed for. These agreements rely on both services fulfilling their obligations under the contract and clear lines of communication between both parties. Ultimately, the GP carries the professional responsibility for any prescriptions issued in their name, even if under the guidance of a specialist.
GPs are not obliged to accept SCAs if they do not feel sufficiently experienced, or if workload pressures mean that to do so would impact upon their core services. If the GP cannot accept, then the responsibility for prescribing rests back with the specialist who has recommended the medication.
Due to the huge variation in the services available, the nature of the medications involved, the lack of any robust SCA policies, difficulties in getting hold of the relevant specialists when issues arise and the significant workload that the administration of these arrangements has involved, Pershore Medical Practice has taken the difficult decision that we can no longer enter into SCAs for ADHD medication with providers other than the local NHS services and the RTC providers accredited by the ICB.
We do not provide shared care for privately funded care for any condition.
At the time of writing (December 2025) the below providers are currently accredited in Hereford and Worcestershire; We would recommend you choose one of the accredited providers for the condition(s) you are concerned about.
This does NOT affect your right to choose. You can still be referred to any provider with an NHS contract for diagnosis and treatment, but if medication is required it must be prescribed by the specialist rather than via your GP. You will need to check that your chosen RTC provider is willing to do this.
Adult ADHD Accredited Right to Choose Providers for Assessment and Medication Initiation/Titration:
The following providers are accredited with Hereford and Worcestershire ICB;
• Harmonie Health Home – Home – HealthHarmonie Minds
• Helios – Healios – Right To Choose for GPs in Devon |
• Quay Healthcare https://quayhealthcare.org/contact-us/
• The Owl Centre https://www.theowl.org/nhs-right-to-choose/
• Vertis Health
• Xyla https://xylaservices.com/
We will likely enter a shared care agreement with the above providers if medications are required.
We will not enter a shared care agreement with any other providers other than those listed above at present.
Adult Autism Accredited Right to Choose Providers:
The ICB has a contract with The Family Psychologist for all autism assessments from age 16 and over. Currently the ICB have also accredited the following 2 providers;
• Helios – Healios – Right To Choose for GPs in Devon |
• The Owl Centre https://www.theowl.org/nhs-right-to-choose/
Children ADHD Accredited Right to Choose Providers:
All of the following have been accredited by the ICB to undertake Right to Choose ADHD assessments for under 18s. These need to be face to face -the ICB does not endorse any virtual assessment.
You can request a RtC provider who is only offering virtual assessments. However, in doing so, as this in highly unlikely to be NICE compliant, then Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust, who manage all under 18s medication, are unlikely to accept the validity of the assessment and therefore will not assess for medication. This will result in the child needing to be re-assessed – (i.e a new referral to one of the accredited providers) which will add further delays.
Medications are provided by Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust – the accredited provider will refer to the NHS Trust
These are the accredited providers (in alphabetical order):
• Helios – Healios – Right To Choose for GPs in Devon |
• The Family Psychologist https://thefamilypsychologist.co.uk/content
• The Owl Centre https://www.theowl.org/nhs-right-to-choose/
• Xyla https://xylaservices.com/
Children Autism Accredited Right to Choose Providers:
The ICB specification requires autism assessments also to be undertaken face to face, which the following have signed up to:
• Helios – Healios – Right To Choose for GPs in Devon |
• The Family Psychologist https://thefamilypsychologist.co.uk/content/contact/
• The Owl Centre https://www.theowl.org/nhs-right-to-choose/
The above list is dynamic and may change as per ICB guidance
Information and Support for Patients and Families
Below are some NHS general links to patient information about Autism and ADHD to help patients make a decision about seeking a diagnosis.
• Adults ADHD Information: ADHD in adults – NHS
• Children ADHD Information: ADHD in children and young people – NHS
• Children Autism Information: Signs of autism in children – NHS
• Your legal right to choose: Your choices in the NHS – NHS
An information booklet for parent carers who are waiting for their child to be assessed for Autism or ADHD is available at the link below. This booklet brings together the different information, advice and support offered across Herefordshire and Worcestershire.
The ICB has a contract with Autism West Midlands to provide support to autistic adults age 16+ years for information contact:
Herefordshire and Worcestershire Community Services | Autism West Midlands
Referrals forms and further information
You will need an up-to-date:
- Height
- Weight
- Blood pressure
Please use the health hub in the practice if you require this information to complete your form.
You MUST complete the information in fill or your referral will be delayed.
Once complete please send the form(s) to the admin staff at: hwicb.pmpadmin@nhs.net, or alternatively deliver back to reception marking for the attention of the Administration Team.