Collaborative assessments centred around the whole child. Our neuroaffirming, multidisciplinary autism diagnostic pathway is about far more than reaching a diagnostic conclusion — it is an opportunity to understand a child or young person more fully.
Your autism assessment journey.
A different kind of autism assessment
We want families to leave with more than a “yes” or “no”. We explore how a child experiences and interacts with the world, how they communicate, what supports their regulation and sense of safety, what they find challenging and where their strengths lie. Communication, sensory processing, emotional wellbeing, anxiety, attachment experiences, trauma, masking, language development and the demands of different environments can all influence how a child presents. Diagnosis may form one part of that understanding. It should never be the whole story.
Who is this child, and what is important to them?
How do they experience their world, communicate and connect with other people?
What are their strengths?
What environments help them feel safe and able to participate?
What might be contributing to their difficulties?
What support would make a meaningful difference to everyday life?
Our multidisciplinary team
Our pathway brings together complementary professional perspectives and specialist knowledge of autism and neurodevelopment. The team considers all of the information gathered before reaching a clinical conclusion, including overlapping differences or experiences influencing communication, regulation, participation and behaviour. The pathway is designed in accordance with NICE guidance for the recognition, referral and diagnosis of autism in children and young people.
We recognise autism as a neurodevelopmental difference, with each autistic person having their own strengths, needs, preferences and experiences. Our role is not to look for what is “wrong” or how successfully a child can appear neurotypical. We seek to understand their authentic experience, including different ways of communicating, interacting, playing and regulating, and the impact of masking. We consider the context behind what we observe rather than interpreting behaviour in isolation. Dignity, autonomy and emotional safety guide the process, with time, space and opportunities to communicate in ways that work for each young person.
The assessment journey
We want families to understand what is happening at every stage. The pathway brings together developmental history, family and educational perspectives, clinical observations and autism-specific assessment. Individual elements are included where appropriate to the child or young person.
1. Free initial consultation
Your journey can begin with a free 30-minute consultation with a member of our team. Discuss your concerns, ask questions and tell us about your child or young person. We explain the pathway and help you consider whether an autism diagnostic assessment may be appropriate. There is no obligation to continue.
2. Screening & information gathering
If you choose to proceed, we gather detailed information through screening questionnaires and contributions from parents, carers, education and other involved professionals. We explore strengths, interests, relationships, communication, sensory experiences, emotional wellbeing and everyday participation — not only difficulties. Screening tools contribute to the wider assessment; they are not used alone to diagnose or exclude autism.
3. Developmental history & parent/carer interview
A clinician spends time with you exploring your child’s development and experiences from their early years to the present. This may include communication, play, relationships, sensory experiences, routines, interests, emotional regulation, education, health, independence and family experiences. This builds a picture across their lifetime rather than relying on a single appointment.
4. School or educational information
Where appropriate and with consent, we gather information from school, nursery, college or another educational setting. Children can present very differently across environments. Understanding life at home, in education and in the community helps us identify patterns and differences between settings.
5. School / educational observation
Where clinically indicated, the pathway can include an observation in the child’s educational environment. This offers insight into communication, interaction, sensory processing, regulation, participation and environmental demands within a familiar, everyday context. Observations are interpreted alongside all other assessment information, never in isolation.
6. Autism-specific assessment — ADOS
The pathway may include the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), completed by appropriately trained clinicians. This provides a structured opportunity to observe communication, interaction and behaviour relevant to an autism assessment. An ADOS score alone does not determine whether a child is autistic: it is one source of information within a broader multidisciplinary assessment. Clinicians consider how anxiety, masking, communication differences, selective mutism, sensory needs and unfamiliar environments may influence presentation.
7. Multidisciplinary clinical review
The team brings together developmental history, family perspectives, the young person’s own perspective wherever possible, educational information, observations, autism-specific assessment, communication profile, sensory and functional information, and relevant health or developmental information. Rather than relying on one test or clinician’s opinion, the team considers the evidence collectively against recognised diagnostic criteria, alongside other possible or co-occurring needs.
8. Feedback & understanding the outcome
Families are offered an appointment to discuss the outcome, understand the clinical reasoning and ask questions, whether or not an autism diagnosis is reached. Where a child is identified as autistic, this conversation aims to be affirming, respectful and meaningful. A diagnosis should not change who a child is. It can provide a framework for understanding who they have always been.
9. Your child’s individual profile & recommendations
Our work does not stop at diagnosis. Assessment helps identify the child’s individual strengths and needs and what may support them going forward. Recommendations are meaningful and specific to the individual, rather than a generic list of “autism strategies”, helping the young person, parents, carers and professionals understand what can support everyday participation.
More than a diagnosis
Our aim is for every family to leave with a richer understanding of their child or young person — their strengths, differences, communication, sensory and emotional experiences, and the support that may help them participate and thrive. For the young person, assessment should support understanding themselves without feeling that they need to become somebody else. That is why our approach is collaborative, multidisciplinary and centred around the whole child.
Thinking about an autism assessment?
Arrange a free initial consultation to talk through your concerns, learn more about the Willow & Connect pathway and decide what feels right for your family. There is no obligation to proceed.
