ADHD and autism
assessment providers.
Information from Flixton Road Medical Centre about NHS-funded providers for people considering a Right to Choose referral in Greater Manchester.
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ADHD medication
Who prescribes after a referral
- Flixton Road Medical Centre does not enter into shared care agreements for ADHD medication.
- If medication is prescribed, the specialist provider remains responsible for monitoring and issuing prescriptions.
- This does not prevent an assessment or treatment through Right to Choose.
Read the full explanation
Flixton Road Medical Centre does not enter into shared care agreements for ADHD medication. Please read this before choosing a provider, because it affects what happens after a diagnosis.
ADHD medicines require regular specialist supervision. Most are controlled drugs, and they need ongoing monitoring - heart rate, blood pressure, weight, growth in children, mood and other effects. Shared care means a GP takes over the prescribing once a specialist has settled the dose, with that specialist staying involved in the background.
We are not able to do that here. Right to Choose providers are independent companies, and several have recently stopped taking Greater Manchester patients or withdrawn from services altogether. If that happened after we had taken over your prescribing, you could be left on a medicine that needs specialist supervision with no specialist behind it. We do not think that would be safe for you.
This does not stop you being assessed, and it does not stop you being treated. If you are diagnosed and want to consider medication, there are two routes. We can refer you to the local NHS service and ask them to take over your medication - their team reviews each referral and decides whether to accept it, which is entirely at their discretion, and the wait is currently measured in years. Alternatively you or your family can arrange a private prescription directly with the provider who diagnosed you, which is an ongoing cost rather than a one-off fee.
NHS Greater Manchester has confirmed that where a GP declines shared care, the specialist provider responsible for the diagnosis continues to oversee and prescribe the medication, and that this should not affect access to treatment or the quality of care.
Always check with the provider before you decide
This page was last checked on 2026-08-28. Provider availability in Greater Manchester is changing month to month, and some providers change what they are able to offer without updating their own website. Treat everything here as a starting point, not a guarantee, and confirm the current position with the provider directly before asking for a referral.
You still have a legal right to choose where you are assessed. But NHS Greater Manchester has capped how many assessments each provider can carry out in 2026/27, so waits are long almost everywhere. Almost every provider is still accepting referrals – the harder question is whether they can book you an appointment. You will not lose your place, and your original referral date is always kept.
There are two routes, and you can only be on one waiting list at a time for the same condition. Your local NHS service is Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS FT or Pennine Care NHS FT depending on where you live; waits there are currently very long. Right to Choose lets you ask us to refer you to an approved independent provider instead. Either way the assessment is NHS-funded and free to you. We cannot choose a provider for you – please pick one and let the practice know.
Providers that publish a Greater Manchester position
These providers name Greater Manchester on their own website, so their position here is confirmed.
The Owl Centre
52+ weeks all services
Ages: 7+ · Appointments: online · Offers a combined ADHD and autism assessment (children and young people)
Psychiatry-UK
78+ weeks for adult ADHD and autism in Greater Manchester
Ages: 18+ · Appointments: online
ADHD360
~54 weeks
Ages: 8+ · Appointments: online
ProblemShared
40-50wk autism / 4-8wk ADHD nationally, GM may exceed
Ages: adults 18+; autism 7+ · Appointments: online
Clinical Partners
No booking dates until further ICB funding
Ages: 5+ · Appointments: mixed
RTN Mental Health Solutions
GM referrals placed on waitlist
Ages: adults; autism 8+ · Appointments: online
Psicon
No routine GM activity funded; high-priority cases only with ICB approval; other waits extend beyond March 2027
Ages: all · Appointments: f2f Kent/Hampshire or online
Dr J and Colleagues
2+ years ADHD; adult autism unfunded for GM since 2026-04-01
Ages: 18-65 · Appointments: online or Lincoln
Skylight Psychiatry
Accepting referrals; Greater Manchester assessments temporarily paused while funding and activity levels are reviewed
Ages: 18+ · Appointments: 20+ clinics, hybrid
Providers with no Greater Manchester restriction published
These accept referrals from anywhere in England and do not publish a restriction for Greater Manchester. That is not the same as being confirmed unaffected by the cap. Please ring them and ask before choosing.
The Retreat Clinics
Approx 21 months to triage; autism assessment 4.5 years; ADHD assessment 5 years; ADHD treatment 5 years if assessed elsewhere
Only provider with an in-person clinic inside Greater Manchester
Ages: adults · Appointments: f2f York and MANCHESTER, or online · Offers a combined ADHD and autism assessment (adults)
Oakdale Centre CIC
Eligibility and waiting time depend on local ICB arrangements; no Greater Manchester time published
Ages: autism 2+, ADHD 6+, adults · Appointments: blended; in-person clinics in Harrogate, Halifax and Leeds · Offers a combined ADHD and autism assessment (all ages)
Harrow Health CIC
Contact within 8 weeks of referral
Referral via e-RS
Ages: 18+ · Appointments: f2f and virtual
Optimise Healthcare Group
Not published
Ages: adults · Appointments: online or in-clinic
LaTahzan Centre
Not published
NHS contract with Devon ICB
Ages: adults · Appointments: online
Can one provider assess both ADHD and autism?
A genuinely combined assessment means both conditions are looked at together in one pathway. These providers offer that:
- Oakdale Centre CIC – all ages
- The Retreat Clinics – adults
- The Owl Centre – children and young people
Both conditions, but as two separate referrals and two separate waiting lists with the same provider: Psychiatry-UK, ProblemShared, Clinical Partners, RTN Mental Health Solutions, Psicon, Skylight Psychiatry, Optimise Healthcare Group. This is still often simpler – one set of forms, one point of contact, one report writer – but it is not one appointment.
ADHD and autism count as different conditions, so waiting for one does not stop you being referred for the other.
Not currently available to Greater Manchester adults
- CareADHD (Centre for ADHD Research and Excellence) – Provider email to a patient states referrals not currently being accepted; website not updated
- Atrom Mindcare – Greater Manchester closed for adult ADHD and autism referrals
- Medinet Minds (formerly HealthHarmonie Minds) – Adult ADHD and adult ASD restricted for GM - unable to assess new adult patients
- Healios – Withdrew from adult Right to Choose across England
Starting the children's assessment pathway in Trafford
If you have concerns about ADHD or autism, parents or carers can arrange a conversation with their child's school. The school will usually arrange a discussion with the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator (SENDCO) and, where appropriate, begin a referral to the local NHS service. Support at school can be discussed alongside this process and does not depend on a diagnosis.
In Trafford, GPs are unable to make the initial ADHD or autism assessment referral for children; this is made through the school SENDCO.
Once the school-led referral is under way, our GPs can discuss Right to Choose options with you and explain the next steps. If you are unsure where to begin, please contact the school and ask for an appointment to discuss your concerns and the local referral process.
The pathway for children changed from April 2026 and now works differently from the adult route. Requests are reviewed by senior CAMHS and community health clinicians against agreed clinical criteria, rather than everyone joining a single queue. Not every child will meet the criteria for an NHS assessment; those who do, and who have the greatest need, are seen sooner.
Every child gets an offer of support based on their needs, with or without a diagnosis – each of the ten boroughs is setting up a new Neurodevelopmental Needs-Led service. Assessments themselves continue locally through CAMHS or community health services. If your child is already on a waiting list you do not need to do anything; your provider will contact you.
Right to Choose providers for children
Right to Choose still exists for children and the same funding limits apply. Please read the note above about starting with your child's school first.
The Owl Centre
52+ weeks all services
Ages: 7+ · Appointments: online · Offers a combined ADHD and autism assessment (children and young people)
ADHD360
~54 weeks
Ages: 8+ · Appointments: online
ProblemShared
40-50wk autism / 4-8wk ADHD nationally, GM may exceed
Ages: adults 18+; autism 7+ · Appointments: online
Clinical Partners
No booking dates until further ICB funding
Ages: 5+ · Appointments: mixed
RTN Mental Health Solutions
GM referrals placed on waitlist
Ages: adults; autism 8+ · Appointments: online
Psicon
No routine GM activity funded; high-priority cases only with ICB approval; other waits extend beyond March 2027
Ages: all · Appointments: f2f Kent/Hampshire or online
Oakdale Centre CIC
Eligibility and waiting time depend on local ICB arrangements; no Greater Manchester time published
Ages: autism 2+, ADHD 6+, adults · Appointments: blended; in-person clinics in Harrogate, Halifax and Leeds · Offers a combined ADHD and autism assessment (all ages)
Held Health
20-28 weeks once assessment-ready
NHS contract with Devon ICB
Ages: children and young people · Appointments: autism in person at clinics; titration England-wide
Paloma Health (Your Patient Choice)
First appointments currently quoted as approximately 2-16 weeks after NHS GP referral
Ages: 8-17 · Appointments: remote or hybrid; in-person clinics in Exeter and Norwich
Medinet Minds (formerly HealthHarmonie Minds)
Adult ADHD and adult ASD restricted for GM - unable to assess new adult patients
Ages: all · Appointments: online
Healios
CYP autism up to 6 months
Ages: 7-16 autism only · Appointments: online
This page is maintained by Flixton Road Medical Centre. The provider list comes from NHS Greater Manchester's own record of Right to Choose providers (FOI 2026/1750, 21 May 2026), and each provider was then checked against its own website.
Some providers change what they can offer without updating their website, so if you have found something out of date here, please tell us. Colleagues, patients and families are all welcome to use this form.
Please read before using this form
For service information only. Please do not use this form to request a referral or to send personal, medical or identifying information about yourself or anyone else. For anything about your own care, contact Flixton Road Medical Centre.
Submissions go to a private log that only the practice can see. They are reviewed by a clinician before anything on this page is changed, and we will not usually reply individually.
How to use this page. Read the note on ADHD medication at the top, look through the options for your age group, then check the provider's own website before deciding. When you have chosen, contact the practice and tell us which provider you would like.
If things get worse while you are waiting. Do not wait for the assessment. Contact the practice if your mental health is deteriorating. For urgent mental health support call NHS 111 and choose the mental health option. In an emergency call 999. If your need has become urgent, contact your assessment provider directly – they are the ones who can review a request to be prioritised.
This page is general information about local services. It is not personal medical advice, and listing a provider is not a recommendation of it. For anything about your own care, please contact Flixton Road Medical Centre.