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to Choose providers are independent companies, and several have recently stopped taking Greater Manchester patients or withdrawn from services altogether.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.
Some provider sources could not be confirmed
This provider review was updated on 26 October 2026, but we could not verify every configured source, so this is not a full register check. Provider availability can change without notice. Check each provider’s source date and current position below, and confirm directly with the provider before requesting 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
Please note: If the GP declines shared care, The Owl Centre says it can issue ADHD prescriptions and carry out annual reviews for adults and children.
Ages: children 6-17; adults 18+ · Appointments: online and in person, according to clinical needs and local NHS requirements · Offers a combined ADHD and autism assessment (children and young people)
Psychiatry-UK
Adult ADHD and autism in Greater Manchester: over 52 weeks; no reliable maximum wait or booking date available under the 2026/27 funding cap.
Ages: 18+ · Appointments: online
ADHD360
Estimated 82 weeks for Greater Manchester ADHD; timing depends on completed onboarding and ICB restrictions. Current acceptance of new GM referrals is not explicitly confirmed.
Ages: 8+ · Appointments: online
ProblemShared
National estimates where no ICB funding limit applies: autism 10-12 weeks; adult ADHD 4-8 weeks; ADHD medication 25-40 weeks on a separate waiting list. GM funding limits may extend waits; no booking date is guaranteed.
Ages: adults 18+; autism 7+; child ADHD 7-17 coming soon · 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: child autism face to face; other assessments face to face or online if clinically suitable; child clinics in Canterbury or Basingstoke, adult clinic in Canterbury
Dr J and Colleagues
2+ years ADHD; adult autism unfunded for GM since 2026-04-01
Please note: If the GP declines shared care, Dr J says patients can request prescriptions directly from the provider and continue annual reviews.
Ages: 18-65 · Appointments: online or Lincoln
Skylight Psychiatry
GM referrals remain open, but assessment funding is fully allocated. Further funding is expected from April 2027; no accurate assessment timeframe can be given until funding is confirmed.
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
Please note: If the GP declines shared care, Oakdale can continue prescribing and monitoring directly; NHS-funded or self-funded care depends on how treatment was initiated.
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
Please note: If the GP declines shared care, Harrow Health says it will continue monthly ADHD prescriptions and provide annual reviews.
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
Please note: If the GP declines shared care, The Owl Centre says it can issue ADHD prescriptions and carry out annual reviews for adults and children.
Ages: children 6-17; adults 18+ · Appointments: online and in person, according to clinical needs and local NHS requirements · Offers a combined ADHD and autism assessment (children and young people)
ADHD360
Estimated 82 weeks for Greater Manchester ADHD; timing depends on completed onboarding and ICB restrictions. Current acceptance of new GM referrals is not explicitly confirmed.
Ages: 8+ · Appointments: online
ProblemShared
National estimates where no ICB funding limit applies: autism 10-12 weeks; adult ADHD 4-8 weeks; ADHD medication 25-40 weeks on a separate waiting list. GM funding limits may extend waits; no booking date is guaranteed.
Ages: adults 18+; autism 7+; child ADHD 7-17 coming soon · 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: child autism face to face; other assessments face to face or online if clinically suitable; child clinics in Canterbury or Basingstoke, adult clinic in Canterbury
Oakdale Centre CIC
Eligibility and waiting time depend on local ICB arrangements; no Greater Manchester time published
Please note: If the GP declines shared care, Oakdale can continue prescribing and monitoring directly; NHS-funded or self-funded care depends on how treatment was initiated.
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 or remotely if suitable; ADHD assessments remote; medication titration available England-wide
Paloma Health (Your Patient Choice)
The GM waiting-time table states that delivery of assessments is paused by funding limits until 1 April 2027. Confirm new-referral acceptance and the applicable pathway directly; this is not a guaranteed appointment date.
Please note: Paloma states it provides ADHD titration, ongoing monitoring and prescribing under NHS Right to Choose without requiring GP shared care.
Ages: ADHD 8-17; autism remote 8-17, Exeter hybrid 2-17 (ages 2-4 require community paediatrician recommendation), Norwich hybrid 6-17 · 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: 8-16 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.