Yes – we accept self‑referrals and litigants in person where appropriate. Please note criminal reports must be allowed by the court; we recommend discussing this with your solicitor or case manager. Please use the contact form or email expert.referrals@mcts.org.uk
Yes, where applicable. We also provide clear private fee estimates before instruction.
Absolutely. Our referrals coordinator will match suitably qualified experts and provide CVs, availability, and a quotation within 1 working day.
Most are completed within 6–8 weeks. Expedited timelines available subject to scope.
Yes. We are experienced across defence, prosecution, and single joint expert appointments.
Yes – experts understand their duties to the court and produce CPR‑compliant reports with clear, evidence‑based opinions.
Yes – we accept self‑referrals and litigants in person where appropriate
Please note medico-legal reports must meet court requirements; we recommend discussing this with your solicitor or case manager.
Contact us to confirm suitability and next steps or email expert.referrals@mcts.org.uk
Yes, where applicable. We also provide clear private fee estimates before instruction.
Absolutely. Our referrals coordinator will match suitably qualified experts and provide CVs, availability, and a quotation within 1 working day.
Most are completed within 6–8 weeks. We can consider expedited timelines subject to availability and scope.
Yes. We are experienced across claimant, defendant, and single joint expert appointments.
Yes – experts understand their duties to the court and produce CPR‑compliant reports with clear, evidence‑based opinions.
Email us for a free 20 minute consultation with a clinician.
Yes. Unlike many expert witness services, we accept self-referrals and litigants in person. If you are a parent or individual funding your own expert assessment, we can still help.
Please note that self-funded assessments must still meet the requirements of the family court, and we recommend discussing this with your solicitor. Contact us to discuss suitability and next steps.
Absolutely. Our referrals coordinator will match your case with suitably qualified experts and provide CVs and timelines.
Yes, we work across both private and public law proceedings.
Most assessments are completed within 6–8 weeks, depending on complexity and availability. Shorter timescales are available.
Yes, we regularly accept Legal Aid Agency rates.
Yes – experts understand their duties to the court and produce CPR-compliant reports with clear, evidence-based opinions.
Yes. All experts have relevant experience and training in family court proceedings and expert witness duties.
That’s absolutely fine – and actually very common. We regularly work alongside in‑house clinicians to strengthen or supplement what they offer. We’re not here to replace your clinician – we’re here to enhance what’s already working, fill any gaps and provide an evidence based model of practice that works. If you choose to become an ATIC integrated service, we would provide training, guidance, supervision and development for your clinician/s, in line with ATIC principles.
Yes – absolutely. You don’t need to adopt the full integrated model to access support from us. Many providers begin with smaller, targeted pieces of clinical input, such as reflective practice sessions for staff teams, therapy for a specific young person, consultation around a complex case, behaviour, or placement, leadership consultation for managers needing clinical guidance, or crisis or incident debriefs. These standalone elements can offer immediate stability, insight and improved consistency while you consider whether a fuller clinical package might be helpful in the future.
Your dedicated clinician is present in your service throughout the week, offering a fully integrated approach rather than occasional or ad‑hoc visits. This enables daily routines, team culture and decision‑making to be guided by trauma‑informed thinking. Support typically includes weekly individual therapy for young people, weekly or monthly reflective practice for staff, weekly leadership supervision for managers, ongoing day‑to‑day consultation while embedded in the home/service, regular wellbeing monitoring for staff, 12‑weekly clinical assessments for every young person, amber/red Flag meetings when early warning signs arise, and crisis or incident debriefs as needed. In short: you receive consistent, multi‑layered clinical support every week, woven directly into the daily life of your service.
Yes. As part of our integrated clinical package, every young person in care receives weekly individual therapy, delivered by a highly experienced HCPC‑registered psychologist or UKCP‑registered psychotherapist. Therapy is based on evidence‑based interventions and our tri‑phasic model of treatment, ensuring sessions are safe, structured and clinically robust.
But the support doesn’t stop at the therapy hour. Because the clinician is embedded in the service throughout the week, they also work with staff, carers and managers, ensuring that therapeutic thinking is reflected across the remaining 23 hours of each day.
We work with residential children’s homes, fostering agencies, supported accommodation, outreach services, specialist education settings, and local authorities. Support is tailored to the needs, size and context of each service.
Our work is grounded in trauma theory, attachment research, neurodevelopmental science and psychological practice. The ATIC model brings this evidence together into a consistent, structured way of working that is understood and applied across the whole clinical team.
Yes. We provide consultation and guidance following incidents, during periods of escalation, and when teams need rapid clinical insight. Our aim is to support staff understanding, stabilise situations and guide safe, trauma‑informed responses.
We provide clear feedback, reflective summaries and measurable outcomes aligned to your goals. Services typically see improvements in staff confidence, skills, and knowledge, consistency of practice, placement stability and the quality of everyday care.
You can, but you then rely entirely on their own training, experience and professional judgement. Without clinical expertise in‑house, it can be difficult to guide, supervise or quality‑assure their work. MCTS provides a whole team, a structured model, and built‑in clinical governance, ensuring consistency and safeguarding against single‑person dependency.
All MCTS clinicians are supported and overseen by senior clinicians within our ATIC framework. This ensures their work is consistent, evidence‑based and quality‑assured – you are never dependent on one individual’s personal style or interpretation.
ATIC (Attachment and Trauma Informed Care) is our structured, research‑informed model developed from over 30 years of clinical and operational experience. It brings together evidence‑based practice, clear principles and consistent ways of working that every MCTS clinician follows. The full ATIC model includes therapy for service users and families, reflective practice with staff, supervision with leaders and managers, assessment, formulation and treatment oversight, 12 weekly assessment and review of treatment plans, support with risk management, policies and procedures.
Our integrated clinical and therapeutic support package offers specialist psychological consultation, guidance and support to staff teams working with children and young people who have experienced trauma. It focuses on strengthening understanding, improving practice, and ensuring care is safe, consistent and therapeutically informed. You provide the care, we provide the clinical and therapeutic support to your young people and their families, your staff team, managers and the organisation as a whole.
MCTS employs and supervises the clinicians, but you are involved throughout the recruitment process to ensure a good fit for your service. This means you get an in-house clinical team, tailored to your needs, but without the overheads of employing your own staff.
We help you to restructure your placement fees for new young people moving in, so that the cost of our services is covered by the placing authority. Bespoke spot purchase prices are also available on request, depending on the needs of your service.
Yes – experts understand their duties to the court and produce CPR‑compliant reports with clear, evidence‑based opinions.
Yes. All experts have relevant experience and training in expert witness duties, including family, medico legal and criminal court proceedings.
Email us for a free 20-minute consultation with a clinician.
Yes. Unlike many Expert Witness services, we accept self-referrals and litigants in person. If you are a parent or individual funding your own expert assessment, we can still help.
Please note that self-funded assessments must still meet the requirements of the family court, and we recommend discussing this with your solicitor. Contact us to discuss suitability and next steps.
Absolutely. Our referrals coordinator will match your case with suitably qualified experts and provide CVs and timelines.
Yes, we work across both private and public law proceedings.
Most assessments are completed within 6–8 weeks, depending on complexity and availability. Shorter timescales are available.
Yes, we regularly accept Legal Aid Agency rates.
The price of a private autism assessment for a child may vary, however it is important to choose the right provider. Receiving the right diagnosis, done properly, matters. It can be the key to accessing appropriate support, reasonable adjustments, and effective treatment.
Our fee of £2,160 includes diagnosis based on NICE guidance and best-practice standards to ensure reports are robust, ethical and widely accepted.
We understand there are many private providers, and it can be difficult to know who to trust. While some services offer lower-cost assessments, reports that do not follow NICE guidance may not be accepted by the NHS, local authorities, or employers.
After the assessment, we will:
- Meet with you to talk through the findings
- Provide a written report explaining what we’ve found
- If a diagnosis is made, offer advice for home, education or work
- If a diagnosis is not made, still offer tailored support recommendations
- Support you to think about next steps
The report is written with care and can be used to help access support. Whether you receive a diagnosis or not, our aim is to leave you with a better understanding of yourself and what might help.
Many of the things we explore – like anxiety, emotional overwhelm, attention difficulties, or social challenges – can be caused by many different things.
For example:
- Anxiety or low mood
- Learning differences
- Sensory processing needs
- Stressful life events or trauma
- Giftedness or unmet needs
That’s why we take time and care when making any diagnosis. Giving the wrong label can lead to confusion and inappropriate support.
If autism doesn’t seem to be the best fit for you, we will:
- Still provide clear feedback about what we think is going on
- Offer helpful recommendations to support you
- Signpost to any additional assessment or support services
- Ensure you leave with a clearer understanding of your needs
Our aim is always to offer understanding, not just labels.
Autism (also called Autism Spectrum Condition) is a different way of thinking, processing, and relating to the world. Some autistic people:
- Prefer routine and predictability
- Experience the world more intensely – sounds, lights, textures
- Feel emotions deeply
- Have strong interests or passions
- May find social rules or communication confusing
Some autistic strengths might include:
- Incredible memory for facts or details
- Strong focus on things that matter to them
- Creativity and deep thinking
- Fairness, honesty, and a unique perspective
Autism is not a problem to be “fixed” – it’s a normal variation of human nature. With understanding and the right support, autistic people can flourish.
Many of the things we explore – like anxiety, emotional overwhelm, attention difficulties, or social challenges – can be caused by many different things.
For example:
- Anxiety or low mood
- Learning differences
- Sensory processing needs
- Stressful life events or trauma
- Giftedness or unmet needs
That’s why we take time and care in making any diagnosis. Giving the wrong label can lead to confusion and inappropriate support.
If ADHD doesn’t seem to be the best fit for you, we will:
- Still provide clear feedback about what we do think is going on
- Offer helpful recommendations to support you
- Signpost to any additional assessment or support services
- Ensure you leave with a clearer understanding of your needs
- Our aim is always to offer understanding, not just labels
For an ADHD diagnosis you will typically see a healthcare practitioner who is trained in conducting ADHD assessments. The assessment may include interviews, questionnaires, and sometimes observations of behaviour to evaluate symptoms. While you can get diagnosed through public healthcare systems, going private can offer faster access to experienced clinicians, as well as additional benefits like comprehensive reports, personal feedback and post-diagnostic support. ADHD private diagnosis can enable you to access the help you need, whether that be medication, therapy or another type of intervention.
ADHD stands for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. People with ADHD often have very busy brains, and may:
- Find it hard to concentrate on uninteresting things
- Feel restless or impulsive
- Think quickly and feel things intensely
- Struggle with waiting or following multi-step instructions
Strengths might include:
- Fast, creative thinking
- Energy, humour, and passion
- Flexibility and adaptability
- Courage to try new things
- Natural leadership or communication skills
ADHD doesn’t mean someone is “naughty” or “lazy” – it’s a different way the brain works, with both challenges and gifts.
The age at which ADHD and autism can be diagnosed varies, but both conditions are often observable in early childhood. The age at which we can diagnose tends to depend on the impact of the symptoms on people’s lives.
At MCTS we know that early detection and intervention for autism can significantly improve outcomes. Therefore, we are committed to delivering timely and comprehensive assessments.
The MCTS assessment team provides private autism and ADHD assessments for adults, children, young people and families – CYPF (service users). These comprehensive assessments are:
- Person-centred
- High-quality
- Evidence-based
- Multidisciplinary
We consider coexisting conditions related to physical health, mental health, emotional well-being, cognition, and psychosocial situations in the service user’s life context.
We create an environment of trust and compassion where our service users feel comfortable sharing information about their lives and the challenges they are facing every day. We focus on the relationships we build with the people we work with. Throughout the assessment, we take every opportunity to understand what is important to our service users to tailor a care plan that reflects their strengths and needs, supports their aspirations and empowers them to reach their full potential.
When ADHD and autism co-occur, it can be challenging to differentiate between the two conditions due to their overlapping symptoms. Some shared characteristics include social challenges, repetitive behaviours, sensory processing difficulties, executive dysfunction, atypical movement and differences in learning styles.
Neuro-affirming practice means we understand that everyone’s brain works differently, and we see these differences as natural. With that in mind, we consider physical, sensory, communication and behaviour unique features and do our best to reflect those in a strengths-based assessment and care plan. We do not take an impairment-led approach and are not trying to ‘fix the problem’. Instead, we are underpinned by a neuro-affirming approach. We aim to inspire the same way of thinking in all environments of our service users.
It is important to note that there are lots of other terms that autistic people and their families choose to use, and this is often a very personal preference. As a service, we use the terms ‘autism’ and ‘autistic individual’. If you would like us to use a different term, please let us know, and we will use those terms when working with you.
In some parts of our service, like reports, we use terms from the DSM-5 and NICE guidelines to clearly explain the assessment results to you and any organisations you may need to share the results with (local authorities, NHS).
Some children, young people or adults may have additional needs that require a different way of carrying out an autism assessment. We offer a bespoke assessment package in cases where it is unclear what is causing the difficulties. This might be because the child or adult has co-occurring complex mental health difficulties, a high number of adverse childhood experiences, and/or safeguarding and child protection concerns. Get in touch with us for an initial consultation to discuss: expert.referrals@mcts.org.uk.
Who are proud to be working with a wide range of clinicians who are experts in carrying out autism assessments. This includes Psychiatrists, Psychotherapists, Psychologists, Occupational Therapists, MH Nurses, Speech and Language Therapists and more.
Our autism and ADHD Assessment Service operates across the South of England and we are expanding across England with a wide range of affiliates in different locations. Our assessments are comprehensive and evidence-based, ensuring the highest safe and effective care standards.
Our team of experts will guide you through a full autism and ADHD assessment. We aim to give you the results within 6 to 8 weeks, and no later than 13 weeks after your referral.
We aim to see you within 8 weeks of the referral.
We accept referrals from individuals, parents, school professionals, health professionals, social care professionals, law professionals and more.
Get in touch by emailing expert.referrals@mcts.org.uk. We’ll send you some forms and questionnaires to fill out. It’s important to complete these because our clinicians will review them. If they think a full assessment might be helpful, we’ll invite you to an online Clinical Screening appointment.
At this appointment, we’ll talk about your current and past experiences to see if a full assessment is the right next step for you.
Once we finish all parts of the autism and ADHD assessment, we will talk to you about the results. If we don’t think you have autism or ADHD, we will explain why. We will also talk about other possible reasons for your difficulties and what support might help you. This could include referring you to other services or speaking with your GP. We also offer support packages at MCTS, which we will explain in case they could be helpful.
We offer autism and ADHD assessments for children, young people, and adults. The assessment focuses on the person being referred, but we know how important family and other people around them are. That’s why we want you and your support network to be involved. Your input helps us make sure the assessment and the results are useful and make sense for you.
The cost of an ADHD and autism assessment in the UK can vary a lot.
For a good quality assessment, you should expect:
- A team of experts to carry out the assessment.
- You (or the person being assessed) and the people who support you to be fully involved.
- Personalised advice and support based on your strengths and what’s important to you.
- A clear and detailed report that is accepted by the NHS and local authorities.
Our ADHD and autism assessments cover all the above for the following fees:
Autism Assessment £2,160
ADHD Assessment £1,195
Combined Autism and ADHD Assessment £2,850
Complex Needs Autism and/or ADHD Assessment – bespoke pricing on request.
Our assessments look for signs and behaviours linked to both ADHD and autism. We follow national guidelines (called NICE guidelines) and only use methods backed by research.
There are four stages in our assessment process:
1. Referral
First, we’ll ask you to fill out some forms and questionnaires. These help us understand why you think you (or the person you are referring) might have ADHD or autism.
2. Screening
Once we get your forms, our Clinical Leads will review them.
- If there’s enough evidence that ADHD or autism could be present, we’ll move to a full assessment.
- If we don’t have enough information, but we think there could be signs, we may invite you to an online screening appointment to decide if a full assessment is needed.
- Whether we decide to move forward or not, we’ll let you know by letter or whichever way you prefer (phone, email, etc.).
If a full assessment isn’t needed, we may suggest other support or services that could help.
3. Full Assessment
If a full assessment is needed, we’ll use a mix of different tools and conversations to understand your symptoms and how they affect your daily life.
We base our diagnosis on official guidelines (called the DSM-5), which is used worldwide to help diagnose ADHD and autism.
You’ll have a Case Co-ordinator to support you and guide you through the process. Most appointments are online, but we can arrange face-to-face meetings if needed.
We also offer complex needs assessments. This is a bespoke package for children or adults who experience a complex combination of symptoms, and diagnosing autism and/or ADHD requires a differentiated approach.
4. After the Assessment
Once we’ve made our decision, we’ll talk it through with you and send you a full report, including all our recommendations and next steps.
There isn’t a single test for ADHD or autism, but both conditions are assessed using a combination of tools, observations, and evaluations. A multidisciplinary team carries out our assessments. Having experts in different fields helps us tell the difference between autism, ADHD, and other co-occurring conditions (e.g., anxiety, learning disabilities, or sensory processing issues).
Yes, it is possible to get an assessment for autism and ADHD together. We recognise the significant overlap between autism and ADHD, and our combined assessments bring together experts in both areas.
As well as offering combined assessments, we can also test for autism and ADHD separately.
