NeuroaffirmingScreening &

Assessment for Neurodivergence

If you or a member of your family are seeking diagnosis or wish for a better understanding and appreciation of your neurodivergence, you are in the right place

Screening and Assessment

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You can gain insight and understanding into your unique trait profile through our in-depth and comprehensive neuroaffirming screening and assessments.

Our assessments give you a stable scaffold from which to understand yourself so that you can feel more integrated and whole, with improved mental health.

We work with people who have been given diagnoses such as ADHD, autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, Tourettes, sensory sensitivity, and OCD. And also those who believe they are or have had a giftedness profile; and we can also provide giftedness profiling.

We can also work with people who are not seeking diagnosis but who wish to explore and understand their neurodivergent traits from an empowered position.

If you are looking for a formal neuroaffirming diagnosis, read below to find out how the assessment process works.

And further down the page, we outline the screening and diagnostic approach for ADHD, Autism, OCD, and Combined diagnosis. If you are looking for a trauma diagnosis, please go here. And if you are interested in giftedness and twice exceptionality, please go here.

There’s also a helpful Q&A.

How Assessments Work

STEP ONE: Free Consultation

The first step is for you to drop us an email and let us know you are interested in screening and assessment for neurodivergence. We can share our price list with you with a detailed overview of how the process works. If you want to proceed or have questions, we then book you in for a free 15 minute consultation.

We know that some people find talking over the phone challenging, so we can offer a phone call or a video call. It is important that you get to know us, and we start to get to know you to make sure DL is a good fit for you and your needs.

STEP TWO: Screening

Next, we will do a screening consultation with you. You will be asked to complete some questionnaires related to yours or your child’s areas of concern. This is not a diagnosis at this point but an opportunity to better understand yours or your child’s neurobiology. It is an important step in the process and allows us both to explore what is going on for you in a neuroaffirming way. And whether full diagnosis is something you wish to pursue or we feel is right for you.

When we meet, we will discuss the screening results with you and together decide what the next steps could be. There is no pressure to have a full diagnosis. Some people are content to have been screened.

If you do not wish to go ahead with the full assessment, we may offer alternative services that would be a good fit for you, like therapy or coaching.

STEP THREE: Full Assessment

If you decide you do want to go ahead with a full assessment we will get this booked in with you. We can provide payment plans but your first payment must be received before the assessment takes place.

Using a scientifically valid diagnostic interview, we go into depth around your characteristics and traits. We will ask you to complete further questionnaires and assessments for yourself or on behalf of your child and we may ask for additional information from school, work or other family members. This is so that we build a complete and thorough understanding of you and how you see and relate to the world around you.

The assessment interview can be done in person or via video call. It can be quite intense and we will prepare you fully for what to expect before we meet.

STEP FOUR: Interpretation

Once all the information has been gathered we then analyse the assessments and interviews to determine if you have a diagnosis of neurodivergence and what that diagnosis is.

This can be a big step for anyone who is seeking diagnosis. You have come to us because you want a definitive answer on your neurobiology. You want to understand yourself or your child better. Perhaps because you would like accommodations at work or at school, or are seeking an EHCP for your child.

We draft the report and share this early version with you to ensure we’ve captured everything.

STEP FIVE: Reflective Session

This is where we discuss the results of your assessment and whether any neurodivergence is confirmed. As mentioned, sometimes the diagnostic criteria haven’t been met. We will go into why this is and what the next steps could be. Sometimes there is another condition that could be causing similar concerns to neurodivergence, sometimes it could be down to masking and camouflage, where the individual is so conditioned to hide their struggles to fit in, it is difficult to make a full diagnosis.

We will discuss what options you have for further support and will answer any questions you have.

STEP SIX: Report

We will provide you with a full diagnostic report from your assessment. This is yours to share with any professionals, colleagues or family members as you see fit. It can be used to help with evidence to present to CAMHS or your school if you are seeking an EHCP for your child.

We also include lots of useful information and links to resources we have tried and tested.

And we will also outline further support you can get from Divergent Life from one of our qualified team members who provide therapy, coaching, and group programmes.

Remember, being diagnosed as neurodivergent doesn’t change who you or your child is. It is confirming something that you already suspect. Being neurodivergent means your neurobiology is different from the predominant neurotype. It doesn’t mean there is something wrong with you or your child, or that you’ve done something wrong to have these neurobiological differences.

Being neurodivergent can bring many challenges, because we are existing in a world that was designed for what has been defined as being neurotypical. But you or your child also have incredible strengths and talents. We can help you find and embrace them.

You may find that you or your child take a different path through life than what has been defined as typical. And that is okay. Some of the most groundbreaking discoveries have been made by neurodivergent people because they see the world differently.

Ready to take your next step? Email us to book your free 15 minute consultation

The Tools We Use for Assessment

At DL, we believe in transparency. In the section below, we outline exactly which screening and diagnostic tools we use. We use the most up to date, comprehensive and neuroaffirming tools that are available. We do assessments for adults and children. Once your diagnosis is confirmed, we can offer ongoing support for you or your family as appropriate, including individual or family coaching or therapy. We also have a range of group programmes.

For all of our assessments, we will include the following:

  1. A full triage assessment. This looks at developmental milestones, presenting concerns, family history, and how things are going at school or work.

  2. A Strengths and Differences evaluation. This is a self-completed questionnaire allowing us a fuller, more rounded picture of you or your child

  3. We may also speak to teachers or other family members for a child’s assessment, and we have a comprehensive teacher’s questionnaire

  4. The report includes all of the above, and the diagnostic report and interpretation, with therapeutic recommendations and suggestions for adapting home life, school life, and work life as appropriate

ADHD Assessment

  • Screening includes the Connors-4, and we may also ask you to complete a sensory matrix for you or your child. For children, we also use the Comprehensive Executive Function Inventory

  • We use the questionnaires DIVA-5 or DIVA-5 Young for children for diagnosis, as well as the QbCheck which is an online test that monitors micro movements of the face and body through your camera.

Autism Assessment

  • Screening includes the Ritvo Aspergers Autism Diagnostic Scale - Revised (RAADS-R), Camouflaging Autistic Traits (CAT-Q), the Social Responsiveness Scale - 2 (SRS-2), and the Adult Sensory Profile or Adolescent Sensory Profile for children.

    For children we also use the Autism Spectrum Rating Scale (ASRS)

  • We use the MIGDAS diagnostic assessment as we find this to be a more comprehensive and slightly more neuroaffirming approach than the ADOS.

OCD Assessment

  • We use the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms Checklist (modified), with child’s version for children for diagnosis, and a sensory profile.

Combined Assessment

  • Autism screening includes the Ritvo Aspergers Autism Diagnostic Scale - Revised (RAADS-R), Camouflaging Autistic Traits (CAT-Q), the Social Responsiveness Scale - 2 (SRS-2), and the Adult Sensory Profile or Adolescent Sensory Profile for children.

    ADHD screening includes the Connors-4, and we may also ask you to complete a sensory matrix for you or your child. For children, we also use the Comprehensive Executive Function Inventory

    For children we also use the Autism Spectrum Rating Scale (ASRS)

    There is no screening for OCD

  • For Autism we use the MIGDAS diagnostic assessment as we find this to be a more comprehensive and slightly more neuroaffirming approach than the ADOS.

    For ADHD we use the questionnaires DIVA-5 or DIVA-5 Young for children for diagnosis, as well as the QbCheck which is an online test that monitors micro movements of the face and body through your camera.

We do ADHD-Autism, ADHD-OCD, or Autism-OCD assessments.

Q&A

  • Divergent Life believe that a neurodiversity-affirmative diagnosis is akin to safeguarding neurodivergent individuals. We believe that understanding your neurobiology and how it interacts with the world around you is a basic human right and a path towards relational, educational, physical and psychological safety.

    When we can get curious as to how we can use the knowledge of neurodivergence to understand how it makes an individual vulnerable in certain contexts and how that information can be used to safeguard that person, psychological and relational safety and protection can be achieved.

    Divergent Life also believe that neurodivergent individuals can use this diagnosis and self-identification through a trauma lens and witness the possible reduction of neurodivergent trauma as a result of an individual’s understanding of their neurobiology.

  • This is a complex area and depends on where you life and the ethos of your local GP. Some GPs are happy to prescribe based upon a private diagnosis, some are not. This is the same with psychiatrists as well.

    Divergent Life do a very thorough diagnosis following NICE guidelines to ensure that our processes are robust and meet diagnostic requirements.

    So far we haven't had any issues with clients needing to get a prescription for medication based upon their private diagnosis. And we've successfully supported a number of EHCP applications.

  • In short, yes.

    The challenges you experience will change as your brain develops through adolescence into adulthood, and through the natural changes that our bodies undergo through our lives.

    For example, women will experience different challenges through pregnancy, post birth, in perimenopause, and through and after menopause.

    Men may also find their challenges evolve over time as their hormone levels shift through adolescence, early adulthood, mid-life and beyond.

    (We recognise that there are more than two genders. When we use terms like women and men, we know this can be overly simplistic and there are always nuances for different gender identities or anyone who is taking hormones)

  • We usually have a wait time of around 4-8 weeks to do a full diagnostic assessment. Then the whole diagnosis takes around 6-8 weeks. This depends on how quickly forms are returned to us and the complexity of presenting concerns.

  • This is a very common concern and is very understandable. You've decided to explore getting an assessment for some concerns and struggles you have, and it's important to you.

    Lots of people actually fear that they won't get a diagnosis more than anything else - even getting the diagnosis itself! This is because you want answers. And you may also have experienced a lot of misdiagnosis in the past.

    We have a very thorough approach with an extremely experienced team. We are confident we will help you discover your true neurodivergent identity.

  • Once you've received your diagnosis, it can feel a bit anticlimactic. You've spent a lot of energy wondering about your neurobiology for perhaps many months or years.

    Divergent Life offers a range of support options to help you discover and embrace your neurodivergent identity. We provide lots of therapy options such as EMDR and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.

    We also provide lots of support for children and families. Including, Integrative Counselling with the Arts for Adolescents, and Child Accelerated Trauma Therapy.

    We can also provide coaching which is a lighter approach to discovering who you are and putting in place the scaffolding you need to support your neurobiology. All of our team are trauma informed, and we specialise in providing Internal Family Systems approaches, as well as understanding the interaction of hormones on neurodivergence.

    Take a look at our therapy and coaching pages for more.

    We also offer some beautiful group programmes.