A member of our team will carry out the ADI-R , we tend to do this a day before the observations and assessment with the child, young person or adult. We use this approach as it can be a long day if done with the observations. The next day will complete the ADOS-2 observation. This usually takes place in a private location but we are open to looking at more familiar locations. The individual carrying out each part will have been agreed prior to the assessment day. The team will then discuss findings and feedback to you their conclusions, as well as discussing any recommendations for future support.

We know some children may feel very intimidated. This will be discussed during the initial consultation. We feel children benefit most from observations happening without parents present but parents are welcome to wait.

There no reason to believe that a diagnosis made by Spirals will not be accepted, As Spirals offers an assessment that is fully compliant with the NICE Guidelines, and provides a comprehensive report detailing the reasons why the diagnosis was given, other providers should accept this. You may wish to discuss this with your local team prior to the assessment. We are happy to liaise with a local team on your behalf if the need arises.

The SEND Code of Practice (2015) is states; all advice covers the relevant education, health and care needs of the child or young person, as well as the views, wishes and feelings of the parent. There is no basis in law for the Local Authority to reject a professional report simply because it was privately obtained. If this happens we would support you in making a complaint, asking the Local Authority to explain why they are ignoring the private diagnosis.

The SEN and Disability Code of Practice, which is statutory guidance issued by the government, contains further detail on what Local Authorities should consider. Paragraph 9.14 of the Code states that “the local authority should consider whether there is evidence that despite the early years provider, school or post-16 institution having taken relevant and purposeful action to identify, assess and meet the special educational needs of the child or young person, the child or young person has not made expected progress”.

The LA should pay particular attention to:

Evidence of the child or young person’s academic attainment (or developmental milestones in younger children) and rate of progress;

Information about the nature, extent and context of the child or young person’s SEN;

Evidence of the action already taken by the school or other settings;

Evidence that where progress has been made, it has only been as the result of much additional intervention and support over and above that which is usually provided; evidence of the child or young person’s physical, emotional and social development and health needs, drawing on relevant evidence from clinicians and other health professionals and what has been done to meet these by other agencies.

Refusal by a local authority to accept a private diagnosis following NICE guidelines would suggest an omission in following clear and explicit requirements re SEND. A diagnosis made under these terms should be regarded as credible evidence for a tribunal and there would need to be clear and succinct counter-evidence where repudiation may occur. For example, sometimes Local Authorities ask their own experts to comment on, or quality review a diagnostic report. Refusal to issue an EHC Plan, would be an appealable decision. This means if you appeal the decision a Tribunal would be under a duty to consider all the documents placed before them, private or otherwise.

In relation to the NHS, a privately obtained diagnosis is as robust as an NHS one, in both cases clinicians should be registered healthcare professionals meeting NICE guidelines. If you are advised that a private diagnosis report will be ignored, this is incorrect advice. NHS England state, “You are still entitled to free NHS care if you choose to pay for additional private care.”

The Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) is one of the most widely used diagnostic algorithms in determining whether or not children have autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

DI-R does not directly involve the child—instead, it is an interview conducted by a trained researcher or psychologist with the child’s parents or other caregivers. The ADI-R focuses on the developmental history of the child, relying on the memory of the people closest to them.

The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-Second Edition (ADOS-2) is a standardised assessment tool that helps providers diagnose autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in children and adults. The ADOS involves a semi-structured play or interview session determined by the age and communication level of the individual.

The ADOS provides standardized activities and questions that give the examiner opportunities to observe behaviours that are directly relevant to the diagnosis of ASD. The ADOS-2 incorporates the use of planned social activities designed for different developmental levels and chronological ages that provide situations in which social interactions, communication and particular types of behaviours are likely to appear.

Although the ADOS-2 is considered the “gold standard” for ASD assessment, it is important to know that it is just one source of information and is not on its own sufficient for making a diagnosis of ASD. The ADOS-2 should always be part of a comprehensive evaluation that considers a person’s developmental history, information provided by parents and other key informants, behavioural observations both during and outside of the ADOS-2 administration, and the judgement of experienced clinicians.

In these cases, we can still complete much of the ADI-r assessment based on self-report and/or from input from other significant people in your life (e.g. a partner or friend). It would however be very useful if any other information about your early life could be made available for use to gather information from. This might be medical reports, GP records, school reports etc. We can discuss this with you before you decide to commit to an assessment

We like to get a full picture, often this means spending time talking to SENCO’s or seeing your children in their educational setting around peers. It is not always required for an assessment but it can help to develop a picture of everyday life for the person being assessed.

No, Spirals is a private assessment. However, we will work with your GP at your request.

Spirals aims to deliver reports within 14 days of the observations being completed.

Spirals carry out an initial assessment which we hope indicates if a person is likely to have autism. However, we do not guarantee a full assessment will automatically deliver a diagnosis.

Spirals understand that private assessments are expensive. This is why you are able to pay for any assessments in instalments which is paid in full prior to the full assessment taking place.

Spirals offer the interview stage and observation stage over 2 days. Each session should not be more than 3 hours.

We will contact you to arrange your ADI-r, this will give Spirals the background information that we need and any thing you can not answer at the time can be revisited at the observation.

You may choose to talk to your child about the assessment. As the observation is mostly play based we suggest just letting your child know they are meeting with the team to play. However, you know your child best therefore as you know how best to reassure your child the observation is nothing scary.

Sometimes we don’t get the results we want from the assessment. However, Spirals follows the strict assessments tools to deliver our reports. We are happy to discuss in detail why the judgements are reached.

This is also why the ADI-r is an important tool for assessment as it gives you a chance to discuss behaviours and concerns that may not always be picked up on observations.

We also record all sessions so that we can discuss our assessments with you and other practitioners before we reach any conclusions.

Assessments are advised from 3 years and beyond. Toddler assessments can be arranged but further investigations may not be suitable at such a young age.

Adult assessments are available as well child assessments.