Common questions about ADHD & autism in Scotland

The first step is usually to speak to your GP. Tell them about your concerns and ask for a referral for a formal assessment. It helps to go prepared, bring specific examples of how your difficulties affect your daily life, at work, in relationships, or managing everyday tasks. A list of examples is more useful than a general description.

If you'd like a starting point before speaking to your GP, our ADHD self-screener and autism self-screener can help you identify and organise your thoughts. Neither is required for a referral, but they can help start the conversation.

For NHS assessment: usually through your GP. NHS inform advises speaking to your GP practice if you think you may have ADHD, and says: "In Scotland, there's no standard approach to assess ADHD. How you'll be assessed will depend on which health board area you live in." For children, schools and health visitors can refer in some areas (SPICe briefing SB 25-25). Ask your health board what its referral route is.

For private assessment: check with the provider. Many private providers take self-referrals, so you may not need your GP to refer you. However, NHS inform advises making sure your health board and GP practice will accept an assessment from an alternative provider before you get one, so it is worth speaking to your GP, particularly if you are hoping to arrange shared care for medication afterwards.

They are separate assessments that look at different things.

An ADHD assessment evaluates attention, impulsivity, hyperactivity, and how these affect daily functioning. NICE NG87 says diagnosis should rest on a full clinical and psychosocial assessment, a full developmental and psychiatric history, and observer reports.

An autism assessment looks at social communication, sensory processing, and patterns of thinking and behaviour. The length and number of appointments vary by service, and it may include developmental history and, sometimes, input from a parent or someone who knew you as a child.

Some providers offer a combined assessment if you want to explore both at the same time. See our AuDHD page for more on having both.

Yes. NHS inform lists autism among the conditions that can occur alongside ADHD in adults. The combination is sometimes called AuDHD.

The two conditions are clinically distinct and each needs to be assessed in its own right. See our AuDHD page for more.

Some providers assess for both simultaneously; others do them separately. If you think both might apply to you, read our AuDHD guide. It is worth raising both with your GP and with any provider you approach, and asking how they would assess each.

Our ADHD self-screener and autism screener can both help you put words to what you are experiencing before speaking to your GP. Neither is a diagnostic tool, but both give you something concrete to bring to an appointment.

Our AuDHD guide covers having both conditions and what that can mean for getting assessed and supported.

Wait times vary significantly between health boards. In the FOI responses we received in October 2026, the median adult wait ranged from 32 weeks for adult ADHD in NHS Highland to 198 weeks for adult ADHD in Aberdeen City (NHS Grampian), and several boards could not give a median. Our NHS waiting times page collects the figures reported by boards across Scotland.

Public Health Scotland publishes CAMHS waiting times, but in recent years neurodevelopmental cases have been separated out of those figures, and waiting-time data specifically for neurodevelopmental assessment has mainly come from FOI requests and one-off publications (SPICe briefing SB 25-25). Our FOI data shows adult medians of up to 198 weeks.

We have found no equivalent in Scotland. Right to Choose is an NHS England scheme: NHS.uk says you can ask for an NHS appointment "at any clinic, including a private clinic, if it provides ADHD services for the NHS in England" (NHS.uk).

In Scotland, NHS inform says how you are assessed depends on which health board area you live in. We have not found a Scottish policy that lets people choose an alternative NHS-funded provider to shorten a wait.

Yes. Being on an NHS waiting list does not prevent you from seeking a private assessment at the same time. Going private does not automatically remove you from the NHS list. You would need to ask to be removed if you no longer want the NHS appointment.

Some people choose to remain on the NHS list even after a private diagnosis, in case they need NHS services in future.

Ask your GP to explain their reasons and to record them in your notes. You can ask for a second opinion from another GP in the practice, or register with a different practice.

Patient Advice and Support Service (PASS), delivered by the Citizens Advice network in Scotland, can help you understand your rights, raise concerns or make a complaint. You can also raise a formal concern with your health board.

As an alternative, many private providers take self-referrals without GP involvement; check with the provider and see the NHS inform advice above on whether your board and GP will accept a private assessment.

Provision varies significantly across Scotland. Some boards have dedicated adult neurodevelopmental services; others route ADHD through general adult psychiatry; a small number of areas have very limited adult provision.

Ask your GP what is available locally, and check our NHS waiting times page, which covers what each health board has reported about their services and current waits.

Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) regulates independent healthcare services in Scotland. HIS says the law defines an independent clinic as one where listed professionals provide services: medical practitioners, dental practitioners, registered nurses, registered midwives, dental care professionals, registered pharmacists and registered pharmacy technicians (HIS). Psychologists are not on that list, so a service with none of the listed professionals involved falls outside that definition; if you are unsure about a provider, ask HIS or the provider.

HIS publishes inspection reports for registered independent healthcare services and has a process for complaints about them. Our compare tool shows registration status for each provider, and our regulation page explains the full picture.

A psychiatrist is a medical doctor who has specialised in mental health. They can prescribe medication and are qualified to diagnose ADHD and autism. They are regulated by the General Medical Council (GMC).

A psychologist is not a medical doctor and cannot prescribe medication. Psychologists can conduct ADHD and autism assessments. Practitioner psychologists are regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC); many are also chartered members of the British Psychological Society (BPS), which is a professional body rather than a regulator.

NICE NG87 says ADHD should be diagnosed by "a specialist psychiatrist, paediatrician or other appropriately qualified healthcare professional with training and expertise in diagnosing ADHD". If you are hoping to arrange shared care for medication through your GP, ask your GP practice before you pay whether it will accept an assessment from the type of clinician you are considering.

A thorough ADHD assessment should include:

• A structured clinical interview covering your current symptoms and how they affect daily life
• A review of your developmental history, symptoms should have been present since childhood
• Structured tools (such as the DIVA interview or the CAARS questionnaire)
• Consideration of other explanations for your symptoms (such as anxiety, sleep problems, or trauma)
• Ideally, some collateral information, input from a partner, parent, or someone who knows you well
• A written report you can share with your GP

NICE guideline NG87 sets out recommendations for diagnosis, including a full developmental and psychiatric history and observer reports, and says a diagnosis should not be made solely on rating scale or observational data. Scotland's own guideline, SIGN 112 (2009), covers children and young people only, and we found no SIGN guideline on adult ADHD; NHS inform says there is no standard approach to assessment in Scotland. It is reasonable to ask a provider how its assessment compares with NG87, and to be cautious of any provider offering a very short single-session assessment with no collateral information.

Costs vary by provider. Among the providers in our directory (October 2026), listed prices for an adult ADHD assessment run from about £650 to about £2,050. Some providers include a follow-up appointment in the fee; others charge separately. Our compare tool lists current assessment costs for every provider we track, so you can compare them side by side.

In Scotland, independent clinics where medical practitioners, nurses or other listed professions provide services are regulated by Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS). A service with none of the professions in HIS's definition involved (for example a psychology-only service) falls outside that definition. For an England-based provider, check whether it is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in England and check the individual clinician's professional registration. Our regulation page explains the different categories.

Individual clinicians are registered with their professional bodies: the GMC for doctors, HCPC for psychologists, and NMC for nurses. You can check any clinician's registration directly on those bodies' websites. Our compare tool shows HIS registration status for each listed provider.

Yes, some people in Scotland use online providers based in England. What matters is that the clinician is appropriately regulated and experienced, the assessment meets recognised ADHD standards (such as NICE NG87), and the provider has experience supporting shared care with Scottish GPs, whose policies differ from those in England.

This varies by provider and assessment type, so check the provider's published process before booking. NICE NG87 says an ADHD diagnosis should rest on a full clinical and psychosocial assessment, a full developmental and psychiatric history and observer reports, which can mean more than one appointment or source.

Some providers ask you to complete questionnaires in advance. Check with the provider what their process involves before booking so you know what to expect on the day.

Yes, some private providers in Scotland assess children; check our compare tool for which ones. Assessment for children may involve input from parents and from school as well as the child directly.

The NHS route for children is through CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) or a local neurodevelopmental pathway, depending on the health board (SPICe), and waits can be long. See our child ADHD and autism assessment page for more detail on both routes.

Shared care is a formal agreement between you, your GP and a specialist service about who prescribes your medication and who monitors you. NHS shared care agreements are usually between NHS specialist teams and GP practices. GP practices can choose to share care with a private provider, but there is no requirement to do so, and some practices will issue prescriptions without signing a formal agreement while the private clinic keeps doing the monitoring.

There is no NHS Scotland policy on shared care: SPICe, the Scottish Parliament research service, says the decision is at the clinical discretion of the GP. Health boards also publish their own guidance for GPs, and these differ. Our shared care page explains this in more detail, with the sources.

Not automatically. A private recommendation does not on its own entitle you to NHS prescriptions, and GPs are not obliged to take over prescribing. In NHS Lothian, the board has said many GPs and practices decline shared care with private providers. Some health boards, such as NHS Dumfries & Galloway, say GPs should not give NHS prescriptions where diagnosis and treatment were private.

It is worth asking your own GP practice what its policy is before paying for a private assessment, and checking your health board's guidance. See our shared care page for more.

If your GP declines shared care, your main options are:

• Ask whether the practice is declining a formal agreement or any NHS prescribing, and ask for the reasons in writing
• Ask your private specialist to write to your GP, or to refer you to NHS specialist services directly
• Check what your health board's guidance for GPs says; in some boards, changing practice is unlikely to help
• Keep your private prescriptions going meanwhile, which involves ongoing cost

There is currently no legal right in Scotland that compels a GP to accept shared care from a private provider. This is one of the most difficult aspects of the private diagnosis route in Scotland.

Having ADHD does not automatically affect your driving licence. GOV.UK says you must tell DVLA if your ADHD or your ADHD medication affects your ability to drive safely, and that if your driving is not affected you do not need to tell DVLA (GOV.UK). NHS inform adds that you must also tell your car insurance provider if your driving is affected by your ADHD or your medication.

GOV.UK says it is illegal in England, Scotland and Wales to drive with legal drugs in your body if it impairs your driving, and lists amphetamine (for example dexamphetamine) among the drugs for which you can still drive if you have been prescribed it, followed advice on how to take it, and it is not making you unfit to drive (GOV.UK). If you are unsure, discuss this with your prescribing clinician.

Yes. NHS inform says "Prescriptions in Scotland are free" (NHS inform), which includes ADHD medication prescribed on the NHS, for example once shared care is in place.

Private prescriptions are not free and may involve a prescription fee from your clinic plus the cost of the medication at the pharmacy. This is one of the reasons setting up shared care after a private diagnosis matters.

ADHD medication falls into two main categories:

• Stimulants: methylphenidate, lisdexamfetamine (Elvanse), and dexamfetamine
• Non-stimulants: atomoxetine and guanfacine (Intuniv); the NHS Lanarkshire formulary on Right Decisions lists guanfacine as licensed for ages 6 to 17

Which medication is appropriate depends on your individual presentation, other health conditions, and how you respond during titration. Your prescribing clinician will advise. See our medications guide for more detail.

The stimulant medications (methylphenidate, lisdexamfetamine and dexamfetamine) are controlled drugs, which is why prescriptions for them are more tightly regulated. Being a controlled drug is not the same as being addictive. NICE NG87 says prescribers should be familiar with the controlled drug legislation governing the prescription and supply of stimulants (rec 1.7.25), and to be cautious about prescribing stimulants if there is a risk of diversion for cognitive enhancement or appetite suppression. Any concerns about dependence are worth raising with your prescribing clinician.

Your prescriber or pharmacist can confirm whether a particular medicine, including atomoxetine or guanfacine, is a controlled drug. See our medications guide.

NHS inform says that before starting medication your healthcare professional will explain any side-effects and how these will be monitored, and that medication needs to be built up gradually to minimise side-effects and find the right dose. NICE NG87 recommends monitoring weight, heart rate and blood pressure, sleep and tics, and (for children and young people) height.

NG87 also refers to orthostatic hypotension or fainting with guanfacine (1.8.12) and sexual dysfunction with atomoxetine (1.8.15). This is not a full list. Always read the patient information leaflet and report anything troubling to your prescriber. Our medications guide has more detail.

NHS inform says whether you continue ADHD medication during pregnancy or when breastfeeding "can vary from person to person" and advises discussing the potential risks and benefits with your healthcare professional. It is not something to start or stop on your own.

If you are pregnant, planning a pregnancy, or breastfeeding, speak to your prescribing clinician and, where relevant, your maternity team before making any changes to your medication.

NHS inform says medication "doesn't cure ADHD. It can help to manage the symptoms", and that you may need to try more than one medication.

If you feel flat, numb or not yourself on medication, tell your prescriber so your dose or medication can be reviewed. NG87 describes titration as continuing until dose optimisation is achieved, meaning reduced symptoms, positive behaviour change and improvements in education, employment and relationships, with tolerable adverse effects (rec 1.7.27). See our medications guide.

Yes. NHS inform says that making changes to your environment and lifestyle are the first steps to managing ADHD symptoms, and that you might be offered sessions explaining your condition, coaching, behaviour therapy and social skills training, or cognitive behavioural therapy. It says healthcare professionals will not consider medication until lifestyle changes have been tried and monitored.

Whether to try medication is a decision to make with your clinician.

NICE NG87 recommends monitoring the effectiveness of ADHD medication and adverse effects, and measuring weight every 6 months in adults and height every 6 months in children and young people.

NG87 also says to monitor heart rate and blood pressure before and after each dose change and every 6 months (1.8.9). NHS inform says that once you are taking a medication that is working for you, it should be reviewed at least once a year. See our medications guide and after diagnosis page.

No. NICE NG87 covers recognising, diagnosing and managing ADHD in children, young people and adults, and NHS inform describes treatment options for adults including lifestyle changes, coaching or therapy, and medication.

NHS inform says medication can help manage ADHD symptoms, and that lifestyle and environmental changes are the first steps. See our after-diagnosis guide for what to do next.

ADHD can present differently in women and girls. An expert consensus statement published in BMC Psychiatry says the discrepancy in the ratio of males to females with diagnosed ADHD is due, at least in part, to lack of recognition and/or referral bias in females, and that barriers to recognition include symptomatic differences, gender biases, comorbidities and compensatory strategies that may mask or overshadow underlying symptoms (Young et al., 2020).

If you are concerned that your difficulties have been put down to something else, you can say so to your GP and ask for the reasons for any decision in writing.

AuDHD is an informal term used by people who have both autism and ADHD. The two conditions are clinically distinct, and each needs to be assessed in its own right.

See our AuDHD page for more information.

If your diagnosis is from a private provider, if medication is part of your treatment plan, a next step is to ask your GP about shared care so that prescribing can transfer to the NHS (GPs are not obliged to agree; see our shared care answers).

Beyond that, after diagnosis is a good time to understand your rights, at work, in education, and with public services, and to connect with support. See our after-diagnosis guide for a full overview.

You can ask. GOV.UK says you are disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a "substantial" and "long-term" negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities, so the test looks at the effect on you. NHS inform says you do not need a diagnosis to request reasonable adjustments at work or in education.

You may be asked to provide evidence, such as a diagnostic report, when requesting reasonable adjustments. If an employer or institution refuses to accept a private diagnosis, you can get advice from Citizens Advice Scotland or ACAS. It helps if your report states the clinician's credentials and the assessment method used.

ADHD and autism can both count as disabilities under the Equality Act 2010, which protects anyone whose condition has a substantial, long-term effect on day-to-day life (GOV.UK explains that the definition turns on the effect of an impairment on your ability to do normal daily activities). Your employer has a legal duty to make reasonable adjustments if your condition puts you at a substantial disadvantage compared to colleagues, this can include flexible hours, written instructions, quiet working space, or extra time for tasks.

Access to Work is a government scheme that can give a grant towards practical support, such as specialist equipment and assistive software or support workers (including a job coach), and mental health support at work. It does not pay for reasonable adjustments, which are changes your employer must legally make (GOV.UK).

Yes. Several organisations offer information and support specifically in Scotland:

• ADHD Scotland, support and information for people with ADHD and their families in Scotland
• Scottish ADHD Coalition, information and local support groups
• Scottish Autism, support services and resources for autistic people and their families

See our support page for a full list of resources and services.

Yes, adults can be assessed for ADHD and autism, though what is available on the NHS depends on your health board (NHS inform: how you are assessed "will depend on which health board area you live in"). See our waiting times page and the private options on our compare tool.

Waits differ across Scotland's 14 boards. From the figures we have gathered through Freedom of Information requests, some adult ADHD waits run to several years, for example, in October 2026 NHS Grampian reported a median of 198 weeks (nearly four years) for adult ADHD in Aberdeen City, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde reported 9,160 adults on its adult ADHD list, and NHS Lothian reported 25,815 adults and children waiting for combined ADHD and autism assessment. Our NHS waiting times page shows the latest figures board by board.

Not everywhere. Provision is very uneven across Scotland, some boards run dedicated neurodevelopmental services, some route ADHD through general adult psychiatry, and NHS Dumfries and Galloway confirmed to us under Section 17 of FOISA that it has no adult ADHD or autism assessment service in the board area. Check our waiting times page and FOI tracker for what each board has told us, and ask your GP what is available locally.

Waiting-time data specifically for neurodevelopmental assessment has mainly come from FOI requests and one-off publications (SPICe), and boards do not all record the data in the same way: in our FOI responses several boards said they could not report it separately. That is why we submit Freedom of Information requests to every board and publish what comes back, so the picture is at least visible. See our methodology for how we do it.

Every figure comes from a Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act request submitted to a named NHS health board, with the original response documents published alongside. Boards must respond within 20 working days. We publish the data as responses arrive, with the date each figure was provided. Our FOI tracker shows the status of every request.

Section 12 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act lets a public body decline a request if the cost of complying would exceed the prescribed amount, which is £600 (staff time is costed at no more than £15 an hour, so about 40 hours). When a board refuses waiting-time figures under Section 12, it does not mean no waiting list exists. It means they say the numbers can't be extracted within that cost limit. We flag these clearly on our waiting times page.

Yes. Many private assessments in Scotland are now carried out by video, and this is a common route given long NHS waits. What matters is that the clinician is properly regulated and experienced, the assessment meets recognised clinical standards, and, if you want NHS prescribing later, that the provider has experience supporting shared care with Scottish GPs. Our compare tool lets you filter for online providers.

The DIVA-5 (Diagnostic Interview for ADHD in adults) is a semi-structured interview based on the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria. The DIVA Foundation says it gives many examples of behaviour and of five areas of impairment that may accompany ADHD during the lifespan. It is one of the tools an adult ADHD assessment may use. Our regulation page explains the tools a credible assessment should involve.

No. Screening tools, including ours, are not diagnostic. They help you recognise and organise your experiences and give you something concrete to bring to a GP or assessor, but only a qualified clinician can diagnose ADHD or autism. Our ADHD self-screener and autism screener run entirely in your browser and store nothing.

The WFIRS (Weiss Functional Impairment Rating Scale) measures how much ADHD affects everyday functioning, across domains such as family, work, school, life skills, self-concept, social activities and risk. CADDRA describes it as a measure designed to assess the impact of ADHD or emotional and behaviour problems on functioning, and you may find it useful to bring a completed copy to an appointment. You can complete our WFIRS-S and print a clean copy to bring to your GP or assessment.

The CAT-Q (Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire) measures how much a person uses camouflaging strategies (compensation, masking and assimilation) in social situations. It was developed by Hull et al. (2019) and is not a diagnostic test. You can try it on our CAT-Q page.

Masking, or camouflaging, is described in the research literature as strategies used by autistic people to minimise the visibility of their autism during social situations (Hull et al., 2019). Researchers have suggested it may contribute to later and less frequent diagnosis in females, but this remains a hypothesis rather than a settled finding.

Two things affect this: the wait to be seen, and the assessment itself. Waits vary widely by board and can run to years (see our waiting times page). The assessment process, once it begins, varies by service and may include developmental history and input from someone who knew you as a child.

Among the providers in our directory (October 2026), listed prices for an adult autism assessment run from about £800 to about £2,400, and are generally higher than for adult ADHD assessments. Listed prices for combined ADHD-and-autism assessments run from about £1,300 to about £3,500. Our compare tool lists current prices for every provider we track.

Titration is the process of building up ADHD medication gradually to find the right dose with tolerable side effects (NHS inform: "Medication needs to be built up gradually to minimise any side-effects and to find the right dose for you"). Whether titration is included in an assessment fee varies by provider, so check before you book. See our medications guide for more.

Check the specific terms with your insurer before assuming you are covered. NHS inform notes that you must tell your life or critical illness insurer if you have ADHD, because it is a pre-existing condition, and you need to declare pre-existing conditions for travel insurance. Whether a private health policy covers assessment or medication depends on the policy.

Start with your GP, health visitor, or your child's school; in some areas schools can refer (SPICe). NHS referrals for under-18s go to CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) or a local neurodevelopmental pathway, depending on the board. Some private providers also assess children. Our child assessment page covers both routes.

Children's waits can be long: at 31 March 2025 boards reported 42,530 children waiting for neurodevelopmental assessment, and the SPICe briefing reports NHS Tayside was not accepting new referrals to its children's neurodevelopmental pathway unless the child also met CAMHS criteria (SPICe). Our Freedom of Information data on the waiting times page includes children's figures where boards have provided them.

In some Scottish health boards, schools can refer to a children's neurodevelopmental service (for example NHS Lothian and NHS Lanarkshire, according to SPICe); ask your health board what its route is. It is worth speaking to both your child's school and your GP.

They can be. Under the Equality Act 2010 you are disabled if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities (GOV.UK). The Act does not apply to Northern Ireland, so it applies in Scotland. NHS inform says you can request reasonable adjustments at work and in education without a diagnosis.

Possibly. In Scotland, the disability benefit for daily living and mobility is Adult Disability Payment (ADP), delivered by Social Security Scotland, which has replaced Personal Independence Payment for people in Scotland. Social Security Scotland says the amount you get "depends on how your condition affects your ability to do everyday activities and get around", and NHS inform says you do not need a mental health diagnosis to claim: it should be based on your needs. It helps to describe specific everyday difficulties. See our ADP guide, and consider free advice from Citizens Advice Scotland.

Higher education students in Scotland can apply for the Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA) through SAAS, which has parts for equipment, software and accessories and for non-medical personal help (such as study skills support and mentors). Your institution's disability service can tell you about adjustments. NHS inform says you can ask for support at school, college or university without a diagnosis; check the SAAS DSA notes for what evidence DSA requires.

You can ask. NHS inform lists reasonable adjustments at work such as more frequent check-ins, instructions given in writing as well as verbally, or flexible shift windows, and says you do not need a diagnosis to request them. At work, the government's Access to Work scheme can give a grant towards practical support, but it does not pay for reasonable adjustments. You may be asked for evidence.

You can chase it. Contact the service you were referred to (or your board's central booking team) and ask them to confirm in writing that you are still on the list and your current position. If you get no answer, or you are concerned about how you have been treated, the Patient Advice and Support Service (PASS), delivered by the Citizens Advice network in Scotland, can help, and you can make a formal complaint to your health board.

Some people also begin a private assessment in parallel. NHS inform advises checking first that your health board and GP practice will accept it. See our compare tool.

SPICe reported in 2025 that some Scottish boards had withdrawn or paused adult neurodevelopmental services: Aberdeenshire HSCP (NHS Grampian) ended its adult pathway in February 2025, NHS Forth Valley halted its adult autism assessment team in March 2025, and NHS Shetland's adult autism pathway was paused (SPICe SB 25-25). If this affects you, ask the board in writing what it means for people already referred and what the alternative is. You can raise a formal complaint and contact PASS for help.

If you cannot wait, a private assessment is the main alternative route. Our waiting times page tracks what boards have reported about closures and pauses.

Some people have told us they were taken off a list. If you are unsure of your status, contact the service directly and ask for written confirmation that you are still on the list and your position on it. Keep copies of any correspondence.

If you believe you were removed unfairly, you can complain to the board and get help from PASS.

Provision genuinely varies, and some Scottish boards have very limited or no adult neurodevelopmental service. If you have been told to go private, it is reasonable to ask your GP or board to confirm this in writing and to explain what NHS options remain. You can raise a formal concern with the board.

If a private assessment is your only realistic route, our compare tool lists providers and costs. It is worth checking shared care with your GP before you commit.

NHS inform says a medication that is working for you should be reviewed at least once a year. Contact whoever holds your care (your GP if you are on shared care, or the service that diagnosed you) and ask specifically for a review.

If you cannot get one, raise it with your GP practice or health board, and PASS can advise on next steps.

You can ask your GP for their reasons in writing, ask for a second opinion from another GP in the practice, or register with a different practice. NHS inform says: "Your symptoms and their impact should be considered as part of a full assessment of your health."

Many private providers take self-referrals without GP involvement. See our GP refused a referral guide.

You can complain directly to your health board's feedback and complaints team about delays or how you have been treated. If you are not satisfied with their response, you can escalate to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO). The Patient Advice and Support Service (PASS), delivered by the Citizens Advice network in Scotland, can help you make a complaint.

No. ADHD Scot is an independent, non-clinical information project run by one person in Scotland who has been through the system. It is not affiliated with the NHS, any health board, any clinical provider, any charity, or any commercial interest. See our about page for more.

Yes, everything on the site is free, with no ads and no paywalls. The self-screening tools, the provider comparison, the waiting-time data, and the guides are all free to use.

No provider pays to be listed, to appear higher, or to get a better entry. Listings are compiled from publicly available sources and verified against primary records before publication, with a "last checked" date on each. We filter from the patient's point of view and don't rank clinics or make qualitative judgements about named providers. Our methodology page sets out exactly how it works.

Each page carries a "last reviewed" date, and provider listings show when they were last checked. Waiting-time figures are dated to when each board provided them, and we add new FOI responses as they arrive. If you spot something out of date or inaccurate, please tell us.