Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will introduce maximum waiting list times for adults accessing mental health services, such as ADHD services, in England.

NHS England and NHS Improvement have consulted on the potential to introduce five new waiting time standards. This includes a standard for adults and older adults presenting to community-based mental health services to receive help within four weeks from referral. However, this is not a maximum waiting time. NHS England and NHS Improvement published the outcomes of the consultation on 22 February 2022 and we will work with the National Health Service on the next steps.

Local commissioners and providers in England should have due regard to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guideline: ‘Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: diagnosis and management’ with respect to adult ADHD assessments. While this guideline does not recommend a maximum waiting time for people to receive an ADHD assessment, it recommends that mental health services should form multidisciplinary specialist teams and/or clinics for adults, which should have expertise in the diagnosis and management of ADHD.