Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support is routinely provided to adults on the waiting list for an autism assessment.

We expect integrated care boards (ICBs) to have due regard to relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines on autism when commissioning services. It is the responsibility of ICBs to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, in line with these NICE guidelines.

Additionally, each ICB must have an Executive Lead for learning disability and autism to support them to deliver care and support for autistic people in their area. NHS England has published statutory guidance on these Executive Lead roles.

NHS England has published a national framework and operational guidance to deliver improved outcomes in all-age autism assessment pathways. The guidance aims to support integrated care systems to make the best of their resources by setting out how pathways can best be delivered. This guidance provides information on facilitating appropriate pre-assessment support while people are waiting for an assessment and will help improve the experience of people who are awaiting an autism assessment.

This year, the Department is also working on updating the Statutory Guidance on Autism to support the National Health Service and local authorities to deliver improved outcomes for autistic people.