Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of assessment times for (a) ADHD, (b) autism and (c) Tourette's syndrome in Devon.

It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including access to assessments for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, and Tourette’s syndrome, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance where available.

Devon ICB advises it is working with local partners as part of One Devon to implement an integrated neurodiversity assessment pathway to reduce the complexity for families and schools seeking assessment. One Devon is also conducting work focused on autism waiting times recovery.

Nationally, NHS England has published a national framework and operational guidance to help ICBs and the National Health Service to deliver improved outcomes for children, young people, and adults referred to an autism assessment service. NHS England has established an ADHD taskforce which will make recommendations about how to address the challenges faced by those affected by ADHD.