How do I seek an ADHD assessment for a child or young person in Northern Ireland?
Child ADHD services exist, but referral and assessment arrangements vary by HSC Trust and should not be replaced with a generic England or UK pathway.
Scope before you act
Northern Ireland This scope signal is derived from the governed question wording for orientation only. It is not an eligibility, legal or clinical determination.
Current understanding
The Department of Health's 2026 ADHD Needs Assessment describes child and adult ADHD provision across Northern Ireland and confirms that service arrangements vary. The Northern HSC Trust provides one current local example: referrals are triaged, an ADHD nurse specialist can carry out an initial assessment and a paediatrician can complete the medical assessment and diagnostic decision where indicated. That pathway must not be assumed to apply unchanged in other Trusts. Families should check the current referral route with the relevant HSC Trust, GP and school/education contacts. A private assessment should be checked against local Trust requirements before paying if NHS/HSC follow-up is expected. Diagnosis, medication and school support are separate decisions. England Right to Choose does not apply.
Related things to inspect
Related questions
- How do I start looking into an adult ADHD assessment in Northern Ireland?
- What should I check before paying for a private autism or ADHD assessment in the UK?
- Do I have to disclose neurodivergence or disability at work to ask for support?
- Do I need to tell DVLA about ADHD or another neurodevelopmental condition in Great Britain?
- How do I seek an ADHD assessment for a child or young person in England?
What evidence is still needed
- Current child ADHD referral, waiting, private-report acceptance and post-diagnostic arrangements for every HSC Trust.
Where people may disagree
- A child can need educational, family or health support for attention, regulation or executive-function difficulties whether or not ADHD is ultimately diagnosed.
When this answer should be revisited
- Department of Health NI introduces a commissioned uniform child ADHD pathway.
- HSC Trust child ADHD provision materially changes.
- Private-report acceptance arrangements materially change.
Question provenance and review state
Child Northern Ireland ADHD route assembled from the 2026 Department of Health needs assessment and a current explicitly local Northern Trust paediatric pathway. Region-wide uniformity is not invented.