During an assessment of Specialist community mental health services for children and young people
We carried out an announced comprehensive assessment at ADHD Treatment Centre on 13 May 2026 and completed a further announced onsite assessment on 10 June 2026. We also carried out additional offsite activity, with final interviews completed on 3 June 2026. We announced the assessment to ensure we had access to the evidence required and could speak with staff.
This was the first inspection for this service since registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in February 2024.
The service is registered to provide treatment of disease, disorder or injury and diagnostic and screening procedures.
ADHD Treatment Centre provides specialist community mental health services for children and young people, alongside adult services. The service provides assessment, diagnosis and medication management for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ADHD and offers assessment and diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
The service was privately run and led by a registered manager who was also a non‑medical prescriber, with experience in delivering ADHD assessment and treatment services, and ASD assessment and diagnosis. The provider was independent and did not operate as part of the National Health Service (NHS) “right to choose” pathway, where people can choose an NHS-funded provider for their care and treatment.
The service delivers care to children and young people aged 4 to 18 years, primarily through face‑to‑face appointments, with access to remote assessment and consultations where required.
At the time of inspection, the service supported over 431 patients across both adults and children and young people, at different stages of assessment, medication titration and shared care arrangements.
The service did not operate a formal waiting list. Children and young people were booked onto the next available appointment.
The service had effective arrangements for managing risk, monitoring treatment and obtaining consent. Staff felt supported by leaders and received appropriate training, supervision and opportunities to learn and improve practice.
Children and young people were supported to explore other options where required, including therapies and lifestyle changes. Staff described signposting them to appropriate external services and referring to other professionals where additional support was needed, with decisions based on individual needs and preferences.
Staff described understanding the potential impact of assessment and treatment on children and young people’s emotional and social wellbeing and spoke about supporting them and their families through clear communication, involvement in care decisions and ongoing review. Families were involved in care planning and information sharing, where consent had been given.
The service had governance arrangements in place, including audits, meetings and feedback systems, which supported oversight of quality and responsiveness to feedback from people using the service.
The service had admission and exclusion criteria outlining when care could not be provided.
Staff described arrangements for continuity of care through shared care agreements with GPs.