- Independent mental health service
The Retreat York
Assessment report published 4 August 2025
Contents
Ratings - Community-based mental health services for adults of working age
Our view of the service
Date of assessment 23 April 2025.
The Retreat York is a community mental health service which offers autism assessment and psychological therapies for adults and for children and young people. These services are not within the CQC’s scope of regulation. We inspected the adult Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) service only. There was a registered manager in post at the time of the inspection.
We rated the service as Good. The service had made improvements and is no longer in breach of regulations.
The service provided safe care and treatment. The premises where clients were seen was clean, well-maintained and fit for purpose.
Staff followed good practice with respect to safeguarding.
Staff conducted comprehensive assessments in collaboration with families and carers where required. They provided treatment that was informed by best-practice guidance and suitable to the needs of the clients.
Since the last assessment the number of psychiatrists had been increased and where a specialist was not part of the team, staff were able to refer or signpost to other services to ensure people received holistic care and treatment.
Staff treated all people with compassion and kindness and understood the individual needs of clients. They actively involved clients, families and carers where appropriate in care decisions.
However, there was still a long waiting time from referral to assessment. The provider had attempted to reduce this by introducing more clinic hours and extra administrative staff as well as making it easier for clients to contact the service.
People's experience of this service
We spoke with five clients using the service. They all spoke positively of the service. People were generally very happy with the service, however all of them would have preferred an assessment earlier than they had received. One individual commented that the service had “made her hopeful of a successful outcome” and another stated that they now understood “their hyperactivity”. Everyone said that all staff at the service were respectful, polite, caring and interested in the client’s well-being.