Independent information site. Not the NHS, not a clinic, not a diagnostic service, and not a referral service. England only. A GP, dentist or optometrist must decide whether a first outpatient referral is clinically appropriate. Provider lists, waits and ICB caps change — check the provider and your ICB before the appointment.
Six questions. About 30 seconds. This is not a diagnosis, not a legal determination, and not a referral. A GP, dentist or optometrist still has to decide whether any first outpatient referral is clinically appropriate.
Written by Pete, editor, not a clinician.
If you already know you want the pack, go to get help. For the full rules, read eligibility.
The six questions
1. Registered with a GP in England?
The Choice Framework, the NHS Constitution for England, the Standing Rules and NHS England patient-choice guidance apply to England.
- Yes — I am registered with a GP in England
- No — I live in, or I am registered in, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland (or I have no English GP)
- Not sure
2. First assessment for this condition, or already under an NHS team for it?
Legal choice applies at the point of an elective first outpatient referral. It does not apply to people already receiving care for the same condition after an elective referral. It can apply to a new episode.
- First assessment for this condition (or a clearly new episode of care)
- Already under an NHS team for this same condition
- Not sure
3. Adult or under 18?
The Choice Framework applies to people of all ages. There is no adult-only legal cut-off. Individual providers still set age limits in their contracts. Those are the provider’s rules, not national law.
- 18 or over
- Under 18 (or I am asking for someone under 18)
4. ADHD, autism, or both?
The Standing Rules do not name ADHD or autism. They are condition-neutral. NHS England says remote ASD and ADHD assessments may be subject to the legal right when the other tests are met. NICE guidelines describe assessment quality; they do not create this right.
- ADHD
- Autism
- Both
- Not sure
5. Online assessment acceptable?
Some qualifying contracts cover remote access. Online is not automatically “in” or “out”. Clinical appropriateness is still the referrer’s judgement.
- Yes — online is fine
- I prefer in-person
- Either
6. NHS-funded Right to Choose, private-pay, or not sure?
NHS-funded Right to Choose care is free at the point of use except for limited Parliamentary exceptions (such as standard prescription charges if medicine is later prescribed). Paying a clinic yourself is not the same legal right.
- NHS-funded Right to Choose pathway, if I am in scope
- Private-pay (I want to pay for an assessment)
- Not sure
How answers are routed
Use this order. Stop at the first match.
- Q1 = No → Outcome 2 (not England / private-pay explainer)
- Q2 = Already under an NHS team for this same condition → Outcome 3
- Q6 = Private-pay → Outcome 2 (private-pay branch)
- Q3 = Under 18 (and not caught above) → Outcome 4
- Otherwise → Outcome 1 (may be in scope)
Q4 and Q5 never make someone legally in or out by themselves. They only shape the shortlist. Q1 = Not sure: show Outcome 1 copy plus a prompt to confirm an English GP before the appointment. Q2 = Not sure: show Outcome 1 with the already-in-treatment exception quoted. Q6 = Not sure: Outcome 1, with a private-pay alternative link.
Outcome 1 — You may be in scope
Screen title: You may be in scope of the England Right to Choose pathway
This is not a decision that you are eligible, and it is not a referral.
If you have an English GP (or will see a dentist or optometrist), you are asking for a first outpatient assessment for this condition, and you want NHS-funded care, the legal tests can apply. In England, if that clinician makes a clinically appropriate elective referral for a first outpatient appointment, you have a legal right to choose any clinically appropriate provider that already holds a qualifying NHS Standard Contract for that service with any integrated care board or NHS England, and a clinically appropriate team there. For many ADHD and autism assessments the team may be led by a consultant or a named mental health professional.
Your GP is not required to refer just because this quiz said you may be in scope. “Clinically appropriate” is defined as the opinion of the person making the referral.
Buttons: Download the GP pack · Get a provider shortlist emailed
If you ask a listed clinic to contact you, they may pay this site a fee. We will not refer you. How we make money.
Sources for this outcome: Choice Framework section 3; NHS England Patient choice guidance (19 December 2023); Standing Rules Part 8 as amended by SI 2023/1105.
Outcome 2 — Not England, or you want private-pay
Screen title: This legal right is England-only — here is the private-pay difference
If you are not registered with a GP in England: the Choice Framework, the NHS Constitution for England, the Standing Rules and NHS England patient-choice guidance apply to England. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run separate systems. There is no equivalent Right to Choose scheme on those pages. We will not tell you that an English first-outpatient choice right applies to you.
You can still look at private-pay assessment (you pay the clinic). That is not NHS Right to Choose, not free at the point of use in the Constitution sense, and not something this site can refer you into.
If you live in England but chose private-pay: you can still ask a GP about NHS-funded choice if the other tests are met. Paying a clinic yourself does not use the Standing Rules right. A clinic without a qualifying NHS Standard Contract cannot accept a Right to Choose referral.
Buttons: Read how we make money · Ask a clinic to contact me (disclosed fee if you consent)
Provider lists change. Check the clinic’s own page. We do not invent waits.
Sources for this outcome: Choice Framework (applies to England); NHS Constitution for England; NHS England Patient choice guidance (self-referral and qualifying-contract tests); Constitution free-of-charge right (NHS-funded services, not private-pay).
Outcome 3 — Already in a service
Screen title: Right to Choose often does not apply once you are already in a team
If you are already receiving care for the same condition after an elective referral, NHS England’s patient-choice guidance says the legal duties do not apply. The Choice Framework lists “already receiving care for that condition / onward referral” among the exceptions. You generally cannot use this right to swap provider mid-treatment for that same episode.
A new episode of care can be different. That is a clinical and commissioning judgement — not something this quiz can settle. This site will not refer you.
What usually does still exist:
- Talk to the team you are already under
- Use the complaints path if choice was not offered at the original referral: referrer → ICB → NHS England (england.choice@nhs.net) → PHSO
- Private-pay is a separate commercial option, not the legal right
Buttons: If choice was not offered · Get help (we will not tag this as an RTC-ready referral)
Sources for this outcome: Choice Framework exceptions list; NHS England Patient choice guidance (already receiving care for the same condition; does apply to a new episode; no self-referral; consultant-to-consultant out of scope); Standing Rules regs 40–41 for other exclusions.
Outcome 4 — Under 18
Screen title: The legal right is not adults-only — children’s pathways still vary
If the other tests are met (England, first outpatient referral, clinically appropriate, qualifying contract), age is not a legal cut-off. The Choice Framework applies to people of all ages. NHS England notes that remote ASD and ADHD assessments may be subject to the legal right when the other conditions are met. GPs refer children as well as adults.
What does vary for children and young people is practice:
- each provider sets its own age range in its contract (those are that provider’s rules, not national law)
- local autism and ADHD pathways, interface services and ICB booking rules can differ
- NICE CG128 describes a good under-19 autism assessment; it does not create Right to Choose and its 3-month start-assessment recommendation is not the 18-week legal waiting-time right
- NICE NG87 says primary care must not make the initial ADHD diagnosis in children and young people — that is clinical guidance for how diagnosis is made, not a ban on choice of a qualifying provider
Do not assume “children are excluded”. Do not assume every independent clinic accepts under-18 NHS-funded referrals. Check the named provider and your ICB before the GP visit.
Buttons: Download the GP pack · Get a provider shortlist emailed
Fee disclosure if a clinic CTA is used: a partner clinic may pay this site a fee when you ask them to contact you.
Sources for this outcome: Choice Framework (all ages; England); NHS England Patient choice guidance (remote ASD/ADHD may be in scope; referrer includes GP); Standing Rules Part 8 (condition-neutral; clinically appropriate = referrer’s opinion); NICE CG128 and NG87 (clinical only).
Shared footer on every outcome
This quiz does not diagnose ADHD or autism. It does not bind a GP. It does not book an appointment. Provider lists, waits and ICB caps change.
Next: eligibility · how to ask your GP · providers · disclaimer
Sources (all outcomes)
Primary sources. Retrieved 1 September 2026.
- NHS Choice Framework, DHSC. England, all ages; section 3 first-outpatient choice; exceptions including already receiving care, urgent/crisis, maternity; complaints path. Published 29 April 2016; landing last updated 23 October 2024. HTML
- Patient choice guidance, NHS England, B1441, 19 December 2023. Qualifying contract with any ICB or NHS England; GP/dentist/optometrist; mental-health-professional-led teams; remote ASD/ADHD may be in scope; already in treatment for the same condition; no self-referral; no prior commissioner approval; clinical appropriateness is the referrer’s. Long-read
- Standing Rules Part 8, SI 2012/2996 as revised (including SI 2023/1105, in force 1 January 2024). Reg 38 elective referral; reg 39 choice and qualifying contract; reg 39(6) clinically appropriate = referrer’s opinion; regs 40–41 exceptions. Revised Part 8 · SI 2023/1105
- The NHS Constitution for England, DHSC. Informed-choice right; free of charge except limited Parliamentary exceptions; applies to England; does not create new legal rights. HTML
- NICE NG87, ADHD diagnosis and management. Clinical; silent on Right to Choose. NG87
- NICE CG128, autism in under 19s. Clinical; silent on Right to Choose. CG128
- NICE CG142, autism in adults. Clinical; silent on Right to Choose. Local self-referral-to-team recommendation is not the legal RTC right. CG142
Last reviewed: 1 September 2026
Author: Pete, editor, not a clinician