There is still no single published waiting time for an ADHD assessment. NHS England now publishes how many ADHD referrals are open, and for how long, for every NHS board in England; this page shows that data as NHS England publishes it. Board statements and targets are separate and measure different things: they are not a league table.
Docorix read the official pages named on this page on 30 October 2026. This is information, not medical advice, and Docorix is not part of the NHS and cannot make or speed up a referral. Waiting times, caps and provider lists change without notice: confirm with your GP and the provider before you rely on anything here.
780,430 referrals open at the end of June 2026, by how long they have been open.
| Open for | All ages | Aged 0 to 17 | Aged 18 and over | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 13 weeks | 93,965 | 26,840 | 67,115 | 12% |
| 13 to 52 weeks | 234,980 | 51,645 | 183,330 | 30% |
| 52 to 104 weeks | 192,090 | 51,075 | 141,015 | 25% |
| 104 weeks or more | 259,395 | 78,280 | 181,110 | 33% |
NHS England figures, June 2026 (edition August 2026), imported automatically. They count referrals in mental health services data that “may be for” an ADHD assessment and are still open, including people who have already had a first contact. “Open for” is how long the referral has been open, not a time to assessment. NHS England rounds the figures and hides small numbers, so rows may not add up exactly, and says data from February 2025 onwards is not directly comparable with earlier months. Docorix has not checked which providers’ waiting lists NHS England’s data includes. Source: NHS England – ADHD Management Information, August 2026 (published 27 August 2026)
These measure different things in different places – a target, a minimum, a maximum, a planning figure – and are not a ranking. The NHS’s own statement for the whole of England is that waits “vary” and may be “several months or years”. Source: NHS – ADHD in adults
From NHS England’s ADHD Management Information, which Docorix re-reads automatically each time a new edition appears.
Open ADHD referrals recorded by each board at the end of June 2026, and the share that have been open for over a year and over two years. Listed alphabetically: boards record and commission ADHD care differently, so this is not a league table.
| NHS board | Open referrals | Open over 52 weeks | Open over 104 weeks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire | 9,230 | 37% | 16% |
| Birmingham and Solihull | 10,335 | 47% | 24% |
| Black Country | 17,705 | 68% | 41% |
| Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire | 9,970 | 53% | 33% |
| Central East | 37,940 | 51% | 29% |
| Cheshire and Merseyside | 36,815 | 47% | 22% |
| Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly | 8,825 | 56% | 36% |
| Coventry and Warwickshire | 10,990 | 76% | 47% |
| Derby and Derbyshire | 12,835 | 43% | 19% |
| Devon | 16,715 | 72% | 50% |
| Dorset | 7,205 | 48% | 21% |
| Essex | 8,620 | 24% | 7% |
| Gloucestershire | 5,860 | 50% | 14% |
| Greater Manchester | 44,380 | 59% | 34% |
| Hampshire and Isle of Wight | 35,050 | 73% | 49% |
| Herefordshire and Worcestershire | 6,685 | 49% | 24% |
| Humber and North Yorkshire | 18,055 | 47% | 24% |
| Kent and Medway | 23,160 | 50% | 28% |
| Lancashire and South Cumbria | 12,110 | 34% | 16% |
| Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland | 21,090 | 68% | 42% |
| Lincolnshire | 12,725 | 67% | 43% |
| Norfolk and Suffolk | 27,325 | 63% | 41% |
| North East and North Cumbria | 63,935 | 64% | 39% |
| North East London | 14,940 | 43% | 22% |
| Northamptonshire | 4,265 | 26% | 8% |
| Nottingham and Nottinghamshire | 15,350 | 57% | 30% |
| Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin | 11,440 | 55% | 22% |
| Somerset | 3,285 | 59% | 37% |
| South East London | 16,235 | 50% | 22% |
| South West London | 25,535 | 53% | 29% |
| South Yorkshire | 19,400 | 57% | 35% |
| Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent | 15,715 | 60% | 29% |
| Surrey and Sussex | 63,640 | 66% | 43% |
| Thames Valley | 34,205 | 62% | 37% |
| West and North London | 55,860 | 54% | 24% |
| West Yorkshire | 37,130 | 64% | 37% |
NHS England figures, June 2026 (edition August 2026), imported automatically. They count referrals in mental health services data that “may be for” an ADHD assessment and are still open, including people who have already had a first contact. “Open for” is how long the referral has been open, not a time to assessment. NHS England rounds the figures and hides small numbers, so rows may not add up exactly, and says data from February 2025 onwards is not directly comparable with earlier months. Docorix has not checked which providers’ waiting lists NHS England’s data includes. Source: NHS England – ADHD Management Information, August 2026 (published 27 August 2026)
NHS England – ADHD Management Information, August 2026 (published 27 August 2026)NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire – Right to Choose (ADHD/ASD Patient Choice)NHS England – Plain English summary of the ADHD Taskforce report (9 December 2025)