Recorded referrals
8,080
Open suspected-autism referrals
People whose suspected-autism referral was recorded as open at some point in March 2026.
A count shows scale, not comparative performance.
NHS commissioning and referral evidence
NHS Thames Valley Integrated Care Board
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire
FamilyFX evidence snapshotMarch 2026 · checked 14 August 2026
Autism referral data for NHS Thames Valley
Thames Valley covers three counties, but the March 2026 source does not divide the former Frimley Sub-ICB row between its three successor systems. The figures below cover the predecessor rows that can be assigned to Thames Valley without guessing. They are useful context, but they are not a complete count for the current footprint.
Share of referrals
91.2%
Open for at least 13 weeks
The share of recorded open suspected-autism referrals that had been open for 13 weeks or longer.
England: 89.7%. 1.5 percentage points higher than the England figure.
Share of referrals
1.5%
First contact within 13 weeks
Among referrals open for at least 13 weeks, the share with a first attended care contact recorded within 13 weeks of referral.
England: 3.7%. 2.2 percentage points lower than the England figure.
Share of referrals
85.1%
No first care contact recorded
Among referrals open for at least 13 weeks, the share without a first care contact recorded in the dataset.
England: 82.7%. 2.4 percentage points higher than the England figure.
What these figures mean
A system signal, not a waiting-time promise
The NHS England measures follow suspected-autism referrals from the referral date to the first attended care contact recorded in the Mental Health Services Dataset. FamilyFX preserves the published counts, shows the numerator and denominator behind each derived percentage, and compares only measures with the same definition and reporting month.
The values come from the March 2026 Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West ICB row. They exclude the former Frimley Sub-ICB row D4U1Y because the publication does not divide that row between Thames Valley, Surrey and Sussex, and Hampshire and Isle of Wight. Published counts are rounded, so derived percentages are approximate.
Important limitation
This dataset is incomplete by design
These are official statistics in development, not a complete autism waiting list. Most child autism assessments take place in community paediatric services whose activity cannot yet be identified in the Community Services Dataset. March 2026 data from Psychiatry UK was incomplete, and a missing care-contact date can mean a contact was not submitted, the person was still waiting, or the referral closed without a first appointment. The figures should not be used to rate an ICB or predict an individual wait. The displayed Thames Valley figures are partial: the former Frimley row D4U1Y cannot be allocated across the three successor ICBs from this publication.
Show the calculation behind each figure
| Measure | Numerator | Denominator | NHS codes | Calculation note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open suspected-autism referrals | 8,080 | Not applicable | ASD16 | The values come from the published March 2026 Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West ICB row and exclude the unallocable former Frimley row D4U1Y. |
| Open for at least 13 weeks | 7,365 | 8,080 | ASD16 + ASD16a | The values come from the published March 2026 Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West ICB row and exclude the unallocable former Frimley row D4U1Y. FamilyFX divided ASD16a by ASD16 and rounded the result to one decimal place. |
| First contact within 13 weeks | 110 | 7,365 | ASD16a + ASD18 | The values come from the published March 2026 Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West ICB row and exclude the unallocable former Frimley row D4U1Y. FamilyFX divided ASD18 by ASD16a and rounded the result to one decimal place. |
| No first care contact recorded | 6,270 | 7,365 | ASD16a + ASD18b | The values come from the published March 2026 Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West ICB row and exclude the unallocable former Frimley row D4U1Y. FamilyFX divided ASD18b by ASD16a and rounded the result to one decimal place. A missing contact is not the same as a confirmed wait. |
What has changed, and what it means for families
boundaryAll ages
One ICB across three counties
NHS Thames Valley covers Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire from 1 April 2026.
Why this matters: The wider ICB is useful for policy and commissioning information, while the named provider remains the practical contact about a referral or appointment.
Read the source from NHS EnglandAll NHS services · published 1 April 2026 · checked 14 August 2026
pathwayChildren, young people and adults
ADHD routes remain provider-specific
The ICB says it is reviewing ADHD assessment and support services across Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire, and its page records local provider changes rather than describing one identical route everywhere.
Why this matters: Check the section for the place and age group concerned, then confirm which provider received the referral before relying on an older saved route.
Read the source from NHS Thames Valley Integrated Care BoardADHD assessment and support · checked 14 August 2026
ADHD management informationMarch 2026 · checked 14 August 2026
ADHD referral data for NHS Thames Valley
NHS England now publishes ICB-level management information about referrals that may relate to ADHD assessment. These figures add useful scale and waiting-band context, but they are not a confirmed ADHD waiting list.
Read this first
These are referrals that may be for an ADHD assessment. They are not confirmed diagnoses and should not be read as an exact local ADHD waiting list.
Partial current-footprint figures. The displayed subtotal covers Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West. The relevant part of the former Frimley ICB is omitted because NHS England does not divide that March 2026 row between its successor ICBs.
Open referrals
Partial: 22,380
Possible ADHD referrals still open
Open mental-health referrals recorded under neurodevelopmental conditions excluding autism, including referrals that have already had a first contact.
Open referrals
Partial: 19,930
Open for more than 13 weeks
Possible ADHD referrals recorded in the three published bands above 13 weeks. This describes referral age, not a promised assessment date.
Open referrals
Partial: 13,595
Open for more than 52 weeks
Possible ADHD referrals recorded in the 52-to-104-week and 104-weeks-or-more bands.
Open referrals
Partial: 15,340
No first contact recorded
Open possible-ADHD referrals without a first care contact in the submitted Mental Health Services Dataset record.
Monthly referrals
Partial: 1,125
New possible referrals in March
Possible ADHD referrals newly recorded during March 2026. It is a monthly flow measure rather than a waiting-list total.
Possible open referrals by recorded age
Each bar uses ADHD003 for the same reporting month. Bar lengths compare age groups within this displayed footprint only.
0 to 4Partial: 30
People aged 0 to 4
5 to 17Partial: 11,675
People aged 5 to 17
18 to 24Partial: 2,860
People aged 18 to 24
25+Partial: 7,815
People aged 25+
UnknownPartial: 0
Age not recorded in the source row
How the figures were built
A traceable system signal
Measures ADHD003 to ADHD007 come from the Mental Health Services Dataset. NHS England identifies referrals whose primary reason is recorded as neurodevelopmental conditions excluding autism, then publishes their status and time bands by age. FamilyFX keeps the official definitions, source codes and reporting month visible and does not combine the figures into a score or rank.
The displayed subtotal covers Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West. The relevant part of the former Frimley ICB is omitted because NHS England does not divide that March 2026 row between its successor ICBs. The displayed figures add the published age-band values for predecessor code QU9.
Important limitation
The publication is still developing
The referral category can include conditions other than ADHD, while some ADHD pathways, Right to Choose providers and independent providers do not submit complete data. An open referral may also remain open after assessment because medication reviews or continuing care are still managed by the provider. The figures therefore cannot give an exact ADHD waiting list, a diagnosis count or an individual waiting-time estimate.
Show the NHS measures behind these figures
| Measure | Displayed value | NHS codes | Calculation note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Possible ADHD referrals still open | Partial: 22,380 | ADHD003 | This is a lower-bound subtotal. Small source cells may be suppressed, or a 2026 boundary change may prevent part of the current footprint being separated from a predecessor ICB row. |
| Open for more than 13 weeks | Partial: 19,930 | ADHD003b + ADHD003c + ADHD003d | This is a lower-bound subtotal. Small source cells may be suppressed, or a 2026 boundary change may prevent part of the current footprint being separated from a predecessor ICB row. |
| Open for more than 52 weeks | Partial: 13,595 | ADHD003c + ADHD003d | This is a lower-bound subtotal. Small source cells may be suppressed, or a 2026 boundary change may prevent part of the current footprint being separated from a predecessor ICB row. |
| No first contact recorded | Partial: 15,340 | ADHD004 | This is a lower-bound subtotal. Small source cells may be suppressed, or a 2026 boundary change may prevent part of the current footprint being separated from a predecessor ICB row. |
| New possible referrals in March | Partial: 1,125 | ADHD007 | This is a lower-bound subtotal. Small source cells may be suppressed, or a 2026 boundary change may prevent part of the current footprint being separated from a predecessor ICB row. |
Continue with local support
ICB information describes the wider NHS system. Council SEND routes, Local Offers and impartial advice are organised through the relevant local area.