This article is a snapshot. The numbers below come from the most recent published data at the time of writing (2026) and will move — some up, some down — over the next year. The shape of the problem will not. For an HR or inclusion lead reading this, the takeaway is not any single figure; it is the cumulative weight of the waits that parent-carers in your team are sitting on.
The headline numbers
The four most often-cited waits, in rough order of how a parent encounters them, are: GP-to-CAMHS, community paediatrics for autism/ADHD assessment, allied health (SLT, OT), and council-issued EHCPs.
Each of those waits is a separate bureaucracy, with its own gatekeeping, its own escalation route, and its own parent-carer learning curve. Most parent-carers are managing three or four of them in parallel by the second year of their journey.
CAMHS in 2026
The most recent Mental Health Services Data Set figures from NHS Digital show that children referred to community CAMHS face median waits in the 12–24 month range across most ICBs, with significant regional variation (NHS Digital MHSDS).
ADHD-assessment waits are often longer again because most regions split ADHD assessment from generalist CAMHS into a separate specialist clinic. Several large ICBs have publicly reported waits of 3–5 years for child ADHD assessment. The NHS introduced ADHD-specific Right to Choose pathways from 2023 to widen capacity; those pathways have themselves accumulated 12–36 month waits.
Autism and ADHD assessment waits
Autism assessment for children sits with community paediatrics (sometimes with specialist autism teams) and is formally guided by NICE CG128. NICE recommends an autism diagnostic assessment should start within 3 months of referral. The latest National Autistic Society analysis of freedom-of-information returns puts the real waits at:
- Median wait nationally: ~3 years from referral to diagnostic decision (National Autistic Society).
- Fastest regions: 6–12 months. Slowest: 4–5 years.
- Right to Choose private-via-NHS pathways exist but have their own 12–24 month accumulating waits.
For parents who can afford private assessment, the cost is typically £1,500–£3,500 for an autism diagnostic. Many parents finance this out of savings; it is one of the more common reasons for parent-carers to take a second job, run down rainy-day funds, or stop saving for retirement.
SLT and OT
NHS Speech and Language Therapy and Occupational Therapy waits sit on top of the CAMHS/paediatric ones. The most recent RCSLT survey reported median waits of 6–18 months from referral to first SLT session, with most children then receiving short blocks of therapy (6–8 sessions) separated by months of no therapy.
OT for sensory or motor needs has similar waits and frequently does not include sensory-profile assessment at all in NHS commissioning. Parents who want a sensory profile for an autistic child typically have to commission it privately at £400–£800.
EHCP statutory deadlines vs reality
The Children and Families Act 2014 sets a 20-week statutory window for the local authority to issue an EHCP from the parent’s initial request. The most recent DfE aggregate figures, for calendar year 2024 and published in 2025, show that roughly half of new EHCPs are issued within the statutory timeframe nationally (DfE EHCP statistics).
That figure obscures regional variation. The best-performing local authorities sit above 90% on-time issue; the worst-performing sit below 20%. Local authorities with the biggest accumulated backlogs (mostly in large urban conurbations) have issued formal apologies and remedial plans, with the relevant Local Government Ombudsman case numbers running at multi-year highs.
SEND Tribunal backlog
When the council refuses or issues a plan the parent disputes, the next step is the First-tier Tribunal (SEND). Volume has been climbing every year for a decade. The latest Ministry of Justice Tribunals statistics show:
- Record number of appeals received per quarter.
- Median time from appeal lodged to hearing: over 12 months in most jurisdictions (MoJ Tribunals statistics).
- Parental success rate at hearing: above 90%. The Tribunal regularly finds for parents against the council. The volume is partly a function of councils refusing things they know they would lose at tribunal — on the basis that not every parent will actually appeal.
What this means for your workforce
This is not a passing crisis the family will get through quickly. It is a structural multi-year load. Any benefit designed for parent-carers needs to assume the wait, not the resolution. Practical advisory support — someone who can help them navigate while they wait — is the shape of benefit that maps onto the shape of the problem.