I'm a GP and see waiting lists first hand; we paid to go private
Helen Cooper, a GP, sees her patients struggle as they wait years for an autism diagnosis on the NHS - that's why she sent her son for a private assessment.
How do waiting lists look in your area?
How do waiting lists look in your area?
The Government releases statistics about autism assessment waiting lists every quarter, and you can access them here.
The latest figures came out in June, and cover the period from October 2021 to March 2023. Figures for the North East come under the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board, which is the NHS body that funds trusts and organisations in the region to carry out assessments.
They are for children and adults, but don’t include figures from community paediatric services.
We have pulled out some of the key statistics for each area here:
Total number of open referrals on the waiting list
| Area | Number of people on the waiting list: October 2021 | Number of people on the waiting list: March 2022 | Number of people on the waiting list: March 2023 |
| Northumberland | 500 | 840 | 1445 |
| South Tyneside | 625 | 850 | 1220 |
| Sunderland | 625 | 905 | 1460 |
| Newcastle/Gateshead | 1150 | 1720 | 2710 |
| Tees Valley | 2720 | 3525 | 5030 |
| County Durham | 2095 | 3440 | 3820 |
| North Tyneside | 545 | 750 | 1080 |
Number of new referrals in the month
| Area | New referrals a month: October 2021 | New referrals a month: March 2022 | New referrals a month: March 2023 |
| Northumberland | 55 | 80 | 170 |
| South Tyneside | 35 | 45 | 80 |
| Sunderland | 50 | 65 | 120 |
| Newcastle/Gateshead | 100 | 145 | 185 |
| Tees Valley | 235 | 365 | 510 |
| County Durham | 195 | 240 | 610 |
| North Tyneside | 40 | 70 | 70 |
Proportion of people seen within the 13-week target
| Area | Proportion seen within 13 weeks: October 2021 | Proportion seen within 13 weeks: March 2022 | Proportion seen within 13 weeks:Â March 2023 |
| Northumberland | 45% | 41% | 29% |
| South Tyneside | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sunderland | 6% | 5% | 0 |
| Newcastle/Gateshead | 9% | 8% | 0 |
| Tees Valley | 36% | 29% | 12% |
| County Durham | 24% | 33% | 17% |
| North Tyneside | 11% | 9% | 6% |
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