What to expect from a Neuroaffirming Assessment

A guide for clients and families considering an assessment with NCPS

Our approach, in plain language

An assessment with us is a structured conversation across a few sessions where we work together to understand whether autism, ADHD, or another way of describing your experiences helps make sense of your story.

We take a neuroaffirming perspective, which means we see autistic and ADHD ways of being as equally valid ways of experiencing relationships, communication, and processing. From this perspective, we focus on understanding your experiences with you.

The goal of the assessment is to explore whether autism or ADHD resonate with your experiences, and to nurture a clearer, more affirming understanding of who you are and what supports may make the most meaningful difference for you.

What 'neuroaffirming' actually means in the room

In practical terms, you can expect us to:

  • Treat your lived experience as the most important source of information about you

  • Share power — you have a say in how sessions run, what we focus on, and how we communicate

  • Use plain language and check in regularly to make sure we're on the same page

  • Make space for processing time, breaks, fidgets, stims, or any other regulation strategies that help

  • Talk about strengths as well as challenges, because both matter to a complete picture

  • Be honest about what standardised tools can and can't tell us

How the process usually unfolds

Before we start

We'll have a brief intake to make sure assessment is the right next step for you, talk through the process, and answer any questions. We'll send through information about what each session will involve so there are no surprises.

The assessment sessions

For most adult clients, assessment runs across two to three sessions. We explore things like early experiences, sensory profile, communication style, social experiences, executive functioning, masking, and any co-occurring mental health concerns. For young people, we typically gather information from parents, school, and the young person themselves, with the balance shifting depending on age.

Standardised tools (such as the ADOS-2, Conners or DIVA) may be part of the process where they add useful information, but they're not the whole story. We treat them as one source of evidence among several, not as the final word.

The feedback session

Once we've gathered everything, we sit down together to explore the information and your experience align with autism and/or ADHD, and what this means to you. You'll receive a written report you can share with whoever you choose (GPs, schools, NDIS, workplaces).

After the assessment

Support after an assessment is an important part of beginning to process it. We understand the vulnerability that may be accompanying the next steps, and we are here to support you, therapy, accommodations, school or workplace support, or simply space to integrate what you've learned about yourself.

Adjustments we can offer

Assessment can feel daunting, particularly if previous experiences with services haven't gone well. We can adjust most things, including:

  • Session length, frequency, and pacing

  • Format: face-to-face at our Newport rooms, telehealth, or a mix

  • Sensory environment (lighting, noise, seating, breaks)

  • Communication mode: spoken, written, drawn, or via chat

  • Whether and how family or support people are involved

If you have specific needs we haven't listed, just let us know.

Questions worth asking before you book

Whether you assess with us or somewhere else, these are reasonable questions to ask any service:

  • How do you describe your approach - neuroaffirming, medical-model, somewhere in between?

  • What does the process actually involve, and how long does it take?

  • How do you handle masking during assessment?

  • What support is offered after the report is written?

  • How is the assessment costed, and what are the Medicare or private health rebates?

Getting in touch

If you're considering an assessment with us, you can contact our team via phone on 9603 0313 or email to arrange an initial chat. We're happy to answer questions before you commit to anything; there's no expectation that one phone call locks you into a full assessment.