Private ADHD and autism assessment in Falkirk

Psychiatric ADHD and autism assessment for Falkirk adults

Caledonian Psychiatry provides private adult ADHD and autism assessment to people living and working across Falkirk, Grangemouth, Larbert, Stenhousemuir, Bo’ness and Linlithgow. Dr David Crocker leads every assessment personally — he is a GMC-registered psychiatrist (MRCPsych) who has built a substantial caseload assessing adult neurodevelopmental conditions — and Caledonian Psychiatry itself is regulated by Healthcare Improvement Scotland (reg. 03427).

There is nothing to travel for. Every stage runs over secure video, so nobody needs to find parking near the Falkirk Wheel or catch a train from Grahamston into a city clinic — the appointment happens wherever there is a laptop and a quiet half hour, at home or at work. Falkirk’s position between Edinburgh and Glasgow, and the reliable broadband that supports so much home working locally, means a video assessment carries no compromise: the same doctor conducts it, the same NICE-aligned process shapes it, and the resulting report is written to the same depth as if the appointment had happened in a consulting room.

The NHS picture in Falkirk

Falkirk falls under NHS Forth Valley, which also covers Stirling and Clackmannanshire. Like the rest of Scotland, the board has seen referrals for adult ADHD and autism assessment climb steadily, and the wait between a GP referral and a first NHS appointment has stretched out accordingly. For many Falkirk adults — especially those juggling a job and a daily commute along the M9 — that wait is the reason they start looking at private options.

Nationally, Scottish Parliament figures put roughly 23,300 adults on a waiting list for ADHD or autism assessment as of March 2025, with a median adult wait of around 76 weeks. Our page on NHS ADHD and autism waiting times across Scotland sets out how each board compares, and a companion piece explains why the Right to Choose scheme, available south of the border, has no equivalent in Scotland.

Enquiring privately removes that wait almost entirely — most Falkirk patients are offered a first appointment within a few weeks, and a GP referral is never a precondition for booking.

What the assessment involves

The pathway follows NICE guideline NG87 and runs over two 60-minute video appointments, spaced roughly two to four weeks apart. In week one, Dr Crocker takes a full developmental and clinical history, works through validated ADHD rating scales, and — where a partner, parent or old school report is available — starts building the collateral evidence that underpins a reliable diagnosis.

Between the two appointments, that evidence-gathering continues in the background: any outstanding questionnaires get completed, and collateral accounts are followed up if they have not yet arrived. The second appointment, typically in weeks two to four, revisits the findings, tests them against the diagnostic criteria, and reaches a conclusion.

A full written report follows, setting out the diagnostic reasoning in detail along with personalised recommendations for what comes next. Our full ADHD assessment page breaks down exactly what each of the two appointments covers, and our approach page explains the thinking behind the structure itself.

Autism assessment in Falkirk

Autism assessment is available on the same basis for Falkirk and Forth Valley adults. It is common for someone who first gets in touch about ADHD to recognise autistic traits too once they start describing their own experience — the two conditions overlap often enough that Dr Crocker screens for both rather than asking a patient to guess which one fits before booking. The autism pathway mirrors the ADHD one: a structured, NICE-aligned developmental history, validated assessment tools, and a written report of the same standard.

Where it genuinely is not clear which condition — or both — best accounts for someone’s experience, a combined ADHD and autism assessment covers both in one pathway rather than two separate bookings. More detail on the standalone route sits on the autism assessment page, and on private autism assessment in Scotland.

What it costs

A standalone ADHD assessment — the two 60-minute appointments described above — costs £800. Every other charge, including prescriptions and follow-up reviews, is listed in full on the fee schedule.

Adding an autism assessment brings the combined package to £1,300 across three 60-minute sessions, rather than paying for two separate assessments; a standalone autism assessment on its own is £800. Given how often Falkirk patients ask about both conditions at once, the combined route is usually the more economical choice when there is genuine doubt.

After a diagnosis — treatment and shared care

A confirmed ADHD diagnosis opens up medication as one option among several. Scotland has no national policy obliging GPs to take over prescribing from a private psychiatrist once a diagnosis is made — each Forth Valley practice decides its own position, and that decision can vary from surgery to surgery even within Falkirk itself.

What tips the conversation in a patient’s favour is usually the quality of the paperwork: Dr Crocker’s reports follow NICE and RCPsych conventions and lay out the diagnostic reasoning in a form built for a GP to act on, not just read. Our shared care page goes through how that conversation with a GP typically unfolds.

Where prescribing does go ahead, dose adjustments happen in short follow-up appointments, again by video, so nobody needs to build a return trip into central Falkirk around a routine review. The whole pathway — from the first history-taking appointment through to any later review — is held to the published quality standards for ADHD and autism assessment, which is what gives the eventual diagnosis its weight if it is tested later.

Seen across Falkirk and the Forth Valley by secure video

Nothing about the assessment requires a physical visit — no clinic near the Kelpies to find, no waiting room, no parking meter to feed. Patients join from wherever suits them: a spare room in Larbert or Stenhousemuir, a car during a lunch break in Grangemouth, or a quiet corner of the house after the school run in Bo’ness. Appointment slots run across the working week, including early mornings and Fridays, which tends to suit anyone commuting the Edinburgh–Glasgow corridor and reluctant to take a half-day of leave for a single appointment. Getting started just means sending a message below — the team aims to reply within 48 hours.