Written by Dr Elena Maritan, Consultant Psychiatrist. Last reviewed: 16 September 2026
What Right to Choose actually is
If you are in England and registered with an English GP, you have a legal right to choose which NHS provider carries out your first outpatient appointment. That includes an ADHD assessment. The assessment is funded by the NHS and costs you nothing.
It applies in England only. It is not available in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. If you move and register with a GP outside England while you are waiting, you lose eligibility.
The provider you choose has to hold an NHS contract for that service. Not every ADHD clinic does.
How to use it
Book a GP appointment and ask for a referral to a named Right to Choose provider for an ADHD assessment. Have the provider’s name and referral form ready. Most providers publish a form your GP can complete.
If your GP hesitates, the two most common reasons are both answerable.
The first is that the provider is not commissioned by your local Integrated Care Board. This is not relevant. Right to Choose exists precisely so that you can go outside your local commissioning arrangements.
The second is that your GP thinks an Individual Funding Request is needed. It is not. Right to Choose does not require permission from the ICB.
If your GP is refusing on funding grounds rather than clinical grounds, ask them to look at the NHS Choice Framework. If you get nowhere, your ICB’s PALS service is the next step.
Why it has got harder
Since 2024, a growing number of the 42 Integrated Care Boards in England have issued guidance that restricts, caps or discourages Right to Choose referrals for ADHD. Some have introduced prior approval steps. Some have narrowed the list of providers they will accept. Some have told GPs to treat local NHS services as the first option.
NHS England’s position is that an ICB cannot abolish Right to Choose, because it is a constitutional right. In practice, enforcing it often falls to the patient.
The result is that waiting times vary enormously depending on where your GP practice is registered, which is not necessarily where you live. In some areas the wait is weeks. In others it is well over a year.
Two organisations publish current area by area data on this: ADHD UK and the ADHD Map project. Check your own area before you make a decision. We are not going to print a number here that will be out of date within a month.
There is a second problem, and it comes after the diagnosis
Getting assessed is one hurdle. Getting medication prescribed long term by your GP is another.
After a diagnosis, ongoing prescribing usually moves to your GP under a shared care agreement. Several Local Medical Committees and Primary Care Networks have advised GPs to stop accepting new shared care agreements for ADHD, citing workload and local prescribing guidance. This affects people diagnosed through Right to Choose and people diagnosed privately alike.
It is worth asking your GP practice, before you start down either route, whether they currently accept new ADHD shared care agreements. The answer will shape which option makes sense for you.
So when does paying privately make sense
Be honest with yourself about which of these applies.
Right to Choose is probably the better option if you can wait, your area is not heavily restricted, and cost matters to you. It is free. Use it.
Paying privately is worth considering if you need an answer in weeks because of work, study or a decision you cannot defer. Or your GP has refused and you do not want to spend months escalating it. Or your local Right to Choose route is effectively closed. Or the picture is complicated and you want a consultant psychiatrist assessing everything, not just screening for one condition.
What we offer
We do not accept Right to Choose referrals at present. We have applied for Right to Choose recognition, that application is well underway, and we hope to be able to accept referrals later in 2026. Until then, an assessment with us is a private one.
Private ADHD assessment with a consultant psychiatrist at The Blue Tree Clinic in South Hampstead or online, with an initial appointment usually available within one week, and a written report for your GP within two to three weeks. We also offer titration, so treatment can start with us rather than sending you elsewhere.
Please contact us for fees. Fees depend on whether the assessment is for an adult or a child.
If Right to Choose is the better route for you, take it. We would rather you were assessed than stuck.
We operate a callback system. Send us your details through the contact form and we will call you back.
The Coach House, 39 College Crescent, South Hampstead, London NW3 5LB
Frequently asked questions
What is NHS Right to Choose for ADHD? If you are in England and registered with an English GP, you have a legal right to choose which NHS provider carries out your first outpatient appointment, including an ADHD assessment. It is funded by the NHS and costs you nothing.
Can my GP refuse a Right to Choose referral? Not on funding grounds. Right to Choose does not require approval from your Integrated Care Board and does not need an Individual Funding Request. If your GP refuses on funding grounds, ask them to look at the NHS Choice Framework.
Does The Blue Tree Clinic accept Right to Choose referrals? Not at present. We have applied for Right to Choose recognition and hope to accept referrals later in 2026. Until then, an assessment with us is a private one.