NHS Forth Valley say '70 year' waiting time claim for mental health support is false
A parent received Freedom of Information (FOI) details which indicated it would take 70 years to clear the current waiting list for children to access NHS Forth Valley’s mental health services.
The Falkirk Herald was contacted by the parent, who said her son, who supposedly already has a diagnosis of ADHD, was referred for treatment two years ago and in that time he has have been placed on the diagnosis waiting list – the so called “paediatric neurodevelopment” waiting list.
In a statement from the NHS Forth Valley FOI team, the parent was told: “Based on the information provided, the figure is four children per month, equating to approximately one child per week.
"On this basis, and with around 3500 children currently awaiting assessment, the estimated time to reach the end of the waiting list would be approximately 70 years, assuming no change in capacity or additional demand.”
The parent said: “They are seeing children from this list at a rate of one per week. So almost all of the kids will be thrown off the list when they reach 18 and I suspect at this rate many will be elderly before they are treated.
"So in the mean time our children go without effective treatment, write off their entire schooling and at this rate probably their adulthood.”
NHS Forth Valley stated this week the FOI response the parent received was “sent in error” and did not reflect the information provided in previous FOI responses. The matter is now being investigated with the FOI team.
An NHS Forth Valley spokesperson said: “Like other NHS Boards across Scotland, NHS Forth Valley has seen a significant increase in referrals for assessments for children and young people with neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism and ADHD.
“As a result, some families are experiencing longer waiting times and work is underway to explore options to increase capacity and reduce waiting times. We are also capturing feedback from local families to help inform future service developments and improvements.
"In 2025, there were 1395 referrals to our paediatric neurodevelopmental service and the ongoing median wait was 78 weeks which is lower than waiting times for assessments in many other parts of the country.
“The Scottish Government has also recently confirmed additional funding for all NHS Boards to undertake additional assessments, focussing on young people aged 16 and 17.
"It is also important to highlight that families do not need a formal diagnosis of autism or ADHD to access additional support for their child as a range of services and support for children with neurodevelopment conditions is provided by local councils, education and a number of charitable organisations.”
Putting the 70 year waiting time claims to one side, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said he was shocked some NHS boards, including NHS Forth Valley, still had some children waiting well over a year to access mental health support.
He said: “This reveals the brutal extent of Scotland’s mental health crisis, a crisis which the SNP have spent the last two decades ignoring. Action is long overdue. Making children wait over a year for help risks problems spiralling.”