Assessment
At The Nest, we adopt a neuro-affirming framework, ensuring the assessment process recognises and respects the diversity of minds, and promotes self-awareness, acceptance, and compassion. We offer a range of psycho-educational and neurodevelopmental assessment services for young people (age 4+), which include:
Autism Assessment
An autism assessment provides a comprehensive understanding of an individual’s communication styles, social interactions, emotional regulation, and sensory experiences. Through this strengths-based process, we aim to celebrate individual differences and help young people and their families better understand their strengths, support needs, and preferences for interacting with the world.
Cognitive Potential Assessment
A cognitive assessment provides a detailed understanding of a young person's intellectual abilities. It highlights areas of cognitive strength while identifying opportunities for further support, offering valuable insights into how a young person processes, attends to, recalls information, and problem-solves. This understanding can help tailor learning strategies, explore supports, and guide individual learning plans.
ADHD Assessment
An ADHD assessment offers a holistic understanding of a young person’s attention, focus, emotional regulation, and executive functioning profile. Through this strengths-based approach, our goal is to provide individuals and their families with valuable insights that celebrate unique traits and guide the development of tailored strategies that empower the young person to reach their full potential.
Educational Assessment
An educational assessment provides valuable insight into a young person's academic achievement. When combined with a cognitive assessment, it provides us with a comprehensive educational profile. It can also help understand diverse learning profiles, such as those associated with Specific Learning Differences (e.g., dyslexia), and guides individualised support strategies for a young person's way of learning.
Autism & ADHD Assessment
A combined autism & ADHD (AuDHD) assessment provides a comprehensive understanding of an individual's neurotype. Using a strengths-based approach, we explore areas such as social interactions, communication, sensory preferences, emotional regulation, attention, and executive functioning. This assessment also helps families understand how autism and ADHD interact, and provides valuable tools to foster success at home, school, and beyond.
Social-Emotional Functioning Assessment
An overall assessment of a young person’s social, emotional, and behavioural profile offers valuable insights into their strengths and areas that may benefit from support. Often conducted alongside cognitive, academic, attentional, or autism assessments, it focuses on social, emotional, behavioral, and adaptive functioning. By identifying the young person’s needs, the process helps shape personalised support strategies, empowering them to reach their fullest potential.
Assessment Process
The Intake Process
The Assessment Phase
Report Writing
Feedback Session
Comprehensive Report
The intake process involves an initial meeting with the young person's parent/caregiver to discuss background history and presenting concerns to tailor the assessment to the young person’s needs. Where appropriate, and with consent, additional information may also be collected from other relevant sources such as teachers, past assessments, school reports and/or correspondence from other health professionals. The intake session is typically completed over one session and can take place in person or via telehealth.
Between one-to-three assessment sessions will be conducted with the young person, lasting approximately 1-to-3 hours each. The number of sessions will depend on the specific information required and the young person’s capacity to complete the assessment within the allocated time. The assessment may involve paper-and-pencil tasks, test batteries, online questionnaires, and/or play-based and social observation activities.
A feedback session is held with the young person's parent/caregiver to discuss the assessment results, as well as recommendations for support and further assessment and/or intervention, if required. Feedback is typically completed during a 50-minute session via telehealth, however feedback can also take place in person.
A comprehensive report outlining background history, clinical observations, and results will be provided following the feedback session. Individualised recommendations will also be provided which may include accommodations, interventions, and practical strategies to support the young person’s needs.
Report writing involves scoring, interpreting, and collating comprehensive quantitative and qualitative data from assessments and observations, to provide a clear understanding of the young person's profile. Each report typically requires 2-to-12 hours to complete.
Address:
Suite 1.02, 171 Union Road
Surrey Hills VIC 3127
Contact:
Contact Hours:
Monday: Closed
Tuesday-to-Thursday: 9am-5pm
Friday: 9am-4pm
Saturday and Sunday: Closed​​​​​
The Nest Psychology Melbourne acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the lands across Australia and the Torres Strait Islands, and we pay our deepest respect to Elders past, present, and emerging. We recognise that sovereignty was never ceded and that this land in which we work, live, create and connect always was and always will be Aboriginal land.
At The Nest, we are dedicated to fostering an inclusive environment for all clients and carers. We celebrate and value people of all backgrounds, genders, sexuality, culture, and abilities.