The Welsh Government has said that while the longest waits for autism assessments in Wales has fallen, children remain waiting too long and ‘reducing waiting times remains a key priority.”

Sarah Murphy MS, Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing said the last 12 months “has seen sustained activity and progress” on Wales-wide plans to reduce waiting times for children’s neurodevelopmental assessments.

Setting her priorities for the Neurodivergence Improvement Programme in 2025-26, she said “all health boards have made progress to reduce waiting times for children’s neurodevelopmental services and, as a result of service transformation and additional investment of £3m, we have eliminated four-year waits across Wales.”

Figures show that an additional 2,166 assessments were carried out between January and March 2025, but more is needed to begin fully tackling the backlog.

“While I recognise the progress made, I remain acutely aware of the ongoing challenges faced by families with children who are waiting too long for an assessment,” the minister said.

“Reducing waiting times remains a key priority.

“I am re-orientating the Neurodivergence Improvement Programme in 2025-26 to sustain and accelerate this progress.”

In February, the minister announced £13.7m in funding over two years to March 2027 to continue improvements.

In 2025-26, £5.6m of that funding will focus on reducing children’s neurodevelopmental assessment waiting times.

The minister said: “I am setting the target of eliminating all three-year waits across Wales by March 2026.

“But many health boards will be able to go much further and faster.

“Some health boards have already made significant progress to transform assessment pathways and have lower waiting times as a result.

“I want to ensure these health boards are supported to continue this progress.

“We will also continue to work closely with the NHS Executive to scrutinise delivery plans, improve data quality, and ensure national consistency and standards.”