Occupational therapy assessments for young people, 13 and up
Assessment for adolescents from 13, focused on independence, school and study, and the move towards adult services.
What it is
Assessment of how a young person manages the things expected of them at their age, and what support would change that. Often searched for as paediatric OT: this is the older end of that range.
What’s involved
- For young people aged 13 and over
- Seen at home, and at school or TAFE where that is where the barrier is
- Independence skills assessed against what is age-appropriate, not against an adult benchmark
- The young person is asked what they want, and it goes in the report
- Written so it still makes sense at the next plan review
Who it’s for
Young people from 13 on an NDIS plan, and families or support coordinators planning ahead of the move to adult services.
Aged 13 and over only. We do not assess younger children. If you are looking for a paediatric occupational therapist for a child under 13, you need a provider who specialises in early childhood or primary-age work, and it is worth saying so up front rather than joining a list here.
What is different about assessing a young person
An adolescent is not a small adult, and the report should not read like one. What counts as independence at fifteen is not what counts at forty, and a funder is being asked about a person who is still changing.
- School, TAFE and study: the environment, the workload, and what gets in the way of participating in it.
- Independence skills: cooking, transport, money, appointments, medication: the ones that decide how the next few years go.
- Fatigue and capacity across a week, not across a single task.
- Sensory environment at home and at school.
- Equipment that has stopped fitting. Anything prescribed for a smaller person has a working life, and growth ends it.
Planning for the change at 18
NDIS plans change shape when a participant becomes an adult, and so does the evidence behind them. Doing an assessment shortly before that happens is far easier than reconstructing it afterwards, particularly where equipment or housing is involved. See adult assessments for what that side looks like.
Where it leads
Usually a functional capacity assessment, and often assistive technology where equipment needs to be reassessed against growth. Home modifications come into it where access at home has not kept up.
Where we deliver this
Murray Bridge, Mount Barker, Gawler, the Adelaide Hills, the Barossa, Elizabeth Vale, southern Adelaide, Victor Harbor, Adelaide, and Australia-wide via telehealth where the assessment allows it.
Common questions
Do you assess children under 13?
No. The practice works with people aged 13 and over. For a younger child you need a paediatric provider who specialises in early childhood or primary-age assessment.
Is this the same as paediatric occupational therapy?
Paediatric OT usually covers everyone under 18, so this is the older end of it. If the young person is 13 or over, it is the same work under a different name.
Can the assessment happen at school?
Where school is where the difficulty shows up, and the school agrees, yes. Otherwise it happens at home.
Who needs to consent?
A parent or guardian for anyone under 18, and the young person themselves. The assessment works a great deal better when they want to be part of it.
Refer for
Adolescent Assessments
Referrals open right here. Questions go to the same inbox.
Open the referral form