Workshops & Webinars

This one-day introductory workshop is designed to support early career psychologists, allied health professionals, and clinicians involved in assessment to develop a more neurodiversity-affirming, strengths-based, and clinically nuanced approach to autism assessment in children.

The workshop explores how to move beyond surface-level observations and build a deeper understanding of how children experience, communicate, regulate, and adapt within the world around them, including children whose presentations may be more internalised, subtle, or high-masking.

Participants will be introduced to practical, real-world approaches to conducting affirming autism assessments, including:

• Integrating multiple sources of information into meaningful clinical formulation
• Understanding sensory processing, regulation, and environmental influences
• Recognising high-masking and internalised presentations
• Exploring the child’s lived experience alongside observable behaviours
• Using assessment tools thoughtfully and flexibly, rather than rigidly

The training includes discussion around commonly used assessment tools and their clinical application, including:

• ADOS-2 and understanding both its strengths and limitations
• MIGDAS-2 as a strengths-based and sensory-informed assessment approach
• Additional measures relating to adaptive functioning, executive functioning, attention, and behavioural profiles

A strong focus is placed on creating affirming assessment environments that reduce performance pressure and support authentic engagement.

This includes:

• Practical ways to structure the assessment space to support comfort and regulation
• Building rapport and flexibility into structured assessment processes
• Supporting children in ways that feel safe, respectful, and developmentally appropriate
• How to include parents

The workshop also explores clinical interpretation and formulation beyond scores and checklists.

Participants will learn how to meaningfully integrate:

• Clinical observations
• Parent and teacher insights
• Functional impact across settings
• The child’s internal and lived experience

Interactive learning components include:

• Video-based observation of two autism assessments
• Examples of both more observable and high-masking/internalised presentations
• Guided clinical discussion to support the interpretation and identification of subtle indicators
• Exploration of the differences between external presentation and internal experience

This workshop is particularly suited to:

• Early career psychologists
• Allied health clinicians involved in assessment
• Clinicians wanting greater confidence in affirming autism assessment
• Professionals seeking a more neurodiversity-affirming approach to practice

Participants will leave with:

• A clearer and more confident framework for paediatric autism assessment
• Practical strategies that can be implemented immediately
• A deeper understanding of less visible presentations
• Tools to support more meaningful and individualised assessments
• Report templates, checklists, and assessment guidelines to support clinical practice