TANDA: Improving Crisis Care for Neurodivergent Young People
The TANDA study (Therapeutic Assessment and Neurodivergence Assessment) is an exciting new research project led by the University of Glasgow, in partnership with NHS Ayrshire and Arran and Queen Mary University of London.
Many young people who experience a mental health crisis — including self-harm or suicidal thoughts — are also neurodivergent, meaning they may be autistic, have ADHD, or experience other forms of neurodevelopmental difference. However, these needs are often not recognised during crisis care, leaving young people and families waiting a long time for support that fully meets their needs.
What is TANDA doing?
The TANDA study is testing a new approach that combines two things:
1. Therapeutic Assessment — a collaborative, supportive conversation designed to help young people understand their distress and feel more in control.
2. Rapid Neurodevelopmental Assessment — innovative tools that help experienced clinicians quickly identify signs of neurodivergence in a respectful and holistic way.
By bringing these approaches together within NHS crisis teams, the study hopes to provide quicker answers and more personalised support for young people and their families.
Why is this important?
Research shows that neurodivergent young people are much more likely to experience mental health challenges — but too often they fall through the gaps in services designed around neurotypical needs.
This study recognises that difference is not deficit. It aims to create a system where neurodivergent young people are identified earlier, understood better, and supported in ways that work for them.
What happens next?
Over 2024-2026, the TANDA study will work with young people, families, and NHS clinicians in Ayrshire and Arran to test how this new approach works in practice. The study will explore:
- How acceptable and useful young people and families find this approach.
- How easily the tools can be used in busy NHS crisis services.
- What impact the approach has on care pathways and outcomes.
The findings will inform the design of a larger national trial, with the goal of improving mental health crisis care for neurodivergent young people across Scotland and beyond.
Project Team
TANDA is led by Dr Jason Lang (University of Glasgow), with co-investigators Dr Helen Smith, Annemarie MacRae, Professor Dennis Ougrin, Dr Claire Davidson-Jamieson, and Dr Liana Romaniuk.
The study is funded by the Mental Health Translational Research Collaboration (MH-TRC).
