Community Assessment Therapy Services -CATS

13/01/2026

Did you know… CATS is one of only 3 services from across the whole of the UK invited to partner with the National Autistic Society 🤝✨

This invitation reflects the standards we hold ourselves to every day:
• High-quality, evidence-informed practice
• Expert clinicians with extensive specialist training
• A holistic approach that looks at the whole child (and the wider environment around them)
• Face-to-face appointments, so we can truly understand a child’s strengths, needs, and day-to-day experiences

We’re incredibly proud to be recognised in this way and we’ll keep doing what we do best: providing thoughtful, specialist support that families can trust. 💙

https://www.catservices.uk/spage-about_us-national_autistic_society.html

https://www.autism.org.uk/what-we-do/autism-know-how/diagnostic-services/our-partners

10/01/2026

✅ The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training (Tier 2)- delivered by CATS in partnership with

If you’re a CQC-registered provider, learning disability and autism training isn’t optional, it’s a legal requirement, and it needs to meet the standards set out in The Oliver McGowan Code of Practice.

At Community Assessment Therapy Services (CATS), we deliver Tier 2 (Part 2) the interactive, face-to-face element of the programme.

🌟 What makes CATS different?

We don’t just “teach the content” we bring real clinical depth. Our training is supported by an experienced multi-disciplinary workforce including:
• Occupational Therapists (OTs)
• Speech & Language Therapists (SLTs)
• Specialist Nurses
…all with extensive experience working alongside people with a learning disability and autistic people.

💬 Lived experience at the heart of learning

Tier 2 is co-delivered with co-trainers with lived experience, ensuring learning is grounded in real-world perspectives and best practice.

📌 Important: Attendees must complete the official eLearning (Part 1) before Tier 2.

📩 Enquiries & bookings: admin@catservices.uk

Bring confident, compassionate, person-centred practice to your workforce with training delivered by clinicians who do this work every day.

08/01/2026

Not sure if your child needs an Occupational Therapy assessment or whether Occupational Therapy is the right fit? 💛

Our CATS Occupational Therapy Advice Line lets you speak to a highly specialist Paediatric OT for clear, practical guidance on areas like:

• Sensory needs
• Everyday skills at home (dressing, toileting, mealtimes)
• Fine & gross motor skills (handwriting, coordination)
• Emotional regulation & behaviour
• School participation (focus, organisation, transitions)

📞 Book via our website: https://www.catservices.uk/sspage-contact_us-occupational_therapy_referral-telephone_advice_line.html

07/01/2026

This looks brilliant 🤩

If your daughter keeps everything bottled up

If friendships feel hard

If big feelings are showing up as anger, tears or withdrawal

The Tween & Teen Girls Circle offers a calm, safe space to explore emotions, build self-esteem and learn tools to manage stress and worries all alongside girls who "get it."

Gentle guidance. Real connection. Lasting
skills.

Book your girl a place today and bag her bestie a free place too!

07/01/2026

✨ NEW: Interactive Online Training (via CATS) ✨
Sensory Processing for Primary Aged Children

We’re excited to launch our first interactive online training session, delivered by an Occupational Therapist who is also a qualified Sensory Integration Practitioner.

This session is designed to help you better understand sensory processing in primary-aged children, and, because it’s interactive, you’ll have the chance to ask questions and explore how this may relate to your own child.

✅ Suitable for:
• Parents & carers
• Teachers
• TAs, SENCOs & school support staff

💻 Join from home, no travel, no hassle, and still get that real-time support and discussion.

📣 Watch this space: we’ve got more online topics coming soon, and we’ll be offering different times of day too (because we know how busy family life can be!).

✔️ Book your place here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sensory-processing-for-primary-aged-children-tickets-1979858252329?aff=oddtdtcreator

06/01/2026

Right to Choose (RTC) Update – January 2026

We’re sharing an update on our Right to Choose (RTC) referral pathways and current booking timelines. Due to very high demand, availability is changing quickly and wait times may increase across all areas.

Norfolk & Waveney (Children aged 6–18)

We have been informed that we can reopen our waiting list for children aged 6–18.
• We will not be booking these appointments until April 2026
• We anticipate wait times will increase
• At this stage, we do not know how long wait times will be or how many children we will be able to see until the ICB informs us.
• We are unable to respond to emails requesting wait time estimates for this area
We will provide an update as soon as we receive further information from the ICB

Suffolk & North East Essex (Children aged 6–18)

We are currently open to RTC referrals for children aged 6–18.
• We are currently booking new patients into April 2026

Other Areas (Out of Area Referrals)

We can accept referrals for children outside of the above areas, as long as your local ICB approves funding.

We already have approval from:
• Northamptonshire
• Cambridge & Peterborough
• Herefordshire & Worcestershire
• Hertfordshire & West Essex

If your area is not listed, we are happy to contact your local ICB to request approval and secure funding.

Please note:
• We can offer assessments in these areas, however we cannot prescribe medication.

Important note about emails

Due to the high volume of emails we are currently receiving, we are not able to respond to enquiries about wait times via email.

Thank you for your understanding and patience, we will continue to share updates as soon as we are able.

06/01/2026

Lots of exciting developments are happening within our Occupational Therapy service and we’ll be highlighting these over the coming weeks! ✨

First up: School Based OT Assessment 🏫

Our School Based Occupational Therapy Assessment looks at how a child manages the sensory, functional and environmental demands of the school day.

We consider:
• Sensory processing (e.g., noise, movement, touch, attention, fatigue)
• Functional skills for school (e.g., seating, handwriting, tool use, self-care, organisation, transitions, play and participation)
• The school environment (e.g., classroom set-up, routines, sensory load, reasonable adjustments)

Following the assessment, we provide a clear, detailed report with individualised recommendations tailored to your child’s strengths and needs. Recommendations may include environmental adaptations, strategies, equipment suggestions, and practical guidance for staff to implement.

📩 To book, email admin@catservices.uk

05/01/2026

Delighted to share some exciting news 🎉

One of our directors is now an approved Lead Trainer for the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Autism and Learning Disability.

This is something we’re truly passionate about, and we’re proud to be supporting better understanding, inclusion, and quality of care for autistic people and people with a learning disability.

We’ll be able to offer this training to organisations in 2026, more information coming soon.

https://www.catservices.uk/sspage-services-training-the_oliver_mcgowan_mandatory_training_on_learning_disability_and_autism__tier_2_.html

admin@catservices.uk

05/01/2026

❄️ ❄️ ❄️

05/01/2026

Our clinic looking beautiful in the ❄️

04/01/2026

✨ Happy New Year from Community Assessment Therapy Services (CATS)! ✨

We hope you’ve had a restful break and are looking forward to the year ahead. 💛

📅 We reopen tomorrow and we’re working through a high volume of emails and messages. Thank you so much for your patience, we’ll respond as soon as we can. 📩⏳

🌟 2026 is going to be an exciting one, with lots of announcements and new developments coming soon. Watch this space!

Warm wishes,
The CATS Team 💙

19/12/2025

🎄 Season’s Greetings from Community Assessment Therapy Services (CATS) 🎄

We’d like to wish all our families, clients, partners and associates a very warm Season’s Greetings.

Please note our festive closure:
We will be closing at 3:00pm today (Friday 19th December) We’ll be back in the office on Monday 5th January.

During this time, we won’t be monitoring emails or messages, so please expect a response once we reopen.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support. ✨

Wishing you a peaceful end to the year and a happy New Year from all of us at CATS. ✨