Assessments
An occupational therapy assessment is an essential first step for our clinicians to ensure they can gain a holistic understanding of your child’s strengths, challenges and everyday functioning. We use this information to understand why your child may be experiencing difficulties, decide whether therapy is needed, and, if so, guide the next steps. The type of assessment we provide is dependent on the reason for referral. It may involve a full developmental assessment or be targeted for specific purposes, such as for funding; for example, an NDIS Functional Capacity Assessment.
What we do:
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Parent-only session:
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Gather background information - medical history, early development, family context and school/preschool engagement. This helps us understand the bigger picture around your child’s challenges.
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Assessment with Child and Parent:
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Assess skills across key developmental areas - fine motor, gross motor, play, self‑care, attention and sensory processing, regulation and participation. Even if your referral concern is specific, we look broadly to rule in or rule out other contributing factors.
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Identify your child’s baseline - a full assessment allows us to set meaningful goals and choose appropriate outcome measures so we can track progress clearly and confidently.
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Report:
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Provide clear recommendations - we combine all information gathered to outline what will support your child at home, school, within the community and in therapy.
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How we do it:
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Standardised assessments - these are formal tests that compare your child’s performance to children of the same age. They help us understand whether skills fall within the expected range.
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Non‑standardised assessments - observations, play‑based tasks and clinical tools that show us how your child manages real‑life activities. These help us understand functional skills, regulation, engagement and participation.
At OT Paeds, we use both because children are complex, and it gives us the best information about where your child is currently sitting functionally. A skilled therapist doesn’t rely on tests alone. We pull together all information, background history, parent perspectives, teacher insights, observations, standardised results and functional performance to provide a foundation to begin to understand your child’s strengths and the areas contributing to their challenges.
This allows us to ensure we are using best practice and evidence‑based recommendations tailored to your child, your family and your child’s learning environment.
Quality and Consistency:
All assessments follow current best practice guidelines and professional protocols. Every report is reviewed by our lead clinician to ensure clarity, accuracy and consistency. We keep reports concise, with detailed discussion provided in follow-up sessions so you have space to ask questions and explore next steps.