Complexity
For families of children with complex neurodevelopmental needs
For families of children with complex neurodevelopmental needs
There is no single definition of complexity. For us at Growing Different, it means looking at the whole child — their strengths, their wellbeing, how they communicate, how they learn, and how they experience the world around them.
Complex needs can mean different things to different people. In general, it describes having more than one need. At Growing Different we use it to mean looking at the whole child with the unique profile. Other charities have these definitions:
Sense charity for disabled people describes complex needs as having two or more of the following:
Sense report that there are:
(Sense and National Centre for Social Research Report 2022)
Profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD) is defined by the PMLD network. This includes having more than one disability, a profound learning disability, difficulty communicating and may have additional sensory or physical disabilities.
Mencap have a website page describing PMLD
People with complex needs can have unique barriers and may need a high level of support.
Support needs are different according to each child. This is usually the level of support they need in their daily life.
A child may have higher or lower needs as they develop through life.
Some people may describe higher support needs as children who:
Some children have more than one diagnosis which can add to the complexity in their support, care and education. In our parent survey (2024), 1 in 2 parents reported that their children had more than one neurodevelopmental diagnosis.
Children can be said to have a ‘spiky’ profile if they have a mixture of high and low abilities. It can be helpful to understand the specific areas, to enable better support. Sometimes the child can look ‘average’ and not get the support that they need. For example:
This is when a child’s behaviour or health is put down to their main diagnosis, and other needs go unseen.
For example an autistic child begins to be more withdrawn. They may be experiencing anxiety, pain, or a new difficulty. But sometimes professionals may not look further than the autism diagnosis.
A diagnosis can open doors to services and support. It can help to understand. But most children are more than one label, and the system is not always built to see the whole picture. Even within diagnosis, the experience can be very different from child to child.
When funding and services are organised around single diagnoses, children with complex or overlapping needs can fall between the gaps. Some of their difficulties and strengths may be missed. Some issues may put down to their main diagnosis rather than investigated further.
Every child has a unique profile of strengths and needs. Understanding their profile can lead to better support and a more appropriate environment.
We at Growing Different promote understanding of the whole child.
Example — Edward:
Edward is autistic. He also has Tourette syndrome, language difficulties and hearing loss. He has what many would describe as complex needs.
Getting the right support has not always been straightforward. At hearing appointments, clinicians have not always taken into account that Edward needs more time to adjust to new hearing aids, and cannot tolerate certain sounds. In his autism class, his tics were mistaken for stimming at first.
He has an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) and is in a specialist school setting. He has help for his language but sometimes is frustrated that he cannot do maths at the level he likes. Many of the questions on maths are language based, which he finds more difficult. His family have asked for different maths learning that suits Edward better.
Note: Our examples are made up to show common experiences and are not real children.
As a parent or carer for someone with complex needs, you also need support. We have a page on family wellbeing, and you can also look at these external links below.
394 families filled out our survey in 2024. Families told us that their children had additional issues to their main diagnosis.
1 in 5
Nearly 1 in 5 were either waiting on a diagnosis or undiagnosed
(68 out of 388 responses or 18%)
1 in 2
parents said their child had more than one neurodevelopmental condition
222 out of 388 (57%)
4 in 5
reported that their child was autistic, the most common diagnosis from our survey
329 out of 388 (85%)
1 in 2
reported that their child had ADHD, the second most common diagnosis from our survey
216 out of 388 (56%)
Growing Different Parent Survey 2024 – notes and limitations
394 families of neurodivergent children took part in our online survey. Most children were autistic (about 8 in 10). People chose to take part, so the figures show their experiences, not all children. We did not compare them with any other group, so they can’t show how common something is or what causes it. Some questions had more responses than others.
Please credit ‘Growing Different Parent Survey 2024‘ and read more in our survey insights page
The links on this website page are not an endorsement. We are not responsible for the content of external links.
Connecting I Coping I Daily living I Diagnosis I Environment I Health I Learning I Senses I Speech I Strengths
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Information created: June 2026 I Next review: June 2029
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