Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) Testing
Auditory Processing Disorder testing from £995. The Hearing Clinic is one of the very few private clinics in England offering specialist APD assessments and management for adults. Get tailored support from a dedicated expert who truly understands.
You’ve been told your hearing is normal – but something still isn’t right
Standard hearing tests measure whether you can detect sound, but they don’t measure what your brain does with it. Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) affects how the brain interprets sound, which means it’s entirely possible to pass a hearing test and still struggle with listening in everyday life.
APD in adults often goes unrecognised for years, frequently misattributed to inattention or anxiety.
A specialist APD assessment at The Hearing Clinic costs from £995. Our dedicated APD specialist will identify the specific nature of your processing difficulties, produce a detailed report with recommendations for your workplace, GP, and other professionals, and work with you to find the best APD management route – this might be hearing aids, auditory training, and general daily adjustments.
A hearing clinic that takes APD seriously
Trisha Patel – specialist in adult auditory processing disorder
Detailed clinical report that’s useful, actionable, and professionally recognised
CQC-registered – independently verified to the highest standards
Meet Trisha Patel, your APD specialist
Trisha Patel leads auditory processing disorder tests for adults at The Hearing Clinic. She specialises in the assessment of adults whose listening difficulties have gone unrecognised or unexplained – including those with co-occurring conditions such as ADHD, autism, dyslexia, and acquired brain injury.
Her approach is thorough, evidence-based, and centred on giving patients clear, actionable answers about their auditory processing. She’ll also work with you to find the best APD management solution for you, typically using a combination of low-gain hearing aids and auditory training to give you the quality of life you deserve.
Who our APD assessments are for
The Hearing Clinic’s APD tests for adults are relevant to a wide range of people. You may find one useful if you:
- Struggle to follow conversations in noisy environments despite normal hearing test results
- Have experienced a head injury, concussion, or stroke and noticed changes in your listening ability
- Have been told your hearing is fine, but feel that something is still not right
- Have a diagnosis of ADHD, autism, or dyslexia and suspect auditory processing disorder
- Find phone calls, group conversations, or fast speech particularly difficult
- Need a formal assessment to support a workplace reasonable adjustment request or review
Common signs of APD in adults
Many adults with APD have developed coping strategies over the years that mask the true extent of their difficulties – one reason it so often goes undiagnosed. These signs may seem subtle in isolation, but together they paint a recognisable picture.
- Struggling to hear in background noise
You might find it challenging to understand certain words in noisy environments. - Inability to remember longer instructions
Following a series of directions can become difficult. - Challenges with understanding accents or fast speech
It can be difficult to follow quick or accented conversations. - Struggling with workplace meetings
Finding it difficult to keep up in both in-person and online meetings, especially when multiple people are speaking or audio quality is poor.
- Mishearing or misunderstanding what is said
Following a series of directions can become difficult. - Difficulty concentrating unless it’s quiet
Noise can become a significant distraction. - Disliking speaking on the phone
Phone conversations may feel particularly daunting. - Auditory fatigue
Feeling mentally drained after conversations, as listening requires intense concentration.
What does an adult APD assessment involve?
The Hearing Clinic’s auditory processing test for adults is one of the most thorough available at a private clinic in England. It is designed to go beyond a simple screening and produce a detailed, clinically robust picture of your auditory processing – one that can support workplace adjustments, medical referrals, or onward specialist involvement.
Before your appointment
You’ll be asked to complete up to six online questionnaires in advance. These take around 30-40 minutes in total and give us a detailed insight into your listening difficulties before you arrive, so your appointment time is used as effectively as possible. The questionnaires cover:
- Adult Auditory Performance Scale (AAPS) – evaluates listening difficulty across different situations
- Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults (HHIA) – aligns your difficulties with known hearing loss contexts
- LSEQ Self-Efficacy Scale – measures your perception of your own listening ability
- Cognitive Difficulties Scale – explores communication challenges related to cognition
- La Trobe Communication Questionnaire – particularly relevant where head injury is a factor
- Handedness Inventory – assesses whether listening orientation affects your processing
On the day
Your assessment appointment takes approximately three to four hours with at least an hour break in between. We begin with a standard hearing test to rule out any peripheral hearing loss, then move through a comprehensive battery of APD-specific tests assessing different aspects of auditory processing, including how you process speech in noise, your ability to distinguish between similar sounds, and how well your auditory system integrates information from both ears.
Your report
Following your auditory processing disorder test, you’ll receive a detailed written report covering your results, a clear diagnosis where applicable, and specific, actionable recommendations. This report is written to be useful to you, your GP, your employer or any other professional involved in your care. It is one of the most comprehensive APD reports available from any private clinic in England.
This is what one of our patients has to say about our APD assessment and management:
“They don’t just treat the condition, they transform lives.”
I just wanted to thank you for all your help and support over the past 10 months, after receiving a very late diagnosis of adult autism I went through most of my life not knowing what was wrong. My diagnosis introduced me to the existence of the comorbid condition of auditory processing disorder. After reading about the general difficulties associated with APD I immediately suspected that I was suffering with this on top of my autism struggles and contacted the clinic for an assessment.
How is APD in adults managed?
APD in adults is highly manageable with the right combination of strategies and support. Depending on your assessment results, your management plan may include:
Even without measurable hearing loss, low-gain hearing aids can help by amplifying specific frequencies that your auditory system struggles to process clearly, making speech easier to follow in complex listening environments.
Low-gain hearing aids also have advanced speech enhancement and noise reduction algorithms. as well as directional microphones built in. This further improves access to speech and aids comprehension in difficult listening conditions.
Devices that transmit a speaker’s voice directly to your ears, reducing the effect of background noise and distance – particularly useful in workplace meetings or lectures.
Structured listening exercises designed to strengthen specific aspects of auditory processing, improving your ability to distinguish speech in noise, follow fast speech, and retain verbal information.
Practical recommendations for adjustments that reduce listening demand – positioning, lighting, written follow-ups to verbal instructions, and communication strategies for colleagues and managers. Your report can also be submitted to your workplace, so that reasonable adjustments can be implemented to support you at work.
Where appropriate, we can refer to or liaise with speech and language therapists, neuropsychologists, occupational therapists, or other specialists involved in your broader care.
What does an adult APD assessment cost?
An adult APD assessment at The Hearing Clinic costs £995, which includes the full pre-assessment questionnaire reviews, a three-to-four-hour assessment appointment, and a detailed written report with findings and recommendations. A peripheral hearing assessment (£495) is carried out in advance of the APD assessment to establish your baseline hearing profile and to rule out any referable conditions. We’ll discuss the full process and costs clearly before you commit to anything.
Not sure if an APD test is right for you? Let’s talk
Many of the adults we see have spent years wondering whether what they experience is normal – and whether anything can be done about it. Our team will listen, answer your questions honestly, and help you understand whether an APD assessment makes sense for your situation. No pressure, no obligation. Complete the form, and we’ll call you back.
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Have more questions?
Don’t hesitate to contact us
Auditory processing disorder (APD) is a condition affecting how the brain interprets sound, rather than whether the ears can detect it. People with APD typically have normal hearing test results but struggle to process what they hear, particularly in noisy environments, group conversations, or when speech is fast or accented. It’s not a hearing loss, and it’s not a cognitive condition, though it frequently co-occurs with ADHD, dyslexia and autism.
APD in adults is diagnosed through a specialist assessment battery that goes beyond a standard hearing test. At The Hearing Clinic, our auditory processing disorder test for adults takes three to four hours and covers multiple aspects of auditory processing, including speech-in-noise testing, binaural processing, and auditory memory. You’ll also complete a series of online questionnaires before your appointment. The assessment concludes with a comprehensive written report including a formal diagnosis where applicable.
The most common signs include difficulty understanding speech in background noise, frequently mishearing or misunderstanding words, struggling to follow fast or accented speech, difficulty remembering verbal instructions, disliking phone calls, and finding group conversations exhausting. Many adults with APD have developed coping strategies over the years that partially mask these difficulties, which is one reason it so often goes undiagnosed until adulthood.
Yes, and frequently does. APD is a common coexisting condition in adults with ADHD, autism spectrum conditions, and dyslexia, as well as in those with a history of head injury, concussion or stroke. A specialist APD assessment can help disentangle the auditory processing component from other conditions, which is often important for getting the right support in place.
Yes, children can be diagnosed with APD. The Hearing Clinic also offers paediatric APD assessments for children – find out more here.
Management depends on the specific nature and severity of your auditory processing difficulties. Options include remote microphone systems, low-gain hearing aids, auditory training programmes, and practical environmental and workplace strategies. Your written report will include specific recommendations tailored to your results, your lifestyle and your working environment.
Our APD reports are written to clinical standards and are routinely used to support workplace reasonable adjustments requests, GP referrals, and onward specialist involvement. The report covers findings, diagnosis and recommendations in sufficient detail to be clinically useful across a range of professional contexts.
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I would totally recommend the hearing clinic. They are professional and very knowledgeable but also very friendly and easy to talk to.
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Jo was both professional and understanding. She took so much trouble to get my microsuction right, ensuring I was comfortable throughout the process. I now have a much better understanding of my ears and of how to prevent wax building up in future.
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I highly recommend the hearing clinic at Harrogate. I was on holiday at the time but managed to get an appointment after suffering muddled hearing for a few weeks. I have had my ears syringed in the past but never micro suctioned, which turned out to be a painless procedure.
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This is my third set of hearing aids that I’ve purchased from them — something I wouldn’t do if I didn’t have complete trust in both the technology and the people supporting me. Each time, Claire has guided me towards the right choice for my needs, and the improvement in my everyday life has been remarkable.
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