In France, identifying neurodevelopmental disorders is based on a simple principle: don't wait. The French National Authority for Health recommends identifying warning signs from the first year and referring the child without waiting for a complete diagnosis. Since 2019, a national system - coordination and referral platforms - has made it possible to begin funded early support. Here is what this pathway provides, and what parents can observe themselves.
What do neurodevelopmental disorders encompass?
The term covers several distinct conditions that appear during a child's development. These include autism spectrum disorders, attention deficit disorder, specific learning disorders, intellectual developmental disorders and motor developmental disorders.
These conditions are common. According to the official assessment of the national strategy published in April 2026, attention deficit disorder alone may affect around 5% of children in France. This represents more than two million people of all ages.
One point deserves to be stated clearly. Identifying a concern is not diagnosing. A warning sign justifies an examination, not a conclusion. Many children identified as having a concern will ultimately receive no diagnosis.
What the HAS recommends for identification
The French National Authority for Health published a recommendation in March 2020 dedicated to identifying and referring children at risk, from birth to age 7. It remains the reference document.
Two levels of vigilance
The recommendation distinguishes between children at high risk and children at moderate risk. This distinction determines who follows the child and how often.
High-risk factors are listed precisely. They include extreme prematurity before 32 weeks, intrauterine growth restriction, hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy and perinatal stroke. They also include certain brain abnormalities, a family history of severe disorders, and prenatal exposure to valproate or alcohol.
Moderate-risk factors include moderate or late prematurity, grade 1 encephalopathy, prenatal exposure to psychoactive substances, or neonatal septic shock.
Targeted observation appointments
For children at risk, the HAS recommends standardized assessments at specific ages: 9 months, 18 months, 24 months, between 30 and 36 months, and then between 4 and 5 years. For children born prematurely, corrected age is used up to age 2.
These appointments fit into the existing schedule. Of the twenty mandatory medical examinations during childhood and adolescence, fourteen take place between birth and age 3. Developmental monitoring plays a central role in these examinations.
The identification checklist
The HAS provides a tool entitled “Identifying unusual development in children under 7”. It covers five areas: motor skills, language, social engagement, behavioral control and working memory.
One point in the recommendation deserves emphasis. Parents' concerns are in themselves a warning sign, regardless of the child's age. They should not be minimized.
What are the warning signs before age 3?
No single sign is enough to draw any conclusion. It is the persistence of several signs, their combination, or the loss of an acquired skill that justifies seeking medical advice.
- Motor skills. No head control after 4 months. No rolling over at 8 months. No independent movement at 12 months. Clear and persistent asymmetry in the use of the limbs.
- Language. No babbling at 12 months. No words at 18 months. No combination of two words at 24 months.
- Social engagement. No responsive smile. No pointing at 18 months. Persistent avoidance of eye contact.
- Regression. Loss of language, eye contact or an already established motor skill, at any age.
Typical developmental milestones are detailed in our articles on fine and gross motor skills from 0 to 3 years and on language development from 0 to 3 years.
Who should you contact first?
The doctor who follows the child is the first point of contact. This may be a family doctor, pediatrician or doctor from maternal and child health services. They carry out the initial screening and, where appropriate, initiate the referral.
For children at high risk, the HAS provides for a specialized neurodevelopmental consultation. It is arranged even before the child leaves the maternity or neonatal unit.
How do coordination and referral platforms work?
Created from 2019 onward, coordination and referral platforms are the main innovation in the French system. They have a specific objective: to enable support to begin even before a diagnosis has been made.
The doctor refers the child to the platform serving their area. The platform coordinates a pathway of assessments and interventions with private practitioners: psychomotor therapist, occupational therapist and psychologist. These sessions are not normally reimbursed by the French health insurance system. The early intervention package covers them for one year, renewable once.
The official assessment published in April 2026 shows the scale of the system. There are 182 platforms operating across France, including 73 dedicated to children aged 7-12. Since they were created, 186,193 children have been identified as having a concern. Of these, 145,033 children aged 0 to 6 were referred to a platform. In 2025, 110,897 children benefited from a package.
The same assessment also identifies persistent structural difficulties. The availability of professionals and access times vary greatly between regions. Access remains unequal from one department to another.
Why does early intervention make a difference?
The rationale lies in brain plasticity. The early years are the period when the brain reorganizes most rapidly in response to experience. This is the reasoning behind the first 1,000 days policy, discussed in our article on brain development during the first 1,000 days.
It is important to remain measured about what this means. Early intervention improves developmental trajectories: this is a strong professional consensus. It does not eliminate the disorder, and the extent of the benefit varies greatly depending on the situation.
What parents can do every day
Identification is the responsibility of professionals. Observation, however, begins with parents, who see their child in all of their everyday situations.
Three simple habits can help in practical ways. Note observations over the months rather than trying to reconstruct everything during an appointment. Mention anything that raises questions without waiting for the next appointment. And give the child time to move freely on the floor, where you can observe their spontaneous movements without prompting them.
This last point connects with the approach described in our article on free movement and its application in everyday life. A clear floor and a firm surface reveal what a baby bouncer can conceal. Our practical guidance on play mats and physical development complements this approach.
No equipment replaces medical advice. The aim is simply to create the conditions for observation.
Key takeaways
Identifying neurodevelopmental disorders is organized around three pillars: a schedule of mandatory examinations, an observation checklist validated by the HAS, and a network of regional platforms. The system is expanding, with more than 186,000 children identified as having a concern since 2019.
Two messages stand out. Parents should voice their concerns rather than wait. And identifying a warning sign is not the same as making a diagnosis.
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Sources
- French National Authority for Health, “Neurodevelopmental disorders: identifying and referring children at risk”, good practice recommendation, published on March 17, 2020.
- French National Authority for Health, “Identifying unusual development in children under 7”, 2020.
- Interministerial Delegation for the National Strategy for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, “2025-2026 assessment of the 2023-2027 national strategy”, published in April 2026.
- French Health Insurance, “The 20 medical checkups for children and adolescents”, accessed in August 2026.
