Priory Clinic Harley Street

Match the appointment to the service at Harley Street

The current Harley Street clinic page describes outpatient assessment, talking therapies, psychiatric care, and rTMS. For children, autism assessment is specifically provided through consultant psychiatrist-led child and adolescent services. The local CBT service covers ages 5 to 18 and can be delivered in person or remotely, with parent-led work available for some younger children. These descriptions should guide a referral more closely than the clinic’s broad list of concerns.

The first appointment should establish whether the request is for therapy, a psychiatric opinion, a neurodevelopmental assessment, or a specialist procedure. Those services involve different professionals and may have different eligibility and fees. Explain current treatment and the reason for seeking another service so the clinic can identify the appropriate route. A central London outpatient appointment also needs a plan for ongoing support at home; the clinic does not present itself as an inpatient hospital.

Understand what the rTMS course actually involves

The clinic’s rTMS brochure describes an initial consultation reviewing diagnosis, medical history, and alternatives, followed by treatment administered by a trained technician. It gives sessions of 15 to 45 minutes and describes schedules that vary by protocol. Its depression discussion refers to a course over two to six weeks, while its OCD description uses four or five sessions weekly over four weeks. These are provider descriptions, not a universal prescription or a promise that everyone completes treatment on that timetable.

Before booking, clarify the proposed condition, device, protocol, clinical supervisor, and review points. Ask how benefit and adverse effects will be monitored and what happens if treatment is not helping. The brochure also says its insurance funding route is for depression rather than OCD; obtain authorization for the actual indication and course. Published descriptions of rapid improvement or resuming activities immediately should not replace individualized advice about response, side effects, and practical arrangements.

NICE guidance for depression recognizes variable benefit

NICE’s depression guidance, HTG396, finds adequate evidence of short-term effectiveness for rTMS while emphasizing that clinical responses differ. It permits use with normal arrangements for clinical governance and audit. Consent should include discussion of other treatment options and the possibility that the procedure will not help. This is more specific than a general statement that a treatment is “approved.”

For a person comparing Harley Street with another service, that means looking beyond the availability of the equipment. A useful consultation should explain why the proposed course fits the diagnosis and treatment history, what improvement would look like, and when the plan would be reviewed. NICE also identifies the need for further evidence about patient selection, precise stimulation regimens, maintenance treatment, and longer-term outcomes. An initial course should therefore not be presented as a guaranteed lasting solution or automatically include every future maintenance session.

The OCD recommendation is different

NICE’s OCD guidance, HTG548, says TMS should be used only in research because evidence of effectiveness is insufficient in quantity and quality. It identifies no major safety concerns in the evidence reviewed, but that does not amount to a recommendation for routine OCD treatment. The current guidance preserves this distinction despite the clinic’s broader promotional descriptions of rTMS for depression and OCD.

Anyone offered TMS for OCD should ask how the proposed service relates to that recommendation, whether a research arrangement applies, and what consent information explains the uncertainty. Ask what other established treatment options have been considered and who coordinates continuing OCD care. A clinic advertising a procedure does not establish that NICE recommends its routine use for every advertised condition. This profile does not verify a research protocol at Harley Street or claim that one exists; that would require specific documentation from the treating service.

Consultant expertise and ongoing psychiatric care

Dr. Geoff Lawrence-Smith’s provider biography describes experience in adult community, liaison, and perinatal psychiatry, as well as rTMS for depression and ADHD assessment. It lists both Harley Street and Priory Hospital North London. Those different settings help explain a clinician’s background, but they do not mean an outpatient appointment includes inpatient access or emergency-department care.

When a named consultant is important to the choice of service, confirm who will assess the person and who will provide follow-up. For someone already taking medication or working with another psychiatrist, agree how information will be shared and who remains responsible for prescribing. For a specialist procedure, clarify which reviews are included in the course and which require another appointment. A biography can support a discussion about expertise, but current availability, the scope of a consultation, and the proposed care plan still need to be agreed individually.

The interpersonal group has its own eligibility and price

The linked interpersonal therapy flyer describes a closed group for adults aged 18 to 75 who are already engaged in therapy. It lists six to eight participants, an initial free suitability assessment, and £1,091 for twelve sessions. Topics concern patterns in relationships, expressing needs, and reflecting on interactions; this is a particular group format rather than a general twelve-session package for every diagnosis.

The flyer calls sessions 75 minutes long but places the Wednesday group within a 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. window, and also mentions Saturday mornings. Confirm the actual duration, next intake, current fee, and whether the published schedule still applies. A closed group may require commitment to the agreed sequence, so missed-session terms and suitability should be discussed beforehand. The clinician can explain how it fits alongside existing therapy and whether another approach would better address the person’s immediate needs.

Read the linked overview as a service description

The clinic’s overview brochure describes individual and group outpatient appointments, links with other Priory hospitals, and packages for a specified number of individual therapy sessions. Those links may support consideration of more intensive care, but a referral still needs acceptance by the receiving hospital. They do not establish overnight accommodation or continuous monitoring at 41 Harley Street.

The brochure also uses different child age descriptions from the current website, including references to ages six and above and an outpatient service from twelve. The current local page gives more specific details for individual services, so families should confirm the child’s age and intended intervention directly rather than rely on a single broad age label. Published satisfaction figures are not a forecast for an individual patient. The more useful comparison is the clinician, treatment format, eligibility, review process, and practical support being offered now.

The introductory fee is not a psychiatric consultation fee

Priory’s adult introductory assessment page explains the advertised £49 digital route. It is an online questionnaire reviewed by a clinician to recommend next steps and does not include a written report. A separate £99 consultation option provides a therapist discussion and summary. That option is not a diagnosis, treatment session, or medication review, so neither introductory figure should be used as the price of an rTMS suitability consultation.

These routes are for self-funding adults seeking outpatient guidance and are not appropriate for a crisis. People needing a psychiatric diagnosis, medication review, or more complex assessment should request the relevant appointment. This distinction makes a cost comparison more useful: identify the professional and purpose first, then ask for the applicable fee. Someone using insurance should discuss the authorized route with the clinic and insurer rather than assume that paying for introductory screening is necessary or reimbursable.

Autism assessment includes a separate outcome process

Priory’s national autism information describes developmental history, assessment tools, observation, multidisciplinary review, a report, and a feedback meeting. It lists full assessments from £2,222, while noting that a psychiatrist-led assessment may carry a different consultant fee. The Harley Street website presents the £2,222 starting figure under adult assessment and routes children through consultant-led services, so families should obtain the child-specific quotation.

The assessment may or may not conclude that autism criteria are met. Before booking, clarify how information from childhood, caregivers, or school will be gathered and what accommodations are available during appointments. The feedback discussion should explain findings and recommendations, including support for any co-occurring concerns. A written assessment does not automatically include continuing therapy, prescribing, or a workplace report for a different purpose. Confirm what the final report covers and whether a further specialist appointment may be recommended.

Current regulator findings belong in the comparison

The CQC record for Harley Street publishes a March 2, 2026 report and an overall Requires improvement rating. Safety and leadership are rated Requires improvement; effectiveness, caring, and responsiveness are rated Good. The listed adult community mental health service also carries Requires improvement. These findings should be read with their date and service scope rather than replaced by the provider’s promotional description of quality.

A prospective patient can ask what actions were taken after the report and how the changes affect the proposed care. Relevant practical topics include communication between clinicians, response to concerns, medication responsibilities, and the process for making a complaint. The rating is a regulatory assessment of the service, not a prediction that a particular patient will have a particular outcome. Equally, a positive testimonial does not answer questions raised by a current regulator finding. Both the report and the individual plan deserve attention.

Build a quotation around the actual course of care

Priory’s funding guidance describes private payment and insurance arrangements that depend on the authorized service. An insurer may require a GP referral, confirm a particular number of appointments, and apply an excess. A broad statement that Priory works with an insurer is not confirmation that the policy covers a specific neurodevelopmental assessment, group course, consultant, or rTMS indication.

Ask for an itemized estimate showing assessment, treatment sessions, consultant reviews, and any proposed follow-up. For rTMS, distinguish the initial course from later maintenance or additional treatment, and establish what happens financially if the clinician changes the plan. For talking therapy, confirm the session length and cancellation conditions. Anyone traveling to London should also account for attendance frequency and accommodation costs outside the clinic. These details turn a starting price into a usable plan without assuming a standard duration for all outpatient care.

Explore our London treatment guide, depression care guide, and OCD treatment guide for wider comparisons.

Provider, regulator, and current NICE guidance reviewed October 19, 2026. The guidance recommendations distinguish depression from OCD; a provider listing does not verify an individual research arrangement or guarantee treatment benefit.