Whilst psychoeducation interventions are recognised as being potentially beneficial for this group and recommended by UK clinical guidelines, there is little age-appropriate material currently available.

Children and young people with ADHD, their parents and clinicians, have been central to the project throughout; from identifying the unmet need, to co-creating the content of the booklet, to testing and developing initial prototypes. The team has taken care to foster positive, long-term working relationships with the families, ensuring the co-design approach was tailored to help children and young people feel engaged, valued and empowered to share their ideas. Families initially attended face-to-face group workshops, which focussed on defining the need for, scope, content and format of the resource. Following the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, the team adjusted their approach; combining postal packs and one-to-one online sessions to test initial prototypes of the resource with families. Both methods emphasised creativity, fun and asset-based approaches.

Further details on the background to the project and methods used are available on the Lab4Living website and published in the Design for Health journal (links below).

The finalised ‘ADHD Hero Activity Booklet’ has been adopted by charities, over 10 NHS Trusts and UK schools with reported benefits and further interest nationally.

NIHR CYPMedTech is very pleased to be joining the team, where next steps include exploring opportunities to develop a web-based or app-based version of the booklet, as well as exploring the applicability of the approach to other contexts and conditions such as Autism.

For further information please contact project lead Dr Lauren Powell (l.a.powell@sheffield.ac.uk) or NIHR CYP MedTech Project Manager Dr Gemma Wheeler (gemma.wheeler@nihr.ac.uk).