Maltreatment, Trauma-Related Disorders, and Their Interplay with Neurodivergence

16 November 2026 1pm

Event type Advanced session

EARLY BIRD UNTIL 01/10/26
Online webinar 1:00 - 5:00pm UK time
Can't make it, don't worry, book now as delegates have exclusive access to recordings for 90 days after the event, together with slides. You must book before the event starts, there are no tickets after the event starts.

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Tags: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), Assessment… Show all

‘Maltreatment, Trauma-Related Disorders, and Their Interplay with Neurodivergence’ is a session about the trauma and stressor related disorders of childhood, known as Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) and Disinhibited Social Engagement Disorder (DSED). These are disorders thought to be ‘caused’ by maltreatment (abuse and neglect). We aim to raise your awareness about RAD & DSED and to enable you with the skills to recognise associated behaviours in children and young people who you work.

Booking

Sign up at this link or on the Book Now button at the top of the screen, and complete the form that follows. You’ll then receive an email confirmation and a link to the webinar, plus we’ll send you a calendar reminder nearer the time. Delegates will have exclusive access to recordings for 90 days after the event, together with slides. Plus you will get a personalised CPD/CME certificate via email.

ACAMH Members MUST login to book onto the webinar in order to access this webinar and get a CPD/CME certificate
Non-members this is a great time to join ACAMH, take a look at what we have to offer, and make the saving on these sessions

EARLY BIRD £109 (until 01/10/26, then £139) for ACAMH Members (Print, Online, Concession) Join now and save

EARLY BIRD £139 (until 01/10/26, then £169) ACAMH Learn Account holders

EARLY BIRD £139 (until 01/10/26, then £169) Non Members

£15 ACAMH Undergraduate/Postgraduate Members

LIC Members free

Don’t forget as a charity any surplus made is reinvested back as we work to our vision of ‘Sharing best evidence, improving practice’, and our mission to ‘Improve the mental health and wellbeing of young people aged 0-25’.

About the session

We will start from a grounding in attachment, however, you will also learn the ways in which these childhood disorders are about more than attachment and why a broader range of needs must be considered, particularly in the case of DSED.

We will also consider what it means to be neurodivergent (Autism, ADHD etc) and consider trauma in the context of neurodivergence. Importantly, we will consider the complex overlap between neurodivergence, maltreatment and DSED/RAD. We will think about these in terms of why identification and differentiation is important, we will consider with you the assessment measures for RAD and DSED and assessment methods which can be supportive in differentiating between Neurodivergence and RAD/DSED. We will end with why we need to be holistic in our thinking and our support as co-occurrence of trauma, neurodivergence and/or RAD and DSED is common.

Learning outcomes

To gain a broader understanding about RAD and DSED, with ability to recognise core behavioural indicators.
To help you start to think about how, in your practice, you might consider the needs of children who may show behaviours of RAD or DSED.
To think about the overlaps between neurodivergence and maltreatment, and similarities and differences in behaviours between autism and DSED.
To encourage holistic thinking, to recognise that often it is often not either or, i.e. trauma or neurodiversity but often both and practical strategies that could support.

Who should attend

Mental health clinicians (CBT therapists, Clinical psychologists, Child & Adolescent psychotherapists, CAMHS clinicians, Mental health nurses), Service lead (Clinical lead in CAMHS, team managers, supervisors), Researchers/Academics. This would also be of potential interest to Educational psychologists, school mental health leads, allied health professionals.

About the speakers

Helen Minnis

Professor Helen Minnis is a leading international expert in the field of adverse childhood experiences, trauma and maltreatment associated problems and has dedicated decades of work to better understanding the two maltreatment associated disorders of childhood – Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) and Disinhibited Social Engagement Disorder (DSED). In recent years her interest has expanded to include the interplay between adverse experiences, RAD & DSED and neurodivergence (Autism, ADHD etc) Her current work focuses on evidenced based treatments for maltreatment associated disorders and is currently leading several ‘watch this space’ randomised controlled trials (RCT); two examples are -a RCT regarding DDP and RCT regarding a novel preventative infant-parent support for families on the edge of crisis, which has been co-produced with parents and takes a relational, neurodevelopmental and poverty aware approach.

Claire Davidson Jamieson

Dr. Claire Davidson-Jamieson and Helen Minnis have worked closely for many years and Claire is becoming an established leader in the field of RAD & DSED; especially regarding differentiation of maltreatment associated problems and autism, and/ or other neurodivergences. Claire is one of the few Speech and Language Therapists working in research and working in the field of child and adolescent mental health, thus offers a different perspective to the field. Claire’s PhD examined clinical assessment methods for discriminating Autism from DSED and found that playful unstructured conversational/activity based observation may be more useful for holistic understanding in complex cases. She was also the first to examine the language profiles of children with DSED and the key role of pragmatic language (how we use language socially) for differentiating Autism from DSED. Claire also works part time in a Neurodevelopmental Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service, helping her to combine ‘real world’ clinical experiences into her research.

Kate Moran is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Galway and a Chartered Clinical Psychologist with many years’ experience working with vulnerable young people across the UK and Ireland. Her research has advanced understanding of Reactive Attachment Disorder and Disinhibited Social Engagement Disorder in clinical and youth justice settings, addressing critical evidence gaps and systemic barriers to care. Blending cutting-edge research with real-world clinical insight, Kate delivers compelling, trauma- and attachment-informed perspectives that translate evidence into practical improvements for frontline practice and services.