Children's Hearing

What to Expect at Your Child's Hearing Assessment

A guide for parents and carers preparing for a paediatric audiology appointment at Hearing Pathways.

8 min readFor parents & carers

If you have concerns about your child's hearing, you may be wondering what a hearing assessment actually involves — and whether your child will be able to cooperate. Children's hearing assessments are quite different from adult hearing tests. They are carefully adapted to suit each child's age, developmental stage, abilities and individual needs.

Every child is different, and the audiologist will select the most appropriate assessment methods for your child. This page explains what to expect, how to prepare and what happens after the appointment.

Not sure which appointment your child needs?

Hearing Pathways offers different paediatric appointment options depending on the reason for referral, your child's age and what information is required.

Initial Paediatric Consultation

30-minute appointment

An Initial Paediatric Consultation is for families who would first like to discuss concerns about their child's hearing, listening, speech or communication before proceeding with a comprehensive hearing assessment.

During this appointment, the audiologist will take time to understand your concerns and your child's medical, hearing and developmental history. Previous assessments or reports can be reviewed and your child's ears may be examined using otoscopy. Where your child's age, developmental stage and cooperation make it appropriate, a hearing screening assessment may also be attempted.

This is not the same as a comprehensive diagnostic hearing assessment, and it may not be possible to complete all aspects of hearing testing during this appointment. Following the consultation, the audiologist will explain the most appropriate next steps — which may include reassurance and monitoring, advice and management recommendations, referral to another healthcare professional, or booking a full paediatric hearing assessment.

A formal written clinical report is not included with the Initial Paediatric Consultation. A written report can be requested for an additional fee.

Has your child been referred by a professional?

If your child has been referred by a GP, ENT specialist, paediatrician, health visitor, Speech and Language Therapist, Educational Psychologist, school or another healthcare or education professional, we generally recommend booking a Full Paediatric Hearing Assessment. This provides the detailed clinical information often needed to support diagnosis, management planning and onward referral.

What happens at a Comprehensive Paediatric Hearing Assessment?

A comprehensive paediatric hearing assessment usually takes approximately 45–60 minutes, although this can vary depending on your child's age, developmental stage and cooperation. The audiologist will choose the most appropriate combination of assessments for your individual child.

The goal is not simply to determine whether a child can hear a sound, but to build a reliable clinical picture of their hearing using several complementary pieces of information.

How do we test a child's hearing?

Visual Reinforcement Audiometry (VRA)

Typically from approximately 6 months to 2½ years

The child learns to turn towards a sound and is rewarded with an interesting visual image or animation. It turns hearing testing into a natural, engaging activity for very young children.

Conditioned Play Audiometry (CPA)

Typically from approximately 2½ to 5 years

Hearing testing becomes a game. For example, your child may put a block into a bucket whenever they hear a sound. Practising simple "Ready… Steady… Go!" games at home beforehand can help younger children understand what to do.

Pure Tone Audiometry

Generally used with older children

Children who can reliably respond when they hear very soft sounds through headphones. Speech testing may also be included where clinically appropriate.

These age ranges are approximate. Children develop at different rates and the audiologist will always choose the technique that best suits your child's developmental abilities, rather than relying on age alone.

Other audiological investigations

A hearing assessment may also include one or more of the following objective test measures and examinations. These tests are quick and painless and provide different pieces of information that help build a more complete picture of your child's hearing.

Otoscopy

Looking carefully inside the ears using a special light to check the ear canal and eardrum.

Tympanometry

Assessing how the eardrum and middle ear are working using gentle changes in air pressure.

Otoacoustic Emissions (OAEs)

Measuring responses generated by the inner ear — a sensitive check of cochlear function.

Before your appointment

Complete the online pre-appointment questionnaire.
Bring any previous hearing tests, clinic letters or relevant reports.
Bring hearing aids or other devices your child currently uses.
Bring a favourite toy, comforter or dummy if it helps your child feel settled.
Let us know about favourite programmes or characters that might help engage your child during testing.
Make sure your child is well rested and has eaten before attending.
Contact the clinic for advice if your child develops an ear infection or becomes unwell before the appointment.

Helping your child prepare

Talk positively about coming to see the audiologist. For younger children, describe the appointment as listening games rather than a "test" — this helps children feel curious rather than anxious.

Allow plenty of time to arrive without rushing, and reassure your child that they are not expected to sit perfectly still throughout. Breaks can be taken and the audiologist will always work at your child's pace.

What if my child doesn't cooperate?

This is very common and does not mean that your child has "failed" the hearing test. Specialist paediatric audiologists are experienced in adapting assessments to individual children — testing can be turned into games, different techniques can be tried and breaks can be taken.

Sometimes it is not possible to obtain all the information required during one appointment. If this happens, the audiologist will explain clearly what information has been obtained and whether a further appointment is recommended.

Parents, carers and siblings

Parents and carers are an important part of the appointment. Familiar adults help children feel relaxed and confident, and your knowledge of your child is invaluable to the audiologist.

Reliable paediatric hearing testing does require a calm and relatively quiet environment. If siblings attend, another responsible adult should ideally be available to remain with them outside the test room. If this may be difficult to arrange, please contact Hearing Pathways beforehand so that we can try to help.

What happens after the assessment?

The audiologist will discuss the findings with you, explain what the results mean in plain language, answer your questions and recommend any appropriate further investigation, monitoring, referral or management.

Following a Comprehensive Paediatric Hearing Assessment, a detailed written report summarising the findings and recommendations will be prepared and sent to you. This report can also be shared with your GP, school or other professionals involved in your child's care.

Frequently asked questions

Every child is different — and that is exactly how we approach their hearing assessment.

At Hearing Pathways, our aim is not only to assess your child's hearing, but to help you understand the results and support your child's hearing, listening and communication needs. We are committed to clear information, compassionate care and evidence-based recommendations.

Book a paediatric hearing assessment Not sure which appointment to book? Contact us

Share this article