Social Work Assessment of Children in Need: What do we know? Messages from research

Abstract

The assessment of children in need and their families has attracted considerable attention over the past decade. Good assessment matters and is key to effective intervention and to improving outcomes for children. Significant decisions are made on the basis of social work and other professional assessments that affect outcomes for children in both the short and the long term. Yet we know from research studies, Inquiries into child deaths and overviews of serious case reviews that assessment is complex and challenging. The evidence shows that on occasion, practice has fallen short of the standard required. Poor quality, incomplete or non-existent assessments have been of particular concern. Five areas have been repeatedly identified in the literature as problematic: differential thresholds, a failure to engage the child, inadequacies in information gathering, shortcomings in critical analysis, and shortcomings in interprofessional working.