The process that children’s services will go through to see if a child or a family needs help and support.
An example is a child in need assessment. When considering whether a child or their family may need extra support, children’s services will start with an assessment. This will look at the child’s needs and the family situation. It will assess whether the parents need help to meet the child’s needs.
Another example is child protection enquiries. Where a concern is raised about a child’s care, an assessment will be used to explore the family situation. This will help children’s services in deciding whether the child is at risk.
Assessments are used by children’s services to see whether a person is suitable, for example, to be approved as a prospective adopter.