There is a general legal duty on children’s services departments to work to keep children safe, well cared for and, at home unless this would place them at risk. To help achieve this, children’s services must provide a range and level of services in their local area to help children ‘in need’. And to help their families (see section 17(1) of the Children Act 1989).
A child in need is a child who needs extra support or services to help them achieve or maintain ‘a reasonable standard of health or development’ (see section 17(1) of the Children Act 1989. All disabled children are classed as children in need.
Where a child or family may need this extra support, children’s services should carry out a child in need assessment. This aims to:
- Work out if the child is in need or not
- Decide whether the child is in need enough to get services in that local area
- Find out what support and services may most help the child and their family.
Local children’s services departments have their own measures for deciding which children are in need enough to get services.
See our Child in need page for important information about how to request a child in need assessment and what is involved.