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Contents

1. Criteria for Initial Assessments  
2. Purpose of Initial Assessments 
3. Timescales of Initial Assessments 
4. Process of Initial Assessments 
5. Outcome of Initial Assessments 
6. Recording of Initial Assessments  

1. Criteria for Initial Assessments

Following a Referral, an Initial Assessment will be undertaken in the following circumstances:

• if there are indications that a child has low level needs, a manager may authorise an Initial Assessment.
• if there are indications that a child has moderate to high levels of need, the manager must authorise an Initial Assessment.
• if there are indications that a child is suffering or is likely to suffer from Significant Harm, an Initial Assessment must be authorised with a view to conducting a Strategy Discussion, prior to a Section 47 Enquiry and Core Assessment commencing

An Initial Assessment must also be authorised if new information or concerns are received about a child already receiving services, which indicates that a further Initial Assessment should be undertaken. 

Managers may also authorise an Initial Assessment upon a child in any other circumstances. 

Relevant West Yorkshire Consortium Interagency Safeguarding Procedures Initial Assessment Procedure Recognition of Significant Harm Procedure Joint Protocol between West Yorkshire Police and Children's Social Care Services regarding Joint Police/Children's Social Care Services Enquiries Section 47 Enquiries and Core Assessments Procedure - See Section 1, Duty to Undertake a Section 47 Enquiry

2. Purpose of Initial Assessments

An Initial Assessment is defined as a brief assessment of each child referred to Safeguarding and Family Support (Children's Services) with a request for services to be provided.

The purpose of the Initial Assessment is to gather enough information to determine whether a child is in need of services, which may be provided by the authority. 

3. Timescales of Initial Assessments

Initial Assessments should be undertaken as soon as practicable, depending on the circumstances of the case, but within a maximum of seven working days from the receipt of the referral.

Any extension to this time-scale may be authorised by the manager, with reasons recorded, for example where a delay is necessary to arrange an interpreter or to avoid a religious festival, provided that the delay is consistent with the welfare of the child.

The urgency of the situation may dictate that the timescale is much shorter than seven working days; for example, where it is immediately clear a child is suffering or likely to suffer Significant Harm.

In such circumstances, the Initial Assessment may be completed on the same day as a referral is received, and a decision reached to conduct a Strategy Discussion leading to a Core Assessment incorporating a Section 47 Enquiry.

At the end of the Initial Assessment, the manager must decide whether to initiate a Core Assessment.

If information in relation to the assessment is outstanding, the manager should decide, on the basis of the information available, whether a Core Assessment is necessary.  That decision can then be reviewed once further information comes to light. 

4. Process of Initial Assessments

Detailed guidance in relation to the undertaking of assessments is contained in Universal Assessments Procedures and Guidance.

The Initial Assessment should be led by a qualified and experienced social worker, who should carefully plan that the following are carried out:

• See/interview the child
• Interview the parents and any other relevant family members.
• Consider whether to see the child alone or with the parents
• Determine what the parents should be told of any concerns
• Consult with and consider contributions from all relevant agencies, including agencies covering previous addresses in the UK and abroad;

If it is determined that a child should not be seen as part of the Initial Assessment, this should be recorded by the manager with reasons, for example that a Section 47 Enquiry is to be initiated before which a Strategy Discussion will be held to plan the method of contact with the child.

The parent's consent should usually be sought, before discussing a referral about them with other agencies, unless this may place the child at risk of Significant Harm, in which case the manager should authorise the discussion of the referral with other agencies without parental knowledge or consent.  The authorisation should be recorded with reasons.

If during the course of the Initial Assessment, it is discovered that a school age child is not attending an educational establishment, the social worker should contact the local education service to establish a reason for this.

If there is suspicion that a crime may have been committed including sexual or physical assault or neglect of the child, the Police must be notified immediately.

5. Outcome of Initial Assessments

Various records must be completed as part of the Initial Assessment process; they are set out in Section 1, Recording of the Universal Assessment Procedures and Guidance.

There are 4 potential outcomes from an Initial Assessment, which must be authorised by the Manager:

1. That there are indicators that the child is suffering or likely to suffer Significant Harm, in which case a Strategy Discussion/Meeting must be conducted with a view to conducting a Core Assessment incorporating a Section 47 Enquiry. If there are indicators that immediate action is required to protect the child, consult the Duty Manager and consider Police Protection, applying for an Emergency Protection Order or arranging for the child to be Looked After.
   
   If it appears appropriate for the child to be Looked After, see Decision to Look After Procedure.
2. That there are indicators that the child has other high level needs, in which case a Core Assessment must be initiated.
3. That the child has medium level needs, in which a Core Assessment may be initiated and/or services may be provided.
4. That the child is not a Child in Need or has low level needs requiring the provision of information, signposting to another agency and/or no further action, or follow child well being procedures, ensuring that the referrer will undertake a CAF or call a Child Wellbeing meeting

If non Looked After Services are provided, a Child in Need Plan must be drawn up, and other records completed as set out in Section 1, Recording of the Universal Assessment Procedures and Guidance.

If the child is Looked After, other records must be completed, see Decision to Look After Procedure.

If the assessment involves consideration of material support under s17 of the Children Act, 1989, the following criteria will apply:

Section 17 Financial Assistance

Section 17 is the basis for the range of services that local authorities provide for children and their families and provides the meaning of the key term child in need.

The range of services that may be provided includes assistance that may be given by way of benefits in kind or, in exceptional circumstances, by way of cash. A benefit in kind is a non-cash benefit such as equipment.

This procedure relates to the provision of such assistance under s17 to enable staff to determine eligibility and type of assistance available.

Section 17 - General Duty

This duty requires local authorities to:

• safeguard and promote the welfare of children in their area who are in need; and
• in so far as is consistent with that first duty, to promote the upbringing of children in need by their families.

Child in Need

Services may be provided under this section to a child in need only.

A child shall be taken to be in need if -

• S/he is unlikely to achieve or maintain or to have the opportunity of achieving or maintaining, a reasonable standard of health or development without the provision for him of services by a local authority ...
• Her/his health or development is likely to be significantly impaired, or further impaired, without the provision for him of such services;
• or S/he is disabled (substantially/permanently disabled - congenitally or through illness or injury. Or a lesser disability is compounded by other vulnerabilities)

Services for Families

Services may be provided to the family of a child in need. This includes someone with parental responsibility, a family member, someone with whom the child has been living, as well as to the child him/herself. The condition that must be met for the provision of family services is that the service is provided in order to safeguard or promote the child's welfare.

Criteria for Financial Assistance

The Local Authority should be the last resort after all other efforts to obtain financial assistance have failed. S17 Financial Assistance can only be provided by the Local Authority in exceptional circumstances.

The following criteria should be applied to all payments:

• The purpose of the payments must be to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child
• A worker should be actively involved with the family at least for the duration of the payments.
• There are no other legitimate sources of finance, for example from the Benefits Agency or a Charity.  If theft is alleged, a crime number should be provided. 
• Wherever possible, payments will be paid to the supplier or provider of services, not the parents.
• In out of hours situations - the first course of action should be to refer to the out of hours benefits service.

The following situations are examples where S17 payments could be considered:

• Families who have no recourse to public funds and where the assessment has determined the need for immediate financial aid. 
• Children who have been abandoned by their main carer and a relative or friend needs short term assistance to provide for the child's needs. (Assessment under Private Fostering or Kinship Arrangements may need consideration in these circumstances.)
• Young people whose living arrangements have broken down and where the provision of S17 payments prevents accommodation, potential harm and promotes their health and/or development.
• Children who are being cared for by family and friends, where it has been assessed that without financial support the family/friends would not be able to care for the children. This arrangement must be time limited.
• Parent who has fled domestic violence with the child(ren) and temporarily have no means of providing for the child's basic needs
• Emergency situations creating a health and safety risk for the child e.g. absence of heating and light.
• Families who have received expected benefits payments and have no provisions for their children. In these circumstances a social worker will be expected to make checks with the Benefits Agency to confirm difficulties. Assistance in these circumstances would be in the form of food/goods not cash.
• A family where the child is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm because the family is unable to provide them with essential items e.g. bedding, shoes, clothing etc.
• In certain circumstances it may be appropriate to make a payment to support the care of a looked after child which is outside of the procedures listed above. This could relate to children subject to Care Orders placed at home under Placement with Parent Regulations.

Assessment and Procedure

Except where a payment forms part of an ongoing casework within a Care Plan, Child in Need Plan or Child Protection Plan, the Social Worker or Social Services Officer must first complete an initial assessment of the child's needs.

The assessment must detail enquiries:

• conducted with the family and the Benefits Agency ensure the family is in receipt of their full benefit entitlement.
• It must also take into account any other resource available to the family to meet the identified need and the urgency of the situation.
• The assessment must include a recommendation about the level of payment.

The assessment should be discussed with the relevant manager under the scheme of delegation.

Where a payment is agreed, the worker must complete the SS55.

Section 17a - Direct Payments

This section was inserted into the Children Act 1989 by the Health and Social Care Act 2001. It provides for regulations to be made about direct payments to be made to (usually) parents in place of the direction provision of services for children in need. The recipient of the direct payment uses it to purchase directly the required care services - usually a person with parental responsibility for a disabled child; a disabled person with parental responsibility for a child; and a disabled 16 or 17 year old. It also specifies that the local authority must have decided for the purposes of section 17 of the Children Act 1989 that the needs of the child in question call for them to provide services.

The regulations specify that direct payments are to be gross payments with no contribution being required where they are: a person with parental responsibility for a disabled child, or a disabled person with parental responsibility for a child, where the child is aged 16 or 17; or a person who is in receipt of income support, working families' tax credit or a disabled person's tax credit under Part 7 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 or of an income-based jobseeker's allowance.

Regulations made under this section

The Community Care, Services for Carers and Children's Services (Direct Payments) (England) Regulations 2003 (S.I. 2003/762) have been made under this section. The regulations set out the circumstances in which direct payments must be paid in lieu of the direct provision of services to, for example, a disabled child and deal with related matters such as monitoring, conditions of payment and recovery of mis-spent direct payments.

Section 17b - Vouchers For Persons with Parental Responsibility for Disables Children

This section was inserted into the Children Act by the Carers and Disabled Children Act 2000. The Explanatory Notes to that Act describe it as follows:

"This section enables the Secretary of State or, as the case may be, the National Assembly for Wales, to make provision in regulations for local authorities to issue vouchers for short term breaks. Vouchers are defined in subsection (2) and will enable the person cared for to arrange for someone to provide services for him, in lieu of the care which would otherwise have been provided to him by the carer, either at home or in residential accommodation whilst the carer takes a break from caring. It is intended that the regulations will include provision for vouchers, whether expressed in terms of money or for the delivery of a service for a period of time, to be redeemed in exchange for services delivered by local authority approved providers."

6. Recording of Initial Assessments

An Initial Assessment Record Form must be completed by the social worker. However, in completing the Initial Assessment, the social worker may decide (in order to avoid duplication), not to complete all sections of the Record if it is known that a Core Assessment will be required.

A copy should be provided to the parents, and, where appropriate, professional referrers and other agencies.

(Feedback on the outcome should be provided to non-professional referrers in a manner consistent with respecting the confidentiality of the child).

The Chronology must be set up or updated.

End