Why Use Assessment Tools?
Standardised assessment tools complement professional judgment by providing structured, evidence-based approaches to gathering and analysing information. When used appropriately, they can:
- Add rigour and consistency to assessments
- Provide a shared language across professionals
- Help identify issues that might otherwise be missed
- Track change over time with measurable outcomes
- Support evidence-based decision making
- Strengthen court reports with validated measures
Important: Assessment tools should supplement, not replace, professional judgment. They are one source of evidence within a broader assessment. Results must be interpreted within context, not taken at face value.
Children's Emotional and Behavioural Assessment
Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ)
Purpose: Screens for emotional and behavioural difficulties in children aged 2-17
Domains: Emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, peer relationship problems, prosocial behaviour
Versions: Parent, teacher, and self-report (11-17 years)
When to use: Initial assessments, reviews, measuring change over time, LAC health assessments
Time: 5-10 minutes to complete
The SDQ is freely available and widely used in UK social care. It provides scores across five subscales, with thresholds indicating normal, borderline, or abnormal ranges. Using multiple informants (parent, teacher, child) provides richer information about how difficulties present across settings.
Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL)
Purpose: Comprehensive assessment of emotional and behavioural problems
Age range: 1.5-18 years (different versions)
Domains: Internalising problems, externalising problems, plus specific syndrome scales
When to use: More detailed assessment than SDQ, complex cases, pre/post intervention measurement
Note: Requires purchase and training for use
Neglect Assessment
Graded Care Profile 2 (GCP2)
Purpose: Measures the quality of care provided across domains, specifically for identifying neglect
Domains: Physical care, safety, love, esteem
When to use: Concerns about neglect, ongoing neglect cases, measuring improvement
Approach: Observational tool completed with the family over multiple visits
Training: Requires NSPCC training to use
The GCP2 is particularly valuable because it provides a structured way to assess neglect—which can otherwise be difficult to evidence—and can track incremental change. It grades care on a scale from 1 (best) to 5 (worst) across multiple sub-areas.
HOME Inventory
Purpose: Assesses the quality and quantity of stimulation and support available to a child in the home
Versions: Infant/Toddler (0-3), Early Childhood (3-6), Middle Childhood (6-10), Early Adolescent (10-15)
When to use: Developmental concerns, neglect assessments, assessing home learning environment
Note: Requires training and purchase
Parenting Assessment
Parenting Stress Index (PSI)
Purpose: Identifies stressful areas in parent-child interactions
Domains: Parent domain (distress, dysfunction, difficult child) and child domain
When to use: Parenting capacity assessments, identifying support needs, measuring change
Versions: Full form (120 items) and short form (36 items)
Adult Adolescent Parenting Inventory (AAPI-2)
Purpose: Assesses parenting attitudes and child-rearing practices
Domains: Expectations of children, empathy, discipline, family roles, power/independence
When to use: Pre/post parenting programmes, identifying high-risk parenting attitudes, assessment of young parents
Attachment and Relationships
Child Attachment Interview (CAI)
Purpose: Assesses attachment representations in school-age children
Age range: 8-14 years
When to use: Complex cases involving attachment concerns, care proceedings, therapeutic assessments
Note: Requires specialist training to administer and score
Story Stem Assessment Profile (SSAP)
Purpose: Explores children's internal representations of relationships
Age range: 4-8 years
Approach: Child completes story beginnings using dolls/figures
When to use: Younger children where interview-based tools are inappropriate
Organise Your Assessment Findings
SpeakCase helps you capture and organise assessment tool results alongside your observations and analysis. Keep everything in one place.
Try Free for 7 DaysDomestic Abuse
DASH Risk Assessment
Purpose: Identifies high-risk domestic abuse cases
Use: Informs referral to MARAC (Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference)
When to use: All cases where domestic abuse is disclosed or suspected
Scoring: 14+ 'yes' answers typically indicates high risk, though professional judgment is key
Barnardo's Domestic Violence Risk Identification Matrix (DVRIM)
Purpose: Child-focused risk assessment for domestic abuse cases
Focus: Impact on the child, not just risk to adult victim
When to use: Children's services assessments involving domestic abuse
Adult Assessments
AUDIT (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test)
Purpose: Screens for harmful drinking patterns
Questions: 10 items covering consumption, dependence, and harm
Scoring: 0-7 low risk, 8-15 increasing risk, 16-19 higher risk, 20+ possible dependence
When to use: Any assessment where alcohol may be a factor
PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire-9)
Purpose: Screens for depression severity
Questions: 9 items based on DSM criteria
Scoring: 0-4 minimal, 5-9 mild, 10-14 moderate, 15-19 moderately severe, 20-27 severe
When to use: Concerns about parental mental health, adult social care assessments
GAD-7 (Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7)
Purpose: Screens for anxiety severity
Questions: 7 items
Scoring: 0-4 minimal, 5-9 mild, 10-14 moderate, 15-21 severe
When to use: Alongside PHQ-9 for mental health screening
Visual and Participatory Tools
Genograms
Purpose: Maps family relationships, patterns, and history
When to use: All family assessments; particularly useful for complex family structures
Benefit: Helps identify intergenerational patterns, relationships, and resources
Ecomaps
Purpose: Maps the child/family's connections with their environment
When to use: Understanding support networks, identifying isolation, planning interventions
Benefit: Visual representation of formal and informal support
Three Houses Tool
Purpose: Direct work tool to understand child's perspective
Components: House of Worries, House of Good Things, House of Dreams
When to use: Initial conversations with children, ongoing direct work
Age range: Adaptable for various ages
Wizard and Fairy Tool
Purpose: Child-friendly way to explore what children want to change and keep the same
When to use: Direct work with children, understanding wishes and feelings
Approach: "If a wizard could change anything..." / "If a fairy could keep things the same..."
Choosing the Right Tool
Consider the following when selecting assessment tools:
- Purpose: What question are you trying to answer?
- Population: Is the tool validated for this age group/situation?
- Training: Do you have the required training to use and interpret it?
- Culture: Is the tool appropriate for this family's cultural background?
- Time: Is it proportionate to the assessment needs?
- Evidence base: What does research say about its reliability and validity?
Best practice: Don't overload assessments with tools. Choose one or two that will genuinely add value. The purpose is to enhance understanding, not to create a paper trail of completed forms.
Interpreting Results
When using standardised tools, remember:
- Results are one piece of evidence, not the whole picture
- Consider how the person was feeling when completing the tool
- Cross-reference with other sources of information
- Be aware of social desirability bias (people answering how they think they should)
- Consider cultural factors that may affect responses
- Look for patterns across multiple tools rather than relying on single scores
- Discuss results with families—they may offer important context
Conclusion
Assessment tools are valuable additions to the social worker's toolkit when used appropriately. They add structure, consistency, and an evidence base to our professional judgment. However, they should never replace the relational, analytical work that sits at the heart of good social work assessment.
The best assessments combine the rigour of standardised tools with skilled professional observation, direct work with children and families, and thoughtful analysis of all available information. Tools help us see—but it's our professional judgment that helps us understand what we're seeing and what to do about it.