Child Protection Home Visit: Practical Guidance

(You can download the guidance below in a PDF document here.) WHEN THERE IS NO ANSWER WHEN YOU KNOCK: If the family does not answer the door when you knock, listen to/observe any signs of people being present in the If you believe that somebody is…


Parenting styles tool

Parenting style has a significant impact on children’s outcomes and tend to fit under one of four categories: authoritarian, authoritative, indulgent, and neglectful. This tool developed by Cafcass enables parents/carers with the help of a practitioner to consider what parenting style they have and how…


Three Islands Activity guidance, template & record sheets

‘Three islands’ is a fun direct work activity which enabels social workers and other practitioners to establish what and who children they work with like and what or who they don’t like or are worried about. The child is asked to draw a picture of…


Home Visit Observations of Parent-Child Interactions Questionnaire/Checklist

The toolkit, Parent-Child Interactions: A Home Visitor’s Guide, provides social workers and other practitioners with tips and tools to make the most of the opportunity to observe and influence parent-child interactions. The toolkit includes the following useful tools: Home Visitation Observations of Parent-Child Interactions Template…


All about me: Direct work sheets & activities (booklet)

This colourful and interactive booklet developed by Socialworkerstoolbox.com is a collection of 40 sheets which practitioners can use to learn about children’s views, wishes, feelings and day-to-day lives. Click here to view/download CONTENTS: What makes me feel Feelings thermometer My worries What makes me safe Things…


Feelings faces: How do you feel today?

A poster with 60+ faces depicting a range of emotions which can be used during 1:1 direct work with children and young people. Click here to view/download


My Feelings Colouring Chart

My feelings colouring chart enables children to indicate how happy they are in the areas of friends, home, hobbies, school, family and all about you. Click here to view/download


30+ tools for 1:1 work with children (assessment, planning & intervention)

The Kids Central Toolkit aims to provide workers and services with information, resources and tools to use child-centred approaches in their work with children, young people and families. The Toolkit is based around six key principles that support child-centred practice, and each principle includes a…


Direct Work Resource Pack

A compilation of various tools for direct work with children and young people. Click here to view/download Contents SECTION 1 Initial visits and getting to know the child or YP SECTION 2 Completing the C&F assessment and basic tools to use (and any of these…


My feelings workbook: naming & exploring emotions

The workbook enables workers to explain the meaning of various emotions/feelings and promotes a conversation with children about in which situations they experience the discussed emotion. Click here to view/download


Dog risk assessment form

Below is a template created by British Association for Adoption and Fostering for assessing suitability/significance of a dog in relation to fostering or adoption and considering what actions need to be taken to reduce any foreseeable risks. The form can be, however, also used when assessing…


Female genital mutilation (FGM) risk assessment templates

The document contains four risk assessment templates assisting social worker to consider the following: Part One (a): PREGNANT WOMEN (OR HAS RECENTLY GIVEN BIRTH) This is to help social workers make a decision as to whether the unborn child (or other female children in the…


Home conditions observation record/framework

This sheet is an excellent tool which provides social workers with a structure/framework to observe and record home conditions. The framework considers living area, kitchen, bedroom, bathroom and garden. We recommend that social workers complete this with the family or ask the family to highlight…


Children’s Participation Toolkit for Social Workers (activities & worksheets)

The booklet contains various activities, worksheets and templates assisting social workers and early help workers to involve children in the process of assessments, intervention planning as well as conducting reviews in a positive, supportive and enabling way. Click here to view/download Chapter 1 – Contents, acknowledgements…


Pre-Birth Assessment Tool

This Pre-Birth Assessment Tool is designed to help professionals to carefully consider a range of issues in relation to the mother’s pregnancy and the family’s circumstances and to tease out issues that have potential for having a significant negative impact on the child. The tool draws…


Child Protection: Consultation with children toolkit

This beautifully illustrated guide describes various interactive techniques which social workers can use to engage children in a child protection process. The booklet not only provides various tips on activities which can be used but also contains a range of tools which professionals can print out. Contents: 1….


Getting to know a child’s routine activity tool

This tool supports social workers to gain an understanding of a child’s or young person’s daily routine in an engaging way. The document contains 40+ individual slips with various activities/feelings which a child is asked to sort out into three piles – every day, sometimes…


Young carers – assessment tools

The Manual below contains two instruments for the assessment of caring: The Multidimensional Assessment of Caring Activities (MACA-YC18) is a questionnaire (an 18-item self-report measure) that can be used to provide an index of the total amount of caring activity undertaken by the young person,…


Ecomap Activity

Creating an ecomap is a graphic and useful way of identifying all of the systems at play in the family’s life. The ecomaps give workers a detailed picture of: the family dynamics ; each individual family members’ connections to their community; each individual family members’ connections…


Sexual behaviours traffic light tool

Using the resource, professionals can learn to identify, assess and respond to sexual behaviour in children and young people in a confident and appropriate manner. It can be also used when explaining to parents/carers what constitutes healthy sexual behaviour and how to identify when their…


Ages & Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional Development Screening Tool (ASQ:SE-2)

ASQ:SE-2 is a set of questionnaires about children’s social-emotional development from 6 to 60 months which can be self-administered by parents/caregivers. Doing this screening provides a quick look at how children are doing in important areas, such as self-regulation, communication, autonomy, compliance, adaptive functioning, affect,…


How it looks to me (Assessing wishes & feelings worksheets)

‘How it looks to me’ is an interactive and colourful booklet developed by CAFCASS to help social workers assess a child’s wishes and feelings. The Child Impact Tool is a resource to help vulnerable children describe how any continuing significant harm they have experienced is affecting their life….


Explore your emotions – coloring & activity book

This coloring book was designed to encourage children to share their feelings with an adult. The children are encouraged to talk/write about what makes them happy, upset and worried; about things they like to do by themselves or with their family and who they like…