ABSTRACT

A duty exists under the 1989 Children Act to promote and safeguard the welfare of children in need and their families. Local authorities must also take reasonable steps to identify the extent to which there are children in need in their area, and to prevent their ill-treatment and neglect. To effectively discharge these duties requires, inter alia, that social services departments and other agencies with a contribution to make know who these children are, where they are located and what services might be effective in meeting their needs (Green et aL, 2001). Questions revolve around whether available services are reaching appropriate groups and meeting their needs, and around the degree to which indicators of need correspond with patterns of utilization of services. Put

another way, identification of needs, and the nature of required services, demand accurate and reliable information (Hare et #/., 2002). In its review of children's services as a backcloth to modernization proposals, the Department of Health (1998) concluded that many social services departments did not identify trends in need or demand, and were unable to adequately assess and prioritize need and target services on the most serious problems. Subsequently, planning has become a core feature of the modernization agenda.