Common Assessment Framework (CAF)

The most important way of doing this is for everyone whose job involves working with children and families to keep an eye out for their well-being, and be prepared to help if something is going wrong.

The CAF is one way to help you do this. It is a tool to identify unmet needs. It covers all needs, not just the needs that individual services are most interested in. Even if you are not trained to do a common assessment yourself, knowing about the CAF will help you recognise when it might be needed so that you can arrange for someone else to do the assessment. There is also an easy-to-use CAF pre-assessment checklist, which can be used by any practitioner at any time, to help decide whether there should be a common assessment.

The CAF for children and young people is a standardised approach to conducting an assessment of a child’s additional needs. CAF is a key part of delivering frontline services that are integrated and focused around the needs of children and young people. It can be used by practitioners across children's services in England.

The CAF has been designed to help practitioners assess needs at an earlier stage and then work with families, alongside other practitioners and agencies, to meet them.

South East seminar on improving outcomes for young people through improved use of the Common Assessment Framework and the role of Lead Professional
On 15 May 2009 GOSE hosted a seminar for professionals and practitioners involved in using the CAF.

Please see the document download section at the bottom of the page to obtain copies of the following presentations:

• Denise Blunn, DCSF
• Jane Arnold, Southend Council
• Andy Chartres, Wessex Youth Offending Service
• Richard Watson & Dave Watson, Hampshire County Council

Also in the document download is a compilation of important references in policy to the use of CAF.

In addition to the integrated working without boundaries CAF Protocol, the following annexes can be found via the above link:

• Annex 1: The Common Assessment Framework Process - Supports practitioners to work together across boundaries using the CAF to address the needs of children and young people. It sets out minimum requirements that practitioners should follow when taking part in common assessment processes.
• Annex 2 (a): The London Continuum of Need (CAF Thresholds) - Outlines common risk triggers for beginning a common assessment and introduces the London Continuum of Need model.
• Annex 2 (b): The London Continuum of Need Descriptors - Sets out risk and resilience charts, which have been developed to support the London Continuum of Need (annex 2a).
• Annex 3: The Common Assessment Framework Interface With Other Assessments - Outlines regional guidance for managers and practitioners relating to the interface between the CAF and other key assessment/referral tools and key interventions.
• Annex 4: Sharing Information Securely - Provides regional guidance for sharing information securely, drawing from DCSF and Information Commissioner guidance on information sharing requirements.
• Annex 5: Information Sharing Protocols - Sets out the use of information sharing protocols within the CAF.
• Annex 6: The Quality Assurance Framework - Outlines a CAF quality assurance framework that can be implemented to monitor the quality of the CAF process and help to improve outcomes for children and young people.