Early Help Transition Assessment

1. Relevant Links

Click here to view the following:

Specialist Assessment: Carer's Needs Form

Transition Complex Care Plan

Children's Disability Team and Adult Physical Disability Protocol

2. Introduction

This form is designed to help social care services assess and plan what support young people with disabilities may need as an adult. It takes the same format as a normal Early Help Family assessment form, but has guidance notes specific to transitional issues.

The form will usually be completed by a young person's Social Worker or Transitions Case Worker. Other relevant professionals may complete or contribute to sections where they have specialist involvement.

Where a young person is already known to Children's Services, and is likely to have needs that make them eligible for support as an adult, the assessment will commence around their 16th birthday, and to complete the assessment and future plan sufficiently in advance of their 18th birthday.

In some (currently SLD) school settings the Early Help Transition Assessment is also used. At the young person's Educational Transition Review in Year 9 it may contribute to and record Educational Annual Reviews, and as the Health Transition plan for young people moving from paediatric to adult health care.

Whilst at the moment the Early Help Transition Assessment is mainly used to assess young people known to the Child Development and Disability Service, it should also be used by social care workers in other teams (e.g. Post- 16 Team) who need to assess the post- 18 support needs of young people with significant learning or physical disabilities.

3. Assessment Form

Basic Personal Information

• Name
• Date of Birth
• Sex
• Home address and telephone number
• Permanent or other main address: (if different to above)
• Name of Principal Carer(s) and Relationship to Young Person
• Young Person's Disability
• Young Person's Method(s) of Communication
• Ethnic Origin
• Language used at home
• Current support package/placement

Part A - Assessment of Current & Future Needs

Caption: Part A - Assessment of Current & Future Needs

1.	Education
	Educational History: Teacher/Keyworker: Expected leaving date and age at leaving: Wishes and feeling about further training/education: Please attach most recent Education, Health and Care Plan
2.	Other Key Professionals (as relevant):
	GP: Paediatrician: Social Worker: Occupational Therapist: Speech and Language Therapist: CAMHS: Other:
3.	Personal History
4.	Family
	Genogram: History & Relationships:
5.	Housing and Other Environmental Factors
	Attach OT report or summary of involvement if available
6.	Health and Health Needs
	Physical Health: Medication: None. Mobility: (include any relevant OT report) No problems Mental Health: Hisham has severe learning difficulties and autism. Attach Year 9 Medical Annual review/update (plus other summarising report from Community Paediatrician or lead Health Professional as necessary).
7.	Cognitive Abilities
	Attach educational psychologist report if available, plus any psychometric test undertaken and results.
8.	Communication
9.	Behavioural Issues
10.	Other Relevant Information

Part B - More Detailed Profile of Young Person (see Guidance for Assessors)

Caption: Part B - More Detailed Profile of Young Person (see Guidance for Assessors)

1.	Interests & Abilities
2.	Independence & Personal Care Skills
3.	Social Skills
4.	Daily Living Skills
5.	Travel
6.	Finance

Part C: Young Person's Contribution

Makaton Version also available.

(Young people and their carers should be consulted about and involved in the completion of the whole of this document. This section is to further supplement that process).

1. What things do you like doing, and dislike doing? What are your hobbies?
2. Is there anything else you would like to do in your spare time?
3. What would you like to do after you leave school?
4. What do you like about where you are living?
5. Where would you like to live in the future?
6. Who do you see among your family and friends?
7. Who do you want to keep in contact with?
8. Is there anything else you want to say or know more about?

Part D: Summary and Recommendations

Assessment Completed by: ........................................................

Position and Team: .........................................................

 .............................................................................................

4. Guidance for Assessors

This form should usually be completed by a young person's social worker or transition social worker. Although a professional documents the views, wishes and feelings of young people and their carers should be sought and integrated throughout the document. Different points of view or disagreements should be clearly distinguished - whether between young people and carers, or between service users and professionals.

Be sensitive to the fact that most families and young people will have had to discuss the following issues a number of times - and may find it tiresome to have to do so again. It may be able to fill in some of the information from existing records, although always check details you are unsure about and where there are issues of opinion rather than straightforward fact. Make sure the source of opinions or judgements is made clear in the assessment. Remember the point of the assessment is to give a picture of the young person's needs as an adult, so often detail need not be exhaustive.

Part A - Assessment of Current & Future Needs

Personal History

Include information on:

• Birth
• Diagnosis and cause of disability
• Brief developmental history (including emotional & behavioural development)
• Places person has lived or stayed
• Significant life events, losses

Family

Genogram: show who lives with young person at present; any relevant extended family.

History & Relationships:

Include brief details re:

• Family functioning and dynamics, including young person's main attachments.
• Parenting capacity and ability to meet young person's needs.
• Family's view re- ability to continue to care for young person in future (if relevant).

Information re- carers needs and care provided should be detailed in a separate Carer's Assessment, unless carer's do not see this as relevant.

Housing and Environmental Factors

• Present housing/living situation.
• Past/present Occupational Therapy involvement; equipment provided, adaptations undertaken.
• Likely future housing/accommodation needs (obviously linked to a numbers of other factors).
• Young person and their family's social integration and use of community resources.

Health & Health Needs

Physical Health: (including)

• weight
• illnesses
• operations
• ongoing therapy/treatment - e.g. physiotherapy, chiropody
• epilepsy
• allergies
• likely future needs/prognosis
• continence
• dental care
• special dietary needs

Mobility:

• Can the young person walk unaided?
• Walking aids, wheelchair, other aids used?
• Do they need supervision in/out of doors, either due to mobility, lack of awareness or behaviour difficulties?

Mental Health:

• Involvement with psychological/psychiatric services?
• Any specific diagnosis?
• Any ongoing therapy.

Cognitive Abilities

• Assessed level of learning disability and/or physical disability
• Learning and reasoning ability, with scores if available.

Communication

• How does the young person communicate (i.e. speech, signing, PECS, other symbols/methods) and at what level?
• How much was the young person able to contribute directly to this assessment?
• What support is needed in order to help the young person express their views?

Behavioural Issues

• Does the young person exhibit any behaviours that are difficult to manage; that bring attention to them; that pose a risk to themselves or others; or that otherwise need special consideration in relation to future support needs as an adult? Is there any forensic history future service providers should be aware of?

Any Other Relevant Information

Part B - More Detailed Profile of Young Person

Some of the below may have been touched on in Part A; refer to previous sections where relevant. 

Caption: part b - more detailed profile of young person

1.	Interests & Abilities
	Particular skills and abilities, likes and dislikes. Activities participated in. Activities young person would like to participate in/wishes re- future leisure activities.
2.	Independence & Personal Care Skills
	General level of young person's independence/dependence, re- ability to care for themselves or carry out major tasks. Ability re- washing, dressing, feeding/eating/drinking, self-appearance.
3.	Social Skills
	Self-presentation and personality. Ability to develop and maintain relationships. Opportunity for relationships and current social network (see Part A: 4 & 5). Ability to cope with people in public places (see Part A: 9).
4.	Daily Living Skills
	Shopping Cooking Preparing snacks/meals Literacy Numeracy Awareness & knowledge of money Ability to keep safe; areas where they would be at risk (see Part A: 9).
5.	Travel
	Can they travel independently (and if not, what is their level of dependence)? Specific information re- local journeys/further afield (see Part A: 6 - Mobility).
6.	Finance
	What benefits does the young person receive, and at what level?
7.	Views and Wishes re- the Future
	What are the young person's view regarding where and how they would like to live as an adult? What are their wishes regarding employment or continuing education?

Part C: Summary and Recommendations

Person completing form should give a brief summary of information collected and use this to make a concise statement about the young person's future support needs as an adult. This may include support needs between the age of 18-19 when young people are often completing an existing educational placement, as well as needs and plans post-19.

The Adult Learning Disability Team or Adult Physical Disability team will use this information to complete an Adult Social Care & Health Outcome Summary of Assessment/Review and to help make specific plans regarding the provision or purchase of future support services.