What is the Family Help Assessment (FHA)?

The Family Help Assessment (FHA) was formerly known as the Early Help Assessment (EHAT). It is a shared assessment tool for use across all services. It aims to help identify family needs early and supports agencies to work together to meet those needs by developing a family plan. The FHA is undertaken with the consent and full participation of the child/young person and their family.

How does the FHA link with other assessments?

The FHA process should be used when needs affects a child or children’s ability to develop appropriately, and where they will benefit from the support of services from a range of services. The aim is to ensure that children receive these services at the earliest opportunity.

This should remove the need for multiple assessments at the early stages of intervention in children’s lives.

Where a more specialist assessment (such as a Single Assessment under the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families) is required, using FHA will help by clearly identifying needs and what support arrangements have been in place during the Family Help offer.

This can make sure that a Single Assessment for Social Care support is fully informed and ensure that the referral is really necessary and that it is supported by accurate up-to-date information.

The information gathered will follow the children/family and builds up a picture over time, rather than a series of partial snapshots.

Do Children with SEND need a FHA?

No. Unless wider support needs for the family have been identified or other issues that impact on the wellbeing of the child (for example, concerns around parenting capacity due to substance misuse, parental mental health, domestic abuse) there is no need to complete a FHA

Read our guidance here