Parental Mental Ill Health
Last updated: September 19, 2008
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
Parental mental ill health does not necessarily have an adverse impact on a child?s developmental needs, but it is essential to always assess its implications for each child in the family. Many children whose parents have mental ill health may be seen as children with additional needs requiring professional support: in these circumstances the need for a Common Assessment [CAF] should be considered.
It is considered that where a parent has enduring and / or severe mental ill-health, children in the household are more likely to be at risk of, or experiencing, significant harm: this could be through physical, sexual or emotional abuse, and / or neglect.
Significant harm is defined as a situation where a child is likely to suffer a degree of physical harm which is such that it requires a compulsory intervention by child protection agencies into the life of the children and their family.
