Risk Assessment

The aim of risk assessment is to consider a situation, event or decision and identify where some kind of harm is most likely to occur.

Risk assessment is not about eliminating the risk of harm but managing it so that the likelihood of it occurring is reduced.

In social care, there is a delicate balance between supporting people to make their own decisions and make unwise life choices and the need to reduce risk. As such, there are many tools that have been developed to support practitioners to take a balanced approach to the assessment of risk.

Unlike the traditional risk assessment described above a Positive Risk Assessment also identifies all of the benefits to the person that would come from taking any risk, in terms of personal change or growth. Where the benefits outweigh the potential harm a positive risk assessment would then develop a strategy to support the person to take the risk as safely as possible.