This purpose of
this project, funded by the National
Crime Prevention Centre, was to develop a gender-sensitive needs
assessment tool for supporting at-risk girls and young women. The tool
was expected to meet the following criteria:
- be designed in
a way that is simple and easy to use
- include questions
that are not presently being asked
- improve workers’
understanding of at-risk girls’ needs
- result in better
planning to meet the needs of at-risk girls
- involve youth
directly in the assessment and planning process
The "Gender-sensitive
Guide for Needs Assessment for Youth" was developed in collaboration
with youth and workers on Vancouver Island (see Project
Summary or the Full Report for more
information) and is available on this site for youth and workers to
use. A full literature review and a review
of a sample of assessment tools used by workers (see Appendix E of the
Full Report) also contributed to the development
of the tool.
The introductory
pages to the guide describe the assumptions underlying the questions
contained in the guide and include suggestions on how to use the guide.
Another piece of
this project involved working with the B.C. Ministry
for Children and Family Development (MCFD) to compile a service
directory database listing services in the Greater Victoria region.
