Community Needs Assessment: Unveiling Challenges and Opportunities in Social Welfare
Introduction:
The primary objective of this assignment is to empower you to analyze, evaluate, and present a
detailed overview of the social welfare needs within a chosen community. By exploring various
dimensions of the community, you will gain insights into the complexities of social issues and
formulate recommendations for enhancing social welfare programs and services.
Week 2 of this course and Chapter 2 of our textbook explore a six-step framework for addressing
social issues and problems. Using this framework mainly, stages 1-3 will form the foundation of
your research and direction for this written assignment.
Assignment Components:
Stage I: Identify a Social Issue or Problem:
– Choose a specific community for the needs assessment. This could be a neighbourhood,
town, or city in the GTA. (Toronto, Canada)
Consider selecting a community with diverse demographics to
capture a broad range of social welfare concerns.
– Conduct preliminary research to identify a social issue or problem prevalent in that community.
– Explicitly identify whether it is a social issue or a social problem and why you think so.
Stage II: Understanding the Social Issues and Problems
– Through research, learn about the nature and prevalence of your chosen social issue/problem
in the community. Here are some of the questions you should aim to answer:
– How has this social issue been defined? (i.e. by the community itself, agencies in
the community, stakeholders, etc.)
– How many people are affected by this social issue/problem?
– Who is affected by this social issue/problem?
– What policies affect the state of this social issue/problem?
Stage III: Consulting + Reviewing (Resource Assessment)
– Identify key stakeholders in the community, such as residents, local government officials,
non-profit organizations, and social service providers. Gather insights from interviews, surveys,
or focus groups to understand community perspectives on the social issue or problem.
– Evaluate existing resources available in the community to address social welfare needs.
– What agencies are currently seeking to address this social issue/problem?
– Examine the effectiveness of current programs, services, and facilities. Identify gaps and
areas where additional resources may be required.
Recommendations and Solutions:
– Propose recommendations to address the identified social issue or problem. Consider
short-term and long-term solutions and explore potential collaborations with community
resources and organizations.
Conclusion:
– Summarize key findings from the needs assessment and emphasize the significance of
addressing the social welfare issue or problem within your chosen community. Reflect on
the potential impact of implementing the proposed recommendations.
Submission Guidelines:
– The assignment should be submitted in a structured format with headings for each
section of your research/discussion
– Use both peer-reviewed sources and community research. Be sure to cite your sources
using APA format.
– Your assignment should be 5 pages, double-spaced (not including a title page and
references).
