Using the CAT addresses barriers to child participation during child assessment. The results indicated that using the CAT created a child-friendly environment that facilitated effective child communication and participation during assessments. Data collection included individual semi-structured interviews with purposively sampled fourth-level student social workers. While the study adopted a mixed-method approach, this paper reports the findings drawn from the study's qualitative findings. This paper presents social work students' perceptions of using a child assessment tool (CAT). However, the use of child-friendly tools in generalist child counselling remains sparse. integration of child-friendly tools during child counselling facilitates effective communication and child participation. of Social Work, University of KwaZulu-Natal. IPostgraduate student, Department of Social Work, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa. The use and value of a child assessment tool (CAT) in social work child assessments
