The 6th National Families Week will be held between 11 and 17 May 2008. The theme is 'Work and Family - Getting the balance right' and all Australians, particularly working parents and employers, are urged to find ways to generate ideas and take actions which will improve work-family balance for themselves and others. The central aim of National Families Week 2008 is to encourage all Australians to recognise that effectively balancing work and family makes for stronger families, workplaces and communities because it helps us to care effectively for our entire family, including the elderly, young, ill and those with a disability, and builds workplace productivity and morale. Each year, tens of thousands of people and hundreds of organisations celebrate National Families Week - Australia’s annual celebration of the vital role of families. In 2007 new records were set in terms of number of participants. More than 110,000 people participated in events across Australia. Each National Families Week you’re encouraged to invest some time to celebrate the vital role of your family and to do things that will improve the all-round physical and emotional wellbeing of your family unit. Take the time to go for a family picnic, have that game of backyard cricket you planned all summer, catch up with friends/relatives for a walk in a local beauty spot, spend some time talking and listening to all members of your family. The Australian Government, through the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, is sponsoring National Families Week 2008 with Families Australia. Centrelink is also promoting National Families Week and providing support through its national network.

About the Book Child and Family Assessment is based on Ian Wilkinson's extensive experience of working with troubled children and families over the last twenty years. This completely revised and updated edition of Family Assessment (Gardner Press, 1993) combines a clear summary of current knowledge with practical, detailed and adaptable procedures for practitioner use. Part one reviews the literature on child and family assessment; part two discusses the practical issues involved and provides detailed guidelines for practitioners; a final part examines the relationship between clinical practice, assessment and science with respect to children and families. Written from an eclectic point of view in a clear and precise style, using common sense terms, this book will be an essential guide for all those in the helping professions, including therapists, psychologists, doctors, nurses, social workers and lawyers.