Social Work and Urban Poor Settlements: Welfare Needs Assessment in Lagos Informal Communities

Informal urban settlements in Lagos house millions of residents whose welfare needs are structurally invisible to formal service systems, creating a critical mandate for social work engagement through professional needs assessment practice. This study conducts an analytical welfare needs assessment of social work-relevant needs in informal communities in Lagos, with focus on Makoko, Agege, and Bariga. A mixed-method explanatory design employs a structured survey of 280 household representatives alongside 28 qualitative interviews with community leaders, social workers, and NGO staff. Descriptive statistics, hierarchical needs analysis, and thematic analysis are applied. The study finds that housing insecurity, child educational exclusion, domestic violence, substance abuse, and mental health deterioration are the highest priority welfare needs, yet social work services in these communities are largely absent or inaccessible. Community residents demonstrate limited awareness of social work as a professional resource, reflecting weak institutional presence. The study applies a participatory needs assessment framework that amplifies community voice in welfare priority-setting. An original contribution is the construction of a welfare needs index for Lagos informal settlements. Recommendations include establishing community-based social work service points in major informal settlements, deploying mobile social work outreach teams, and developing community welfare mapping tools for state-level planning. Keywords: urban poor, welfare needs assessment, informal settlements, Lagos, community social work