Research on the need for and use of mental health services by children served by child welfare agencies has focused primarily on youths placed in nonrelative foster care with less known about the great majority of youths that child welfare encounters who remain in their homes or live with relatives. The aim of the current study was to assess the relationship between the need for and use of mental health services among a national sample of children from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) who were investigated by child welfare agencies after reported maltreatment. NSCAW consists of two cohorts of children randomly selected between October 1999 and December 2000 along with their caregivers and child welfare workers. The article addresses the clinical need and related characteristics, the correlates of mental health service utilization, and the rates and types of mental health service use. The sample used in this analysis was constrained to children aged 2 through 14 years of age (n = 3,803). Findings from this analysis indicate that easily one half of the youths who come to the attention of the child welfare system have manifest emotional and/or behavioral problems. The need for serious attention to the mental health needs of these youths is apparent and the potential to intervene effectively is possible. However, there needs to be a true partnership established between the child mental health and child welfare service systems. References