Submission 225 — ConnectAbility Australia — Inquiry into the Thriving Kids initiative

ConnectAbility Australia

Thriving Kids Senate Submission – Early Intervention Supports

1.0 Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………………. 2

2.0 Addressing the terms of reference ………………………………………………………….. 2

2.1 Evidence-Based Information and Resources for Parents ……………………………. 2

2.2 Effectiveness of Current Programs ………………………………………………………….. 3

2.4 Equity and Intersectional Issues ……………………………………………………………… 4

2.5 Workforce Support and Training Needs to Deliver Thriving Kids …………………. 5

2.6 Domestic and International Policy Experience and Best Practice ………………… 7

3.0 Summary of Recommendations ……………………………………………………………… 9

4.0 Additional information ………………………………………………………………………….. 9

5.0 References ………………………………………………………………………………………. 11

ConnectAbility encompassing Early Links - capacity and therapy division is an interdisciplinary early intervention service. Early Links has been supporting children and families for over 40 years and, in 2023, merged with ConnectAbility Australia. Together, the organisation brings more than 70 years of experience supporting people with a disability across the lifespan.

The Capacity and Therapy Services division includes nearly 80 staff members, comprising speech pathologists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, dietitians, psychologists, teachers, behaviour support practitioners, and music therapists.

We deliver evidence-based, best practice support in an interdisciplinary way. Our services are neurodiversity-affirming, trauma-informed, and person-centred, supporting approximately 1,000 families across the Port Stephens, Newcastle, Maitland, Cessnock, Singleton, and Muswellbrook/Upper Hunter local government areas.

2.1 Evidence-Based Information and Resources for Parents

Parents, carers, and those raising children require access to reliable, consistent, and evidence-based information that provides practical guidance for accessing support. High-quality resources help families make informed decisions about early intervention and developmental supports.

Several frameworks provide guidance on best practice supports in the early intervention space, including: - National Framework for Assessing Children’s Functional Strengths and Support Needs in Australia - Strengths and Supports Framework | Autism CRC - National Guideline for Supporting the Learning, Participation and Wellbeing of Autistic Children and Their Families in Australia | Autism CRC - ChildKind Best Practice Framework - National

Guidelines for Best Practice (2nd Edition) - National Best Practice Framework for Early Childhood Intervention - Speech Pathology Australia – Communication Milestones

These frameworks emphasise coordinated, interdisciplinary supports that are guided by the goals of the child and family and delivered in the child’s natural environments. Resources provided by peak bodies reflect current evidence-based developmental information and best practice standards.

Recommendation: Develop a cohesive synthesis of best practice resources in consultation with peak bodies, parents and carers, and relevant experts. Resources should guide families in making informed decisions about their child’s support needs and be accessible in multiple formats, including video, social media, written, and spoken formats, through mainstream services.

2.2 Effectiveness of Current Programs

Mainstream supports for children and families face systemic barriers that limit their effectiveness, despite having skilled clinicians. Evidence from the Henry Review (2020) and the Paediatric Allied Health Workforce Project highlights key challenges in NSW:

• High demand and low workforce supply
• Long waitlists (12+ months for intervention; up to six years for developmental assessment)
• Funding gaps for children not eligible for NDIS support
• Significant rural disadvantage, with limited services and workforce in regional areas

Schools and Preschools:

• School-based allied health is effective when delivered with adequate frequency and intensity. However, NSW staffing levels are insufficient. For example, one school counsellor supports five schools (~1,500 students), limiting therapeutic support and teacher upskilling.

• Preschools and long day care services face staffing and ratio pressures, leaving minimal capacity for individualised or targeted early intervention programs.

Recommendation:

Establish a national funding model to enable schools, preschools and other mainstream supports to partner with established allied health and teaching organisations. This approach would provide interdisciplinary, evidence-based early intervention supports in mainstream settings without adding further burden to already stretched systems.

2.4 Equity and Intersectional Issues

Children who are First Nations, culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD), or experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage face intersecting barriers to accessing early intervention supports. Key challenges include:

• Socioeconomic disadvantage: Families may struggle with service costs, transport, and time constraints, limiting engagement with therapy and parenting supports. Children with mild to moderate disabilities are disproportionately affected.

• First Nations children: Limited culturally safe services and Aboriginal-identifying staff, historical mistrust, and under-resourced community-controlled organisations reduce access and engagement.

• CALD children: Language barriers, limited translated resources, and inconsistent culturally responsive services hinder access. Socioeconomic factors can compound these challenges.

• Geography: Regional and remote families face workforce shortages, long waitlists, and limited access to telehealth. Travel distances and costs further restrict participation.

• Children with mild/moderate difficulties: Conditions such as feeding difficulties, AAC needs, speech sound disorders, and persistent language delays can have long-term impacts on learning, wellbeing, and social participation. Without early intervention, these children are at higher risk of poor educational and social outcomes, including justice system involvement.

• Intersectionality: Children experiencing multiple risk factors face compounded barriers due to systemic workforce shortages, funding constraints, and rigid eligibility criteria.

Recommendation:

Programs and funding decisions must be developed in partnership with the communities being supported—“nothing for us, without us.” Supports must address inequities in access, be culturally safe, and ensure timely, coordinated, interdisciplinary early intervention.

2.5 Workforce Support and Training Needs to Deliver Thriving Kids

Delivering the Thriving Kids initiative requires a skilled, well-resourced, and coordinated workforce across multiple sectors, including GPs, schools, playgroups, preschools, allied health, and nursing. Key workforce and system challenges include:

• Staffing shortages across allied health, education, and health sectors limit service availability and effectiveness.

• Funding limitations reduce service quality, access, and outcomes.

• Community-based systems require resources to establish and maintain services, including staff, infrastructure, and equipment.

• Assessment tools: Lack of Australian normed, standardised screeners sensitive enough to identify mild/moderate difficulties across practitioners.

• Skills development: Mainstream services require training to identify and support mild to moderate disabilities.

• Physical resources: Adequate buildings, therapy equipment, and infrastructure (phone systems, client management systems) are essential.

• Regulation and minimum qualifications: Workforce must meet professional standards, including registration, ongoing PD, supervision, confidentiality, and documentation.

• Communication and coordination: Services must provide cohesive, interdisciplinary support, in line with Autism CRC guidelines.

• Individualised supports: Families must have choice and control over interventions.

• Evidence base: Services must accommodate heterogeneous client needs while remaining evidence-informed.

• Teacher reliance: Teachers should not deliver supports outside their scope and in addition to their considerable curriculum based workload. Overreliance on teachers contributes to workforce stress, decreased wellbeing and reduced retention.

Recommendation:

The Thriving Kids initiative should be supported by a nationally consistent funding framework with clear registration standards, qualified practitioners, robust assessment tools, and guidelines. Supports should be collaborative, individualised, evidence-informed, and provide families with choice and control, with partnerships established with skilled providers.

2.6 Domestic and International Policy Experience and Best Practice

Effective early intervention initiatives draw on domestic and international evidence to improve outcomes and equity.

Domestic Examples:

• The Early Years Learning Framework and Early Years Strategy
• Australia’s Disability Strategy 2021–2031
• National Autism Strategy 2025–2031
• NDIS Quality and Safeguards, including the NDIS Practice Standards
• The Independent Review of the NDIS
• Child Safe Standards and the ECEC Review of Child Safety
• National Children’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy
• Australian Early Development Census (AEDC): Provides population-level data on children’s development to inform targeted intervention (Australian Early Development Census, 2024).
• National Framework for Assessing Children’s Functional Strengths and Support Needs: Guides interdisciplinary early intervention (Autism CRC, 2024).
• Henry Review (2020): Reviews paediatric services in NSW and identifies workforce and access challenges (NSW Health, 2020).

• Autism CRC Interventions Evidence Report: Summarises best practice interventions for autistic children (Autism CRC, 2019).

• Safe and Supported: The National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2021–2031

• National Agreement on Closing the Gap

• National Framework for Assessing Children’s Functional Strengths and Support Needs in Australia

International Examples:

• Early Childhood Intervention Models – Canada, UK, USA: Family-centred, interdisciplinary approaches delivered in natural settings.

• Inclusion and Special Educational Needs Policies – Scandinavia: Integrated education and health approaches (Sweden.se, n.d.).

• WHO Early Childhood Development Guidelines: Evidence-based interventions focusing on equity, family engagement, and workforce development (World Health Organization, 2020).

Recommendation:

Future early intervention initiatives should adopt evidence-based, family-centred, and interdisciplinary models that are adaptable, scalable, and equitable, drawing on both domestic and international best practices.

3.0 Summary of Recommendations

Overall Goal: A comprehensive, nationally supported system that is evidence-based, equitable, interdisciplinary, and family-centred, providing timely and sufficient support to optimise developmental, educational, and social outcomes for all children.

4.0 Additional information

While not included in the terms of reference it is important to note the economic benefits of early intervention. In 2024, Australia spent about $22.3 billion on late interventions, like child protection and youth justice, which is a 47% increase since 2019. Early intervention, however, can significantly reduce these costs Early intervention in Australia delivers significant economic benefits by reducing long-term costs. For example, the AEIOU Foundation’s program can save approximately $297,000 per child over their lifetime.

Additionally, broader research indicates that every dollar invested in early intervention can yield up to $5.70 in future savings, as evidenced by programs like the Nurse-Family Partnership in the U.S. These findings highlight how early support not only enhances individual outcomes but also generates substantial economic returns for the community and the nation as a whole.

5.0 References

AEIOU Foundation. (n.d.). Cost savings of early intervention programs. AEIOU Foundation. https://aeiou.org.au

Australian Early Development Census. (2024). AEDC national report 2024. Australian Government Department of Education. https://www.aedc.gov.au/docs/default-source/default-document-library/aedc_national-report-2024_da7-409a37b9d-95ce-43e7-af00-51aa604cf0b3.pdf?sfvrsn=b56015ba_1

Australian Human Rights Commission. (2010). National Disability Strategy 2010–2020. https://humanrights.gov.au/sites/default/files/national_disability_strategy_2010-2020.pdf

Autism CRC. (2019). Interventions for children on the autism spectrum: A synthesis of research evidence. Autism CRC. https://www.autismcrc.com.au/interventions-evidence

Autism CRC. (2024). National framework for assessing children’s functional strengths and support needs in Australia. Autism CRC. https://www.autismcrc.com.au/best-practice/strengths-and-supports

Department of Education. (2022). Belonging, being & becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia (V2.0). Australian Government.

Department of Social Services. (2021). Australia’s Disability Strategy 2021–2031. Australian Government.

Department of Social Services. (2021). Safe and supported: The National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2021–2031. Australian Government.

Department of Social Services. (2025). National Autism Strategy 2025–2031 (forthcoming). Australian Government.

Joint Council on Closing the Gap. (2020). National agreement on Closing the Gap. Australian Government.

NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. (2024). NDIS practice standards. Australian Government.

NDIS Review Panel. (2023). Independent review into the National Disability Insurance Scheme. Australian Government.

NSW Health. (2020). Review of health services for children, young people and families (The Henry Review). NSW Government. https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/kidsfamilies/paediatric/Pages/henry-review.aspx

Office of the Children’s Guardian. (2022). Child safe standards. NSW Government.

Productivity Commission. (2021). National children’s mental health and wellbeing strategy. Australian Government.

Sweden.se. (n.d.). Disability policy. https://sweden.se/life/equality/disability-policy

The Front Project. (2024). The economic benefits of early childhood intervention in Australia. The Front Project. https://www.thefrontproject.org.au

World Health Organization. (2020). Improving early childhood development: WHO guideline. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/97892400020986

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