Submission to the House Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Disability
Submitted by Playgroup WA (Inc)
October 2025
Executive Summary
Playgroup WA (PGWA) welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the Inquiry into the Thriving Kids initiative. As the peak body for playgroups across Western Australia, PGWA supports more than 450 community-led, Aboriginal, and supported playgroups, engaging over 10,000 families annually. We also work collaboratively with Playgroup Australia and other state and territory bodies as part of the national playgroup network.
Children are being left behind, and the impacts on their development and lifelong outcomes are unacceptable.
National AEDC (2025) data shows:
- 23.5% of children are developmentally vulnerable in one or more domains, up from 22.0% in 2021.
- 12.5% are vulnerable in two or more domains, up from 11.4% in 2021.
- Only 52.9% are developmentally on track, down from 54.8% in 2021.
WA AEDC (2024) data reinforces this urgency:
- 23.8% of WA children are developmentally vulnerable in one or more domains.
- 12.9% are vulnerable in two or more domains.
- In some regional and remote communities, more than one in three children are developmentally vulnerable at school entry.
These figures reveal widening inequities across geography and culture. The case for foundational supports is compelling—early, inclusive, non-judgemental, family-centred services embedded in everyday environments.
Playgroups are proven, cost-effective foundational supports within the Early Childhood Education (ECE) ecosystem. They are universal, accessible, and community-led, while also offering targeted supports in high-need communities. They strengthen parent–child relationships, enable early identification of developmental concerns, and connect families into health, education, disability, and social services.
The Thriving Kids initiative must embed playgroups in its design, ensuring they are recognised and funded as essential national infrastructure for prevention and early intervention, valued for their affordability and cost-effectiveness in delivering wide-reaching impact.
1. Best Practice in Early Intervention and Prevention
The evidence is clear. The Harvard Centre on the Developing Child shows the first 1000 days are critical for lifelong wellbeing. ARACY’s Nest Framework identifies protective factors such as safe relationships, strong communities, and access to early learning. AEDC (2025) data highlights increasing vulnerability, particularly in remote and disadvantaged communities. The Productivity Commission demonstrates that prevention delivers far higher returns than remediation. The Early Years Strategy emphasises the importance of embedding universal, soft entry supports to prevent disadvantage.
Foundational supports are critically necessary. The current system excludes children ineligible for the NDIS or those excluded due to visa status. It lacks sustainable, community-based services in many regions and reinforces diagnosis-driven access. Thriving Kids must shift from crisis-driven, eligibility-based models to a needs-driven, inclusive approach.
Playgroups exemplify this. They provide universal access with targeted intensity, are family-centred, inclusive, and non-judgemental, and are embedded in everyday environments such as libraries, schools, and community halls. They align with the National Best Practice Framework for Early Childhood Intervention: family-centred, strengths-based, inclusive, embedded in natural environments, and capacity-building.
2. Place-Based and Culturally Safe Approaches
The AEDC highlights widening inequities across geography and culture. Children in very remote communities are significantly more vulnerable, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children remain disproportionately affected. Families from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds face additional barriers of language, trust, and access.
Playgroups succeed because they are locally designed, culturally safe, and represent local communities throughout the state. Community playgroups are grassroots, volunteer-led groups that reflect local culture and identity. Aboriginal playgroups embed kinship, language, and cultural practice, strengthening identity and trust. CaLD playgroups provide safe spaces for migrant and refugee families to build belonging, navigate services, and connect with peers. Supported playgroups operate throughout WA and in regional and remote areas where other services are thin, embedding professionals who connect families into systems early.
Playgroups are not extra to the system; they are a core part of the ECE ecosystem that ensures Thriving Kids can adapt flexibly to geography, culture, and context.
3. System Integration and Pathways
Families do not experience life in silos. Their needs span health, education, disability, and social supports. Yet systems often operate in isolation, creating fragmentation and inequity. Thriving Kids must adopt a family-centred integration approach that embeds support where families already are.
Playgroups act as gateways within the ECE ecosystem. They connect families to health through developmental checks, immunisations, and allied health services delivered in playgroup settings. They strengthen education pathways by preparing children for preschool and school. They link families to social services such as parenting programs, housing, and counselling. They enable disability connection and early identification in inclusive, everyday environments, helping families access supports without stigma.
This warm handover model, built on trust and inclusion, ensures families accept referrals and sustain engagement. It represents best practice in family-centred service delivery and aligns with Thriving Kids’ vision of integration.
4. Outcomes and Impact
Playgroups deliver outcomes across multiple domains.
For children: Playgroup attendance improves developmental outcomes. AEDC data shows communities with strong playgroup participation have lower vulnerability. Research by Telethon Kids and ARACY shows children who attend playgroup are 1.7% more likely to be school-ready.
For parents and families: Playgroups build confidence and capacity, reduce social isolation, improve mental health and empower parents to navigate systems and advocate for their children.
For communities: Playgroups strengthen cohesion, cultural safety, and local leadership through volunteering. They embed cultural connection in Aboriginal and CaLD communities and sustain engagement in regional settings.
For systems: Playgroups ease pressure on child protection, health, and justice systems by addressing challenges early and preventing disadvantage from becoming entrenched. They offer a strong return on investment as a proven protective factor for child safety, creating safe, supportive environments where families build trusted relationships and access help early. By fostering community connection, normalising help-seeking, and linking families to local services, playgroups help create safer homes, stronger families, and healthier developmental outcomes for children.
5. Diversity and Flexibility
Australia’s diversity demands flexibility. Thriving Kids must support models that adapt to local contexts, cultures and geographies.
Playgroups already embody this adaptability. In remote Aboriginal communities, they provide culturally grounded supports. In regional towns, supported playgroups fill service gaps where others are absent. In urban centres, CaLD playgroups offer inclusive connection and pathways into services.
WA’s experience illustrates why flexibility matters. A state spanning 2.6 million km², with high proportions of Aboriginal and regional/remote families, cannot be served by a one-size-fits-all model. Playgroups provide the adaptable infrastructure needed, an approach equally relevant across Australia.
Case Study
A mother in WA began attending a supported playgroup after moving to town with no family nearby. At playgroup, she shared concerns about her child’s speech development. With facilitator support, she accessed a local speech pathologist within weeks. She later described playgroup as “the first place we felt seen and supported.”
In an Aboriginal community, the local playgroup brings together children, parents, grandparents and Elders. Cultural stories and language are embedded in sessions, with families describing the playgroup as a strong connection point within the community.
A parent of a child later diagnosed with autism said: “At playgroup, I wasn’t judged. Other parents just accepted my child for who he was. The facilitator noticed his behaviours and gently suggested we check in with a child health nurse. That early support meant he started therapy before school, which has made all the difference.”
Recommendations
- Recognise playgroups as essential foundational supports within the ECE ecosystem, embedded in Thriving Kids.
- Expand universal and supported playgroups nationally, ensuring equity regardless of geography, diagnosis, or eligibility.
- Invest in Aboriginal-led and culturally responsive playgroups, embedding cultural safety and trust.
- Fund Community Navigator roles within playgroups to connect families across health, education, disability, and social services.
- Embed Thriving Kids in a clear, evidence-based roadmap aligned with the National Best Practice Framework for Early Childhood Intervention, the Early Years Learning Framework, Australia’s Disability Strategy, Safe and Supported: The National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children and Closing the Gap targets.
- Support peer-led and volunteer-based playgroups as sustainable, low-cost models of community capacity-building.
- Measure outcomes that matter to families, including wellbeing, confidence, inclusion, and participation, alongside child development data.
Conclusion
The AEDC shows developmental vulnerability is rising nationally, with WA as a stark case study of inequity. Foundational supports are critically necessary.
Playgroups deliver these supports every day: early, inclusive, family-centred, and embedded in community life. They are scalable and cost-effective, making them a cornerstone of the Thriving Kids initiative.
No child should be left behind because of where they live, their diagnosis, or their circumstances. Thriving Kids must invest in playgroups as essential national infrastructure for prevention and early intervention.
Part 2: Summary Brief
Submission Summary: Thriving Kids Inquiry
Playgroup WA (Inc)\October 2025
Key Data
- National AEDC (2025): 23.5% vulnerable in one or more domains, 12.5% vulnerable in two or more, 52.9% on track.
- WA AEDC (2024): 23.8% vulnerable in one or more, 12.9% in two or more. In some regional/remote areas, one in three children start school vulnerable.
Why Playgroups Matter
- Universal with targeted intensity.
- Family-centred and inclusive.
- Embedded in everyday community life.
- Integrated with health, education, disability, and social services.
Impact
- Children: Improved school readiness (+1.7%), lower AEDC vulnerability.
- Parents: Reduced isolation, improved wellbeing, greater confidence.
- Communities: Stronger cohesion, cultural safety, and leadership.
- Systems: Reduced reliance on high-cost tertiary interventions.
Human Element
“Playgroup was the first place we felt seen and supported.” – WA parent
“This is the heartbeat of our community.” – Aboriginal playgroup leader
“At playgroup I wasn’t judged. They helped me find the right support early.” – Parent of child with autism
Recommendations
- Recognise playgroups as foundational supports within Thriving Kids.
- Expand universal and supported playgroups nationally.
- Invest in Aboriginal-led and culturally responsive playgroups.
- Fund Community Navigators within playgroups.
- Align Thriving Kids with national frameworks.
- Support peer-led and volunteer playgroups.
- Measure family and community outcomes, not just child-level data.
Conclusion
Thriving Kids is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reduce vulnerability and build equity. Playgroups are proven foundational supports: family-centred, inclusive, adaptable and embedded in everyday community life.
They must be recognised as essential national infrastructure if no child is to be left behind.