Designing the Thriving Kids initiative so it works for families

Lessons from integrated early childhood hubs

Thriving Kids is being designed to provide a system of supports for children aged 0-8 with developmental delay, autism and with low-to-moderate support needs. The initiative aims to provide children and their families with earlier, easier access to support in the places they live, learn and play.

Australian, state and territory governments have committed to a child-centred approach, with support matched to each child and family’s needs. Early Childhood Hubs share many of the same principles as Thriving Kids and already bring together services that Thriving Kids will need to connect with or deliver. They also support many children and families who may be accessing supports under this initiative. 

This brief outlines what governments can do to make Thriving Kids integrated, accessible and effective for children and families. We highlight where Thriving Kids can build on the experience of Hubs as leaders in quality, integrated and trusted supports that wrap around children and families. We’ve identified lessons from our body of research into effective integration to inform how Thriving Kids can connect, rather than add complexity to, an already fragmented system. 

This brief can support the design and delivery of the Thriving Kids initiative, and make the early childhood development system easier for families to navigate.