REiMAGiNE EARLY CHiLDHOOD
A National Action Plan to 2030
“The Reimagine Early Childhood National Action Plan to 2030” was born out of the first National Conversation with the early childhood development sector since the advent of the NDIS in Australia.
The Reimagine Early Childhood National Action Plan to 2030 (Action Plan) is a 10-year road map, commissioned by the Australian Government, to enable the human services sector, as a whole, to realise its potential to be a responsive, easy to navigate and holistic early childhood development support system. An ecosystem where all children have opportunities to meaningfully participate in family and community life.
Every year an estimated 115,000 families of children1 with additional needs are confronted and confused by a system that, despite its best intentions, has become inherently complex. Their interaction with the human services system is often described as confronting, difficult and confusing, with no less than 10 service systems to coordinate and navigate.
To ensure that every child is well supported and benefits from the investments all governments make in early childhood development, a well-resourced, all encompassing ‘belonging and inclusion’ framework is required.
Reimagine Australia (Reimagine) is proud to be tasked with the delivery of the first National Early Childhood 10-year Action Plan. The Action Plan provides a clear road map, to 2030, to support the development of children, optimise social and economic outcomes for children from birth to six years with developmental delay or disability and support their families in a broad range of evidence-informed and innovative approaches.
The Action Plan is grounded in a strong family context, co-designed with families and for families, to support the success of the specialist early childhood development support sector, and to maximise outcomes for the tens of thousands of Australian families and caregivers every year who support a very young child with additional needs.
The consultation process to develop the Action Plan provided an opportunity to hold the first national conversation about the state of the early childhood development support sector in Australia since the introduction of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). In designing the Action Plan, Reimagine has utilised the key learnings and deep insights gathered during our extensive consultation process, and has entwined them with contemporary international evidence and existing knowledge and information which has shaped the early childhood development sector across Australia and reimagined it, as a 10-year road map, through the lens of children and families currently using these services.
Children thrive in the context of their families and caregivers. Supported families lead to healthy communities, which in turn provides a social and economic dividend for the Australian community. It is vital that the specialist early childhood development support sector is guided by a transparent, shared and clearly articulated national vision. A vision that will enable the building of family capacity and the achievement of the very best outcomes for families and their children, ultimately ensuring that every child is afforded every possibility to thrive.