The Australian Government and state and territory governments have reached an agreement to improve outcomes for children through joint investment of $4 billion over five years in Thriving Kids, as the first phase of Foundational Supports.
Thriving Kids will support children aged 8 years and under with developmental delay and/or autism who have low to moderate support needs, and their families, carers and kin. Children with permanent and significant disability, including those with developmental delay and/or autism with high support needs, will continue to be eligible for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) subject to usual NDIS arrangements. You can find more details below.
Thriving Kids will commence rollout of services no later than 1 October 2026, with full roll out of services by 1 January 2028. We will share more details about services, and how you can access them, closer to when services start.
Services available under the Thriving Kids National Model
Thriving Kids will help give children the best start in life by identifying those with developmental delay earlier and connecting them to supports that will support their development.
Governments have agreed there will be a range of different supports available under Thriving Kids that align with the Thriving Kids ‘national model’. The Thriving Kids Advisory Group provided governments with advice on what supports should be available. Based on this, the Commonwealth and state and territory governments have agreed on a national model for Thriving Kids. This is outlined in the National Agreement on Foundational Supports.
Supports will predominantly be provided in the environments where children live, learn and play and will include supports under each of these domains:
- Activities that support greater community, parent, family and kin awareness of developmental delay and neurodevelopmental difference (including Autism) to support early identification where a child may be developing differently to their peers.
- Early identification of children with developmental delay and neurodevelopmental difference through routine child development and health assessments or checks.
- Information, advice and navigation – This includes national and local digital and phone-based information and advice on childhood development and autism, alongside navigation support to help children and families understand where and how to access relevant supports. Information on Thriving Kids supports will also be readily accessible to the community and key workforces who interact with, or may refer, children for supports.
- Best practice parenting supports and programs- Programs and supports which will empower families, carers, and kin with resources and skills to assist and improve their child’s learning and development through everyday activities. These supports will provide a soft entry (easy access) for eligible families and may include a mix of online and in-person options, such as online courses, short videos, and resources families can use at home, peer support groups, supported playgroups, family programs, self-advocacy supports, and culturally safe training.
- Targeted Supports for children (state delivery) - Targeted supports will be available for children who need additional help beyond parenting supports and programs. These will be accessed through nationally consistent functional needs identification and triage arrangements. This includes things like:
- Group and one-on-one allied health. These will be delivered by trained workers, such as occupational therapists, speech pathologists, physiotherapists, audiologists, and psychologists. This might also include access to low-cost assistive technology, aids or equipment where needed.
- More intensive capacity building to support families with complex needs/circumstances. These supports will help families build their child’s strengths, navigate key transition points – like entering school – and assist if the family is accessing supports from a range of different people under Thriving Kids.
Thriving Kids supports and services will be guided by a range of principles, for example, being informed by evidence, being neuro-affirming, child centred, family centred and strength-based. They will also consider the need of intersectional cohorts such as First Nations people, culturally and linguistically diverse people and consider effective approaches in regional, rural and remote areas.
Role of Governments
The national model outlines the kinds of supports that will be delivered across Australia. The specific kinds of services delivered may differ as funded supports are expected to include a mix of scaled existing services and new services.
State and territory governments will deliver routine child development and health assessment checks, general parenting supports, local navigation, targeted supports and state measures to assist workforce capability readiness under Thriving Kids.
The Australian Government will oversee national measures that support the Thriving Kids model to operate across jurisdictions. This includes:
- national information and awareness raising
- national online/digital and phone information and advice on developmental delay, autism and services
- national measures to assist workforce and build capability readiness in key sectors
- national enabling elements
- evaluation of Thriving Kids.
Consultation and engagement
The design of these measures will be informed by community consultation and engagement. This includes what we have already heard through significant engagement to date, as well as further engagement.
Some of the previous work which will inform service design includes:
- Thriving Kids Advisory Group - The Thriving Kids Advisory Group published its final report on 3 February 2026 with advice to governments on what a national model of supports should look like.
- The Parliamentary Inquiry Report into Thriving Kids, was published on 22 December 2025. It made a range of recommendations for Thriving Kids based on what it heard through submissions and hearings.
- Foundational Supports public consultation- National consultations on the design and delivery of foundational supports took place from September to December 2024.
- The Independent Review of the National Disability Insurance Scheme - Foundational Supports (and supports for children with developmental delay outside the NIDS) are one of the core reform pillars and part of the Review’s vision for a connected system of supports.
States and territories will undertake engagement on what the services and supports they will deliver in their jurisdiction look like. You can learn more about what is happening in your state or territory here:
- NSW: dcjnsw.info/thrivingkids
- ACT: https://www.act.gov.au/open/the-thriving-kids-program-in-canberra
Please note information from states and territories may be updated and made available progressively.
In regard to the services and support the Australian Government will deliver, we will continue to engage with a range of stakeholders, including:
- parents, families and carers of children with developmental delay and/or autism with low to moderate support needs
- disability representative organisations and representative organisations
- community service providers, colleges and progressional associations
- providers and professionals from key sectors such as early childhood, education, health and allied health and disability
- experts and academics
- people with culturally and linguistically diverse and First Nations perspectives from across community, organisation, academic and provider sectors.
The Australian Government will engage with stakeholders on Thriving Kids through both established governance and advisory mechanisms, and through targeted and inclusive engagement activities. This will include:
- drawing on existing governance forums and reference groups
- targeted engagement with people with lived experience including families, carers and kin to ensue Commonwealth-lead services are fit for purpose
- engaging with providers with relevant expertise and experience
- engaging peaks and professional bodies to ensure workforce measures will meet need and be effectively and appropriately tailored for different workforces
- developing communication products to keep the community informed of design and delivery progress.
The Australian Government will also continue working closely with:
- state and territory governments to ensure Commonwealth and state funded Thriving Kids services are aligned to deliver a coherent and integrated national model
- the National Disability Insurance Agency to make sure access to supports is seamless and coordinated
early childhood education and care and education representatives.
NDIS access arrangements
To support the rollout of Thriving Kids, the Australian Government and all state and territory governments have agreed in principle to change NDIS access arrangements for children.
These changes will ensure children and their families are supported to access services from the system best suited to their needs. These changes will apply from 1 January 2028. Changes will be limited to children aged 8 and under with developmental delay and/or autism with low to moderate support needs. These children will be supported through mainstream and Foundational Supports.
Children aged 8 and under enrolled in the NDIS prior to 1 January 2028 with developmental delay and/or autism with low to moderate support needs will be subject to reassessment under the eligibility criteria in place on 31 December 2027.
Children with permanent and significant disability will continue to be eligible for the NDIS, subject to usual NDIS arrangements. These access changes will require amendments to the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (NDIS Act).