Thriving Kids Advisory Group Final Report

This document summarises advice from the Thriving Kids Advisory Group to Australian governments.

Why Thriving Kids is needed

In 2023, the Independent Review into the National Disability Insurance Scheme (the Review) recommended that governments should invest in more supports for children and their families outside of the NDIS.

The Review called for more inclusive and accessible mainstream supports.

It also recommended governments should increase supports outside the NDIS for people with disability and developmental delay.

It called these ‘Foundational Supports’.

The Review also called for a new NDIS early intervention pathway for children.

In December 2023, governments agreed to work together to design and deliver Foundational Supports.

The first area they focused on was the design of supports focused on children aged 0 to 8 years with developmental delay and/or autism with low to moderate support needs.

Funding and delivering Thriving Kids

In August 2025, the Australian Government said it would provide $2 billion over five years for these supports for children, called ‘Thriving Kids’.

State and territory governments are expected to match this investment.

The Australian Government and state and territory governments will agree on the final design of Thriving Kids.

Children with permanent and significant disability will still receive supports through the NDIS.

Advisory Group and consultation

To support the development of Thriving Kids, the Minister for Health and Ageing and Minister for Disability and the NDIS, the Hon Mark Butler MP, set up the Thriving Kids Advisory Group in September 2025.

The group was cochaired by Minister Butler and Professor Frank Oberklaid AM.

The Advisory Group included experts in child health and development, disability, research, early childhood education, schools, parenting, health care, and child and family services.

It also included First Nations views, members with lived experience, and state and territory government representatives.

The Advisory Group provided advice to governments on a proposed national model for Thriving Kids (the proposed model).

The proposed model was tested with Disability Representative Organisations and people with lived experience, including First Nations people and culturally and linguistically diverse people.

Who Thriving Kids is for

Thriving Kids will aim to identify developmental delays in children sooner.

It will include supports across Australia that help children with developmental delay and/or autistic children with low to moderate support needs aged 0 to 8.

Thriving Kids will also support their families, carers, and kin.

The focus of Thriving Kids is on providing supports as soon as possible as we know the early years are important for development.

Children do not need a formal diagnosis to access Thriving Kids supports.

Proposed model for Thriving Kids

The Advisory Group recommended a model that governments could use for the services Thriving Kids should provide across Australia.

This video summarises each part of the model and how it should work across Australia.

Governments will keep talking to people with disability and the community as they set up Thriving Kids supports, as there will be local services and supports that are scaled or funded in each state and territory, so that services meet local need.

The final national design of Thriving Kids will be agreed between the Australian Government and state and territory governments.

The Advisory Group recommended that children be connected with a range of information and supports that address the individual child’s level of need.

Proposed principles to guide Thriving Kids

The Advisory Group recommended that Thriving Kids services should be child centred, family centred and strengths based.

Services should be evidence informed and focused on everyday settings such as the home, early childhood education and care, schools, and community environments.

Thriving Kids should aim to be collaborative, holistic, and integrated across systems.

Services should focus on outcomes and be flexible, accessible, and culturally safe.

These principles align with, and complement, the National Best Practice Framework for Early Childhood Intervention.

Identification and connection to supports

Children connect with many people, including health workers, early childhood educators and community services.

These connections provide opportunities for developmental delay and a child’s support needs to be noticed early.

The proposed model looks to strengthen these opportunities so children and families who need support can be identified early by the different people and systems they are regularly connected with.

The model also seeks to ensure families have easier access to accurate advice and support – both online and in‑person.

Improving awareness and access to evidence‑based, quality information about child development, neurodevelopmental difference and services will help families to:

• more readily identify, ask about, or seek appropriate and timely support when needed
• access practical strategies and advice
• feel more confident supporting their child’s development
• seek appropriate and timely support when needed.

Information about child development

The Advisory Group recommended that Thriving Kids should provide information and resources about child development that are inclusive, neuro‑affirming and culturally responsive.

Information and support should:

• reduce harmful attitudes towards developmental delay and disability
• raise awareness of developmental delay and disability
• celebrate developmental diversity
• respect the strengths and experiences of all cultures and communities
• help families to make decisions, advocate for their children, and access timely supports.

Universal Parenting Supports

The Advisory Group recommended that Thriving Kids should prioritise Universal Parenting Supports that help families to build:

• knowledge and skills in supporting their child’s development
• strong relationships with their children and other people in their lives
• peer support through connections with others who have had, or are going through, the same experiences.

Parenting supports under Thriving Kids should be:

• inclusive, flexible, and tailored to the different needs of children and families
• easy to access
• evidence‑based
• delivered in environments where children live, play, and learn
• offered in different ways, such as through online courses, short videos, peer support groups, supported playgroups, family programs, and culturally safe training.

Targeted Supports

The Advisory Group recommended that Targeted Supports should be delivered for children and families who need more help than Universal Parenting Supports alone.

These supports should include things like allied health and more individualised capacity building for families and children.

Targeted Supports should help children build on their strengths and reach their goals, and may include supports like:

• early childhood supports delivered by trained workers, such as occupational therapists, speech pathologists, physiotherapists, audiologists, and psychologists
• more individualised capacity building supports that help families build their child’s strengths, navigate key transition points (like entering school) and help when the family is accessing supports from a range of different people under Thriving Kids.

Families should be able to access Targeted Supports either one‑on‑one, or in group sessions, depending on their needs.

Supports should also be delivered in‑person and online, tailored to each child and family, and available in different locations.

Priority community groups

The Advisory Group noted that it is important for Thriving Kids to focus on priority community groups, including:

• First Nations children and families
• children and families from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds
• children and families who might be connected with the out‑of‑home‑care system.

Enabling Thriving Kids to work well

The Advisory Group made suggestions about other things governments could improve to make sure Thriving Kids works well for children and families.

This included:

• addressing workforce challenges and shortages
• investing in digital tools to support health professionals working with children, such as a digital child health record
• training more workers in child development, disability inclusion and cultural competency
• evaluating services to make sure they are working well and as they are meant to.