AEDC NATIONAL

Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre 14 - 16 March 2018

Learning from the Australian storyWhat we know works to improve outcomes for children

AEDC NATIONAL CONFERENCE 2018 WEDNESDAY 14 MARCH TO FRIDAY 16 MARCHMELBOURNE CONVENTION AND EXHIBITION CENTRE

PROGRAMwww.aedcconference2018.com.au

HOSTED BY

Our Children • Our Communities • Our Future

VENUE

Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre1 Convention Centre PlaceSouth Wharf, Melbourne VIC 3006 Australia Phone: +61 3 9235 8000

CONFERENCE ORGANISING COMMITTEE

Sally BrinkmanYasmin Harman-SmithTess GregoryAshleigh WilsonElizabeth Button

CONFERENCE ORGANISER

Fruitbowl Productions Address: 38 Greenaway Street, Bulleen, VIC 3105 AustraliaPhone: 1300 663 450Email: [email protected]: www.fruitbowl.com.au

HOSTED BY

AEDC National Conference | 1Our Children • Our Communities • Our Future

CONTENTS

Welcome from the conference hosts

Program

Keynote speakers

Social program

Venue

Venue map

General information

Speaker index

Abstracts

2

4

10

15

16

17

18

19

20

2 | AEDC National Conference Our Children • Our Communities • Our Future Our Children • Our Communities • Our Future

It’s a pleasure to welcome you to the second National

Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) conference.

Whether you’re a teacher, policy maker, social worker, early

education expert, or one of many other people dedicated

to improving the lives of children and families across

Australia, the AEDC is an invaluable resource. It paints a

rich and detailed picture about our children’s early years.

This conference will showcase the diverse ways in which

people and organisations are studying that picture, and

harnessing data to shape those crucial years and give our

children the best start in life.

The conference theme – “Learning from the Australian

story: What we know works to improve outcomes for

children” embodies how far we have come since the first

national census back in 2009. This conference is a chance

for us to consolidate the evidence base about what works

for children and families in the early years.

The three-day conference program boasts a range of

interesting and engaging presentations from local and

international speakers with a diverse range of expertise

across disciplines. There are presentations across four

diverse streams: place-based early years’ service models;

early education and care pathways; highly vulnerable

families; and health systems – an engaging and practical

conference for a wide-ranging audience. We hope these

thought-provoking offerings will spark some animated

discussions that endure well after the lecterns and

PowerPoint screens are dismantled and the chairs are

packed away.

And there’s certainly a lot to talk about. The nine years’

worth of AEDC data reveal much about the impact of

policies and programs, allowing us to see what’s working

well, and sharpening our focus on where we need to

improve.

Encouragingly, we can see significant gains in children’s

language and cognitive skills: nationally, 6.5 per cent of

children were considered developmentally vulnerable in

the language and cognitive skills domain in 2015. That’s

a steady decrease from 6.8 per cent in 2012 and 8.9

per cent in 2009.

WELCOME FROM THE CONFERENCE HOSTS

On behalf of the Australian Government Department of Education and Training and the Telethon Kids Institute, we would like to welcome you to Melbourne, Victoria for the 2018 Australian Early Development Census National Conference.

AEDC National Conference | 3Our Children • Our Communities • Our Future Our Children • Our Communities • Our Future

However, look closer and we see that Indigenous

children are well and truly over-represented in those

numbers. The percentage who were vulnerable

on this domain was almost four times higher than

for non-Indigenous children. But that number is

going down: from 28.6 per cent in 2009, down to

22.4 per cent in 2012, and then to 20.2 per cent in

2015. Clearly there is much work to do – there is no

celebration to be had in those stark percentages

– but we can perhaps take heart in that downward

trend.

This decrease is likely linked to significant changes

in Australia’s early childhood education space since

2008, including the introduction of universal access

to preschool, which opened the door to 15 hours a

week of quality preschool education for children in

the year before full-time school. When the program

started, it is estimated only 12 per cent of children

were enrolled for 15 hours per week across the

country. The most recent 2016 data show this is

up to 93 per cent nationally and 92 per cent for

Indigenous children. This is clearly a staggering

achievement, but it’s only half the story. The other

half of the story is in the attendance figures, and

they indicate that we still have work to do, to ensure

that children are getting the full benefits of quality

early learning, especially Indigenous children or

children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The Turnbull Government has committed $25 million

for the next AEDC data collection to ensure this

important information is available for policymakers

and educators. And, as we head towards the fourth

census data collection this year, this conference

is a springboard for useful discussions, new ideas

and deeper networks. And that’s why the Australian

Government Department of Education and Training

is pleased to sponsor this event. We hope you

make the most of this opportunity, so we can

work together to improve outcomes for Australia’s

children.

MINISTER SIMON BIRMINGHAMMinister for Education and Training


Wednesday 14th March, 2018

7:30 – 8:45am Registrations

8:45 – 9:00am Official conference opening (chair) Room 105 & 106

9:00 – 9:30am Conference welcome and introduction, Welcome to Country and opening address Room 105 & 106

9:30 – 10:30am Keynote Speaker – Dr. Kim Boller Room 105 & 106

10:30 – 11:00am Morning Tea

11:00 – 11:30am Highly Vulnerable Families Session A

Room 103

Early Childhood maltreatment and developmental (AEDC) vulnerabilities

Melissa Green

Marilyn Chilvers

Early Education and Care Pathways Session A

Room 102

Using AEDC data in Early Childhood Initial Teacher Education: Pathways and possibilities for community engagement and professional learning

Jessie Jovanovic

Place-Based Early Years Service Models Session A

Room 101

The role of local government in early childhood development

Sophie Calic

Health Systems Session A

Room 104

Associations between child development at school entry and student wellbeing in the middle years

Tess Gregory

11:30 – 12:00pm Highly Vulnerable Families Session B

Room 103

Intensive Early Childhood Development Program Pilot – Exploring the Way We View Family Support Programs With Children at the Centre

Iona Tait

Early Education and Care Pathways Session B

Room 102

Healthy Kids – Bringing Early Childhood Education and Care communities together to improve the health of our Queensland kids!

Skye Frazer-Ryan

Alanna Philipson

Place-Based Early Years Service Models Session B

Room 101

Change within community changes data

Sharon Fraser

Health Systems Session B

Room 104

Using the Australian Early Development Census to understand the mental health needs of Australian children

Meredith O’Connor

12:00 – 12:30pm Highly Vulnerable Families Session C

Room 103

Measuring population effects of the MECSH sustained home visiting program

Lynn Kemp

Early Education and Care Pathways Session C

Room 102

Building a shared vision of inclusion. Learning from C&K’s Community of Practice

Alison Evans

Diana Homer

Kathryn Woods

Place-Based Early Years Service Models Session C

Room 101

Tasmanian places, connections & AEDC – bringing data to life through stories

Annette Fuller

Health Systems Session C

Room 104

Do latent profiles of early developmental (AEDC) vulnerability predict mental illness up to age 13 years?

Melissa Green

12:30 – 1:30pm Lunch

PROGRAMAEDC National Conference 2018 Program



Wednesday 14th March, 2018 (CONTINUED)

Health Systems Session E

Room 104

Data-driven decisions – The journey to population-based planning for better outcomes for Queensland’s children

Adrian Clutterbuck

Health Systems Session F

Room 104

Harnessing the Hive: Engaging stakeholders to improve outcomes for children and young people in Queensland

Perrin W Moss

2:00 – 2:30pm Highly Vulnerable Families Session E

Room 103

Collective Actions – Changing Communities

Jenny Chaves

2:30 – 3:00pm Highly Vulnerable Families Session F

Room 103

Logan Together: Understanding the importance of its diverse origins to achieving collective impact

Geoff Woolcock

3:00 – 3:30pm Highly Vulnerable Families Session G

Room 103

I want people to give me baby books for my baby shower

Barbie Bates

1:30 – 2:00pm Highly Vulnerable Families Session D

Room 103

Dampier Peninsula Family Empowerment Collective Impact, Kimberly Model

Juan Larranaga

Early Education and Care Pathways Symposium

Room 102

Supporting Early Childhood Education and Care Centres and Schools use of the AEDC dataset in their planning

Sheree Simmons

Ashleigh Wilson

Gail Clark

Mary Lincoln

Stephen Soames

Leanne Odorico

Place-Based Early Years Service Models Symposium

Room 101

The Kids in Communities Study: A ‘learning from extremes’ mixed methods approach to exploring community-level factors that make a difference to early childhood development in disadvantaged AEDC communities

Sharon Goldfeld

Karen Villanueva

Ilan Katz

Rachel Robinson

Health Systems Session D

Room 104

Redesigning child and youth community health services to respond to developmentally vulnerable populations

Nicola Callard

2:00 – 2:30pm

2:30 – 3:00pm

3:00 – 3:30pm Health Systems Session G

Room 104

Revitalising Child Development Outreach Services for Children in Rural North Queensland

Kathleen Walls



3:30 – 4:00pm Afternoon Tea

4:00 – 5:00pm Keynote speaker – Dr. Cathrine Neilsen-Hewett Room 105 & 106

6:30pm Cocktail reception Level 1 Foyer

Thursday 15th March, 20187:30 – 8:45am Registrations

8:45 – 9:00am Welcome and housekeeping Room 105 & 106

9:00 – 9:45am Keynote Speaker – Prof. Vaughan Carr Room 105 & 106

9:45 – 10:30am Keynote Speakers – Ms. Ann-Marie Hayes & Prof. John Lynch Room 105 & 106


11:00 – 11:30am Highly Vulnerable Families Session A

Room 103

Early Years Family Violence Projects

Tara Kornhauser

Jenifer Ratnajeya

Kerrie Brennan

Felicity Ellis

Sreedevi Pazhyannur

Early Education and Care Pathways Session A

Room 102

A school based child health & development hub – a community development project to build capacity of staff and parents

Kelly Brand

Place-Based Early Years Service Models Session A

Room 101

Prioritising families: Public libraries as agents for change

Louise Denoon

Rachael Browning

Health Systems Session A

Room 104

“Alone: great, together: exceptional”: Education and Nutrition inter-professional collaboration for better childhoods

Alison Evans

Megan Gibson

Lyn Zollo

Julie Davis

Maria Viviani

Danielle Gallegos

Carolyn Keogh

11:30 – 12:00pm Highly Vulnerable Families Session B

Room 103

Trauma informed practice for vulnerable families - universal vs targeted getting the balance right

Fiona Pulford

Early Education and Care Pathways Session B

Room 102

Breaking down the barriers to participation

Sandra Lascelles

Place-Based Early Years Service Models Session B

Room 101

Literacy for Littlies – A whole of community approach to sustained improvements in early literacy

Jane Bobbermein

Judy Hawkins

Natalie Virtue

Health Systems Session B

Room 104

Physical health and wellbeing: innovative approaches in an inner-city community

Megan Gibson

Andrew Hills

Trevor Brown

12:00 – 12:30pm Highly Vulnerable Families Session C

Room 103

Using Linked Data to Investigate Developmental Vulnerabilities in Children of Criminally Convicted Parents

Megan Bell

Early Education and Care Pathways Session C

Room 102

Australian Early Childhood Education and Development Experience Study – Early Findings

Sally Brinkman

Place-Based Early Years Service Models Session C

Room 101

Using the Pyramid Model to Address the Social Competence and Emotional Maturity Domains of the AEDC data

Lawrina Osbourne

Megan Noack

Mary McLennan

Health Systems Session C

Room 104

Nature Play – The Developing Brains Superfood

Hyahno Moser



12:30 – 1:30pm Lunch

1:30 – 2:00pm Highly Vulnerable Families Symposium

Room 103

Reimagining vulnerability: Empowering communities to use population data when reflecting on the story of children and working towards their vision for the future

David Guy

Yasmin Harman-Smith

Elizabeth Button

Camelia Blitner

Melissa Watters

Vinette Ngalmi

1:30 – 1:54pm

Early Education and Care Pathways Session D

Room 102

The contribution of home language exposure to intergenerational transmission of inequality

Mary Brushe

Place-Based Early Years Service Models Symposium

Room 101

AEDC: Active Engagement with Data in Communities

Geraldine Harris

Stacey Milbourne

Karl Brettig

Holly Rynsent

Health Systems Session D

Room 104

The academic outcomes of children with additional health and developmental needs

Meredith O’Connor

1:54 – 2:18pm

Early Education and Care Pathways Session E

Room 102

Game Day: A new approach to parenting programs

Kylie Mulcahy

2:00 – 2:30pm

2:18 – 2:42pm

Early Education and Care Pathways Session F

Room 102

Embedding the AEDC in Tasmanian Early Years evidence-based decision making

Michael Dempsey

2:30 – 3:00pm

2:42 – 3:06pm

Early Education and Care Pathways Session G

Room 102

Embedding child development and early literacy in an Aboriginal health service: Addressing all of the AEDC domains at once

Lesley Harvey

Leeann Adams3:00 – 3:30pm

3:06 – 3:30pm

Early Education and Care Pathways Session H

Room 102

The influence of playgroup attendance on early childhood development in Australia

Alanna Sincovich

Thursday 15th March, 2018 (CONTINUED)

Health Systems Session E

Room 104

New skills and understandings for implementing NDIS within early years services

Diana Homer

Alison Evans

Health Systems Session F

Room 104

Rumble’s Quest: An innovative interactive system for measuring and supporting the wellbeing of children aged 5-12 years

Kate Freiberg

Ross Homel

Sara Branch

Greer Johnson

Brian Bumbarger

Health Systems Session G

Room 104

Wellbeing and engagement collection, South Australia

Sam Luddy



3:30 – 4:00pm Afternoon Tea

4:00 – 5:00pm Keynote Speaker – Prof. Sharon Goldfeld Room 105 & 106

6:30pm Conference Dinner Room 210 & 211

Friday 16th March, 20187:30 – 8:45am Registrations

8:45 – 9:00am Welcome and housekeeping Room 105 & 106

9:00 – 10:00am Keynote Speaker – Dr. Brian Bumbarger Room 105 & 106


10:30 – 12:00pm Panel and discussions Room 105 & 106

12:00 – 1:00pm Lunch

1:00 – 2:00pm Closing Keynote Speaker – conference lessons and future directions – Assoc. Prof. Sally Brinkman Room 105 & 106

2:00 – 2:20pm Official conference closing

DISCLAIMERThe speakers, topics and times are correct as at time of printing, and are subject to change. In the event of unforeseen circumstances, the organising committee reserves the right to delete or alter items in the conference program. The views expressed by individuals or organisations at this conference do not necessarily represent the views of the Australian Early Development Census National Conference 2018.

Thursday 15th March, 2018 (CONTINUED)


Dr. Kimberly Boller, a Mathematica Policy Research Senior Fellow and Senior Advisor for Learning and Innovation at the Early Learning Lab, has studied early childhood services and systems in more than 10 countries, including the effects of child care and early education, parenting programs, and policy on children and families. She contributes to the evidence base by studying the impact and implementation of programs designed to improve parent well-being, early childhood education professional development systems, family self-sufficiency, and child outcomes from infancy through early elementary school. Kim’s recent research in the United States includes measuring the cost of high quality early childhood education programs; describing Early Head Start and the children and families it serves; documenting home-based child care provider networks; and assessing supports for implementing home visiting to prevent child maltreatment.

For the Early Learning Lab, Kim leads identification and implementation of evidence-based, co-designed solutions for community challenges in improving early childhood outcomes and systems. By focusing on improvement and innovation using collaborative, rapid cycle methods, she provides support for new learning, capacity development, and continuous quality improvement. She also directed a learning collaborative in Tanzania piloting different preprimary quality improvement intervention strategies and assessing implementation and readiness for an impact evaluation. Kim recently served as a committee member for the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine—Supporting the Parents of Young Children Consensus Study.She holds a Ph.D. in developmental and cognitive psychology from Rutgers University.

Dr. Brian K. Bumbarger is Adjunct Research Fellow at the Griffith University Institute of Criminology (Queensland) and Adjunct Research Associate at the Prevention Research Center at Penn State University. He is Founding Director of the Evidence-based Prevention and Intervention Support Center, a state-level intermediary. The EPISCenter supports the largest-ever dissemination of evidence-based programs and community collective impact coalitions, with over 300 sites, and has been cited nationally and internationally as an exemplar for bridging research, policy and practice.

Brian earned his Ph.D. in Criminology from Griffith University, M.Ed. in Youth and Family Extension Education and B.S. degree in Administration of Justice, both from Penn State University, and a graduate certificate in School Violence Prevention from the Harvard School of Public Health.

For over two decades Brian has conducted research and advised policymakers on dissemination, implementation, and sustainment of evidence-based programs and practices to strengthen families and communities. Dr. Bumbarger has served on federal Expert Panels for the U.S Department of Education, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Centers for Disease Control, and Administration for Children and Families, and has provided consultation to governments of Canada, Ireland, Sweden, South Africa, Cyprus, and Australia. He was elected to the Board of Directors of the Society for Prevention Research, and was recipient of the Society’s 2014 Translational Science Award. He serves on the Board of Directors of both the National Prevention Science Coalition and the Coalition for the Promotion of Behavioral Health, and is a founding member of the Society for Implementation Research Collaboration.

KEYNOTESPEAKERS

DOCTOR KIM BOLLERSenior Fellow, Mathematica Policy Research

DOCTOR BRIAN BUMBARGERFounding Director, EPISCenter


Sally is a social epidemiologist with the majority of her research focusing on societies’ impact on child development and life course trajectories. Sally is the Director of the Fraser Mustard Centre, an innovative initiative between the Telethon Kids Institute and the South Australia Department of Education and Child Development aimed to improve research translation. Sally is well known for spearheading the use of the Early Development Instrument (EDI) in Australia, being the first to pilot the instrument outside of Canada. Sally continues to work across the country to help facilitate the use of the AEDC data in both research and strategic support roles, working with communities, service providers and governments. Internationally, Sally consults to governments and donor organisations such as the World Bank and UNICEF, working with various measures of child development for monitoring and evaluation purposes. Sally has over 100 publications covering topics such as infant mouthing behaviours, child physical activity and nutrition levels, alcohol related violence, teenage pregnancy prevention, the mechanisms behind intergenerational poverty, how child development varies across communities, and the impact of socio economics and service integration on child development. As such Sally brings locally, nationally and internationally recognised epidemiological skills particularly in relation to population monitoring of child development and education. She has a commitment to practical, pragmatic and translatable research.

Vaughan Carr is Professor of Psychiatry at the University of New South Wales, Senior Principal Research Scientist at Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA), and Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry at Monash University. He has over 250 publications as peer reviewed articles, commentaries, books, book chapters and Government reports. Vaughan has conducted research in schizophrenia, depression, posttraumatic stress, child psychiatry, psychotherapy, substance abuse, health service evaluation and health economics. His research has spanned the disciplines of clinical science, cognitive neuroscience, neurobiology, genetics and epidemiology. He is also the Lead Investigator of the NSW Child Development Study, a longitudinal, intergenerational record linkage study of a cohort of 87,000 children aimed at identifying risk and protective factors for adult mental illness and related problems.

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR SALLY BRINKMAN Co-Director, Fraser Mustard Centre Program,Manager, Faculty Member, Telethon Kids Institute

PROFESSOR VAUGHAN CARRProfessor of Psychiatry and Chair of Schizophrenia Epidemiology at UNSW

KEYNOTESPEAKERS


Professor Sharon Goldfeld is a paediatrician and Deputy Director, Centre for Community Child Health (CCCH) the Royal Children’s Hospital and Co-Group leader of Child Health Policy, Equity and Translation at the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute. She has a decade of experience in state government as a senior policymaker in health and education including Principal Medical Advisor in the Victorian Department of Education and Training. Her research program is made up of complementary, synergistic and cross-disciplinary streams of work focused on investigating, testing and translating sustainable policy relevant solutions that eliminate inequities for Australia’s children. As an experienced policymaker, public health and paediatric researcher she aims to ensure ongoing effective, rapid translation of research into the policy and service arena.

Ann-Marie is working in the area of early childhood and support services to children and young people in the learning system in South Australia. This area policies programs and services are underpinned by the principle of proportionate universalism “

“…programs, services and policies that are universal, but with a scale and intensity that is proportionate to the level of disadvantage” … (Marmot 2010)

She has an extensive background in health and welfare services where she has worked in both acute and community based services with a strong focus on equity, health and wellbeing and the social determinants of health.

KEYNOTESPEAKERS

PROFESSOR SHARON GOLDFELDDeputy Director, Centre for Community Child Health, Royal Children’s Hospital, Victoria, Australia

MS. ANN-MARIE HAYESExecutive Director, Early Years and Child Development, Department of Education and Child Development (DECD)


PROFESSOR JOHN LYNCHSchool of Population Health, University of Adelaide, South Australia

KEYNOTESPEAKERS

John Lynch is Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Adelaide, South Australia. He is a Visiting Professor of Epidemiology in the School of Social and Community Medicine at the University of Bristol in the UK. He spent 20 years working in North America and before returning to Australia in 2009 he held professorial positions at the University of Michigan in the USA, and at McGill University in Canada.

He is an internationally recognized scholar in epidemiology and public health. In 2005 he was awarded a Canada Research Chair in Population Health. In 2007 his work in social epidemiology and public health was recognized with an Honorary Doctoral Degree in Medical Science from the University of Copenhagen. In 2009 he was awarded a prestigious NHMRC Australia Fellowship. In 2015 he was elected as a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences.

He has over 300 publications, and in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017 he received Thomson Reuters’ “Highly Cited Researcher” status that places him in the top 1% of cited scientists internationally in his field.

In the last 5 years, he was Chief Investigator A or B on over $10 million in NHMRC competitive research funding. In total over that period, he was a Chief Investigator on successful competitive research grants worth over $22 million. He leads an NHMRC funded Centre for Research Excellence (2015-2020) called “EMPOWER: Health systems, disadvantage and child well-being.”

He currently serves on several international, national and local scientific advisory groups. He was an editor of the highly ranked International Journal of Epidemiology from 2005-16.

His research interests include• child health and development• social and health inequality• pragmatic RCTs of early life interventions• information systems to enhance evidence-based

public health• translational research to inform policy and

improve practice


DOCTOR CATHRINE NEILSEN-HEWETTAcademic Director, Early Years, University of Wollongong

KEYNOTESPEAKERS

Dr Cathrine Neilsen-Hewett is the Academic Director of the Early Years at the University of Wollongong. She has been a lecturer and researcher in Early Childhood for over 20 years. Cathrine has delivered workshops and invited addresses to parents, educators, corporations and government bodies both in Australia and overseas and has served on both State and Federal government advisory committees. Her research expertise and publications reflect a consistent interest in the nature of development from early childhood through to middle childhood. Cathrine’s current research projects focus on children’s self-regulation, quality early childhood education and care environments, and enhancing access to early childhood education and health services as well as promoting social inclusion in Indigenous communities. Since joining Early Start at the University of Wollongong, Dr Neilsen-Hewett has taken a senior role in key, large-scale intervention and evaluation projects focusing on educator knowledge, practices and experience. Together with Professor Siraj and Dr. Kingston, she has pioneered the delivery of Leadership for Learning professional development interventions that are currently the focus of multiple evaluations at both centre and child level. Cathrine is also involved in the evaluation of other structural initiatives that are designed to improve children’s learning and development outcomes in the early years context and is leading the Early Start practice strategy for the network of 41 engagement centres.


SOCIAL PROGRAM

WELCOME RECEPTION

Wednesday 14th March 20186:30pmMelbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, Level 1 Foyer

CostInclusive with full registration (with social functions) or $75.00 per person for student registrations, partners, guest and day registrations.

DressCasual

A great opportunity to meet and mingle with your fellow delegates following the first full day of the conference at this scenic location.

CONFERENCE DINNER

Thursday 15th March 20186:30pmMelbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, rooms 210 & 211 (combined)

CostInclusive with full registration (with social functions) or $135.00 per person for student registrations, partners, guest and day registrations.

DressSmart Casual

Pre-dinner drinks from 6:30pm Dinner from 7:00pm

An occasion to celebrate the success of the conference, the conference dinner will be conveniently held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. Enjoy local Victorian food and wine, entertainment, and the company of fellow delegates during this relaxed evening.


Recognised as Australasia’s Leading Meetings and Conference Centre from 2012 - 2016 by the prestigious World Travel Awards, Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) connects you with everything you need for a successful event – incredible spaces, leading technology, award-winning food and the expertise to bring it all together.

MCEC is owned by the Victorian State Government and managed by Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Trust.

For the financial year ended 30 June 2016, the Trust employed six Trustees, 183 permanent employees and 481 casual employees. A record-breaking 2015/16 saw MCEC host almost 1,000 events that contributed a record $959.4 million to the Victorian economy, honouring the venue’s commitment to provide a strong return on the investment made by the Victorian State Government while remaining Australia’s venue of choice for business events.

MCEC’s employee-driven, organisation-wide culture program is called ‘unity’ and delivers both outstanding customer experiences and a more innovative and rewarding working environment for employees.

Where is MCEC and Plenary?MCEC is located on the banks of the iconic Yarra River in South Wharf. Plenary is easily found within the Convention Centre, accessed via Convention Centre Place or a short walk down the Exhibition Centre Concourse from the Clarendon Street entrance.

Travelling by public transport

BY TRAMCatch any of the following trams and exit at the stop opposite the Clarendon Street entrance of MCEC:• Route 96 – St Kilda to East Brunswick• Route 109 – Port Melbourne to Box Hill• Route 12 – Victoria Gardens to St Kilda

Alternatively, catch tram number 48 or 70 and exit at the Flinders Street stop. Then take a short walk towards the Yarra River, across the Seafarers Bridge. For further tram timetable information and trip planning, visit the Victorian Public Transport website.

BY TRAINTake any train that goes to Southern Cross Station. Exit at Southern Cross Station and catch tram number 96, 109 or 12 as above. For further train timetable information and trip planning, visit the Victorian Public Transport website.

BY BUSThe SkyBus transports visitors directly from Melbourne Airport to Southern Cross train station.Bus route 237 operates from Queen Victoria Market, via Southern Cross Station to Lorimer Street South Wharf from Monday to Friday. Lormier Street is approximately a five minute walk to MCEC. There is also a coach pick up/drop off point at Bay 1, Convention Centre Place (closest to DFO South Wharf).For further bus timetable information and trip planning, visit the Victorian Public Transport website.

DRIVING YOURSELFMELBOURNE EXHIBITION CENTRE PARKINGPlease note: This car park can reach capacity early in the day during busy events. 1,060 undercover parking spaces available, managed by Wilson Parking. Entrance and exit off Normanby Road with a height restriction of 2.2 metres. Open 24 hours, seven days a week.For parking rates please visit http://mcec.com.au/your-visit/getting-there/

VENUEMelbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre1 Convention Centre Place, South Wharf, Melbourne Victoria, Australia 3006


VENUE MAP

Level 1

Level 2


WelcomeVictoria, from rooftop bars to waterfalls, to the best restaurants and locally produced food and wine, this is the state that has it all. It’s home to Phillip Island, the Great Ocean Road, the Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsula. Regardless of where you are, there is something exciting to see or do.

The weather in Victoria may have a reputation for being unpredictable, but in March you can expect warm spring days with plenty of sunshine. The average temperature sits at 25 degrees, just make sure you have a hat and jacket handy in case of a sudden change.

DressSmart casual attire is appropriate for conference sessions and social functions.

Capital City Melbourne

If there is one thing Melbournians are most proud of, it’s being named the world’s most liveable city not once, but 7 times consecutively. It is a true testament to the city’s culture, environment and infrastructure.

Melbourne’s city centre is a flurry of activity, and fringed with a series of entertainment districts including Richmond, Fitzroy, Southbank and St Kilda. St Kilda, a most popular spot for both visitors and locals, as it is a unique entertainment hub where the city meets the sea and Melbourne’s beach culture is true to see.

Traveling around Melbourne city is easy and cheap, with trams operating in the central area at no cost to commuters. If you are traveling further afield, the combination of bus and train networks provides ample options to get around. Make sure you don’t leave Melbourne without seeing the street art of Hosier Lane, taking a stroll through the Botanical Gardens and enjoying the views from the top of the Eureka Tower.

Food, Wine & CoffeeIf you consider yourself a foodie or wine buff, then you have found yourself in the right place. For those looking to indulge in some local wine, head to the Yarra Valley or Mornington Peninsula.

GENERALINFORMATION


SPEAKER INDEX

PRESENTER

Bates, BarbieBell, MeganBobbermein, Jane; Hawkins, Judy and Virtue, NatalieBrand, KellyBrinkman, SallyBrushe, MaryCalic, SophieCallard, NicolaChaves, JennyClutterbuck, Adrian Dempsey, MichaelDenoon, Louise and Browning, RachaelEvans, Alison; Gibson, Megan; Zollo, Lyn; Davis, Julie; Viviani, Maria; Gallegos, Danielle and Keogh, CarolynEvans, Alison; Homer, Diana and Woods, KathrynFraser, SharonFrazer-Ryan, Skye and Philipson, AlannaFreiberg, Kate; Homel, Ross; Branch, Sara; Johnson, Greer and Bumbarger, BrianFuller, Annette Gibson, Megan; Hills, Andrew and Brown, TrevorGoldfeld, Sharon; Villanueva; Katz, Ilan and Robinson, RachelGreen, MelissaGreen, Melissa and Chilvers, MarilynGregory, Tess

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PRESENTER

Guy, David; Harman-Smith, Yasmin; Button, Elizabeth; Blitner, Camelia; Watters, Melissa; Ngalmi, VinetteHarris, Geraldine; Milbourne, Stacey; Brettig, Karl and Rynsent, HollyHarvey, Lesley and Adams, LeeannHomer, Diana and Evans, AlisonJovanovic, JessieKemp, LynnKornhauser, Tara; Ratnajeya, Jenifer; Brennan, Kerrie; Ellis, Felicity and Pazhyannur, Sreedevi Larranaga, JuanLascelles, SandraLuddy, SamMoser, HyahnoMoss, Perrin W.Mulcahy, KylieO’Connor, MeredithO’Connor, MeredithOsbourne, Lawrina; Noack, Megan and McLennan, MaryPulford, FionaSimmons, Sheree; Wilson, Ashleigh; Clark, Gail, Lincoln, Mary; Soames, Stephen and Odorico, LeanneSincovich, Alanna Tait, Iona Walls, KathleenWoolcock, Geoffrey

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ABSTRACTS

ABSTRACTS AREORGANISED BYSTREAM AND THENBY ORDER OFPRESENTATION.


ABSTRACTS AREORGANISED BYSTREAM AND THENBY ORDER OFPRESENTATION.

HIGHLY VULNERABLE FAMILY STREAM

EARLY EDUCATION AND CARE PATHWAYS STREAM

PLACE-BASED EARLY YEARS SERVICE MODELS STREAM

HEALTH SYSTEMS STREAM

HIGHLY VULNERABLE FAMILIES STREAM

Early childhood maltreatment and developmental (AEDC) vulnerabilities

Melissa J. Green1,2, Marilyn Chilvers3, Stacy Tzoumakis4, Maina Kariuki1, Merran Butler3, Kristin R. Laurens1,5, Felicity Harris1 and Vaughan J. Carr 1,2,6

1School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

2 Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia

3 NSW Department of Family and Community Services, Sydney, Australia

4 School of Social Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

5 School of Psychology, Australian Catholic University, Brisbane, Australia

6 Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia

The New South Wales Child Development Study (NSW-CDS) is a longitudinal study of a NSW population cohort of ~87,026 children who were assessed with the Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) in 2009; successive waves of record linkage bring together data relating to the child’s birth, health, education and child protection status, and their parent’s health, crime and mortality information (Carr et al., 2016). In partnership with NSW Family and Community Services (FACS), we have examined associations between early life maltreatment and AEDC outcomes, including investigation of maltreatment timing and multiple maltreatment types within the first 5 years of life (Green et al, Child Development, 2017). These initial analyses showed that children exposed to substantiated risk of harm were more than 3.5 times more likely to show developmental vulnerability on multiple AEDC domains, relative to non-maltreated children, after controlling for other risk factors known to affect developmental

functioning (e.g., maternal smoking during pregnancy, young maternal age, socioeconomic disadvantage, parental mental illness). Moreover, children exposed to multiple maltreatment types were nearly 6 times more likely to be vulnerable on multiple developmental domains, relative to non-maltreated children, after controlling for the influence of other risk factors. Our second record linkage for the NSW-CDS cohort (conducted in 2016) brings together data up to the child’s age 13 years. Preliminary analyses show that, among children with FACS contacts, those placed in OOHC before age 5 years are at greatest odds of developmental vulnerability on social and emotional domains the AEDC (unadjusted Odds Ratios [ORs] 6.2 and 6.5, respectively), while children with substantiated child protection reports are at greatest odds of early physical and cognitive developmental vulnerabilities on the AEDC (unadjusted ORs 6.3 and 8.2, respectively). These findings demonstrate the pervasive effects of childhood maltreatment during critical periods in early life that could be targeted in early intervention programs at school entry.

[email protected]

Intensive Early Childhood Development Program Pilot – Exploring the Way We View Family Support Programs With Children at the Centre

Iona Tait1

1Manager, Childhood and Family Programs, Early Childhood and Community Engagement, Department of Education, Queensland, Australia

In 2016, after reviewing its investment in family support activities, the Early Childhood and Community Engagement (ECCE) Division of the Department of Education (DoE) partnered with the Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services (DCCSDS) to support vulnerable children and families by embedding an early childhood learning and development focus within established intensive family support services.






The pilot ran for 18 months and the service model was developed to integrate an early childhood educator into existing intensive family support services for families experiencing multiple and complex vulnerabilities. This approach focused on the learning and development of children aged from birth to 5 years of age, while at the same time addressing the family’s broader needs in order to achieve sustained and positive change.

The mode and intensity of service provision was tailored to local context and specific client group needs. Programs incorporated the following key aspects which have since been identified as the critical elements (collectively) to achieving outcomes:

• Evidence-based early learning and development programs

• Qualified early childhood educator working alongside human service staff

• Low staff to child ratio

• A combination of group (i.e. supported playgroup) and individual (i.e. home visiting) early learning support

• Facilitated activities to ensure parents’ active and regular involvement

• Supported access to child health specialists, especially speech pathologists and occupational therapists

• Appropriate resources (space, transport and learning and nutritional resources and supplies)

• Established relationships and alignment with local ECECs and schools

An independent evaluation was commissioned to measure the success of the pilot and identified improvements in early development across all measured domains for children including:

• 45% improvement in social/behavioural issues

• 40% improvement in speech/language delays

• 31% improvement in emotional wellbeing

• 37% improvement in child safety concerns

Additionally, parents/carers engaged in the pilot experienced gains and improvements in:

• 15% in willingness and ability to enrol children in ECEC

• 39% in parenting confidence

• 34% in parent-child interactions

At conclusion, 85% of children engaged in the pilot were at an ‘adequate or better’ level in terms of school readiness.

The success in this pilot has led to the launch of recurrent funding for the Pathways for Early Learning and Development (PELD) program which commences in January 2018 in twelve priority locations across Queensland.

PELD is an integrated, cross-disciplinary and multi-generation service model in which evidence-based early learning and development programs are embedded within existing targeted and intensive family support services. This approach focusses on the child, while at the same time addressing broader family needs (e.g. housing, unemployment, domestic and family violence, drug and alcohol dependency and mental health) to better support sustained change.

[email protected]

Measuring population effects of the MECSH sustained home visiting program

Lynn Kemp1

1 Translational Research and Social Innovation Group, Western Sydney University and Ingham Institute

The Maternal Early Childhood Sustained Home-visiting (MECSH) program is a high-quality evidenced based nurse-led structured intervention for families needing extra support. MECSH was developed in south western Sydney and has been subjected to independent scrutiny and received approval as a quality evidence-based programme by the US Department of Health and Human Services Home Visiting Evidence of Effectiveness






(HomVEE) programme. MECSH is targeted towards 20-25% of the population who are at risk of poorer maternal and child health and development outcomes.

In at-scale implementation, MECSH is explicitly and uniquely designed to have spill-over effects so that both the individual families receiving the structured intervention and the whole population of families benefit. This is achieved through embedding MECSH within the universal child and family health service system, and (re-)orientating the system to operate from three underpinning principles: 1. A core and adaptation model of local implementation. 2. Supporting families to learn the skills to build their capacity and source the resources they need to adapt and self-manage in their parenting journey, and parent effectively despite the difficulties and challenges they face. 3. A salutogenic (health creating), rather than pathogenic (illness treating) approach.

This presentation will provide an overview of the MECSH Program and outline the evidence of its effectiveness; briefly describe the implementation locations and processes, and research still in progress; and detail our use of the Australian Early Development Census for school entry comparisons of the MECSH sites with comparable disadvantaged communities as a measure of population-level effectiveness.

[email protected]

Dampier Peninsula Family Empowerment: Collective Impact, Kimberley Model

Larranaga, J.1 and Bunning, J.1

1 Save the Children, Western Australia

The Dampier Peninsula Family Empowerment collective impact initiative is mobilising Aboriginal communities, local businesses, philanthropists, State and Commonwealth government, as well as a cross-sector of agencies and organisations working in the Kimberley, to guide service delivery in a more integrated, efficient and holistic manner. The initiative intends to

create a movement of change to support some of our most vulnerable children and families with multiple and complex human needs.

This innovative place-based, strategic approach aims to enhance quality early years learning and care, and the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal children living in remote communities across the Dampier Peninsula region.

Save the Children is facilitating the engagement and coordination of partners, in a backbone role to ensure peoples’ needs and aspirations are met with the appropriate targeted and aligned support, which empowers them to effect change in their own lives.

Part of this process involves using the AEDC data to provide a snapshot of children’s development that can inform communities and services and support local decision-making, planning, policy and action, as well as establish a shared measurement framework to track progress.

The challenges, opportunities and key learnings will be presented, emphasising the need for genuine community engagement and leadership, strong strategic relationships, effective partnerships, cross-sector participation, co-designed solutions, systemic thinking and co-investment to catalyse system-wide change to support Aboriginal children and their right to be healthy, to develop and learn; and to thrive in safe and prosperous communities.

[email protected]

Collective Actions – Changing Communities

Jenny Chaves1

1 Mission Australia, Inala to Ipswich, Queensland, Australia

The need for reconfiguration of the service system has been identified as critical if we are to achieve genuine change for families and children in disadvantaged communities. Communities for Children while acknowledging the strengths and strong connections






developed across the Inala to Ipswich region, through consultation and data mapping indicate that as a traditional service delivery system we are unable to meet the needs of all families. This has led to the need to improve fragmentation of services to create a more effective service system that has a universal and inclusive service base approach with multiple and soft and hard entry points.

In an effort to create more effective responses to family, child and community need – Communities for Children together with a wide range of cross sectoral partners have developed a collective action platform across the Inala to Ipswich region.

Using AEDC Data as a starting point seven place based collective action groups have been formed around local primary schools with key priority areas identified and action planning developed through collective processes with the longer term goal of impacting and improving the current AEDC developmental domains for children in each locality.

A key focus is on genuine collaboration and potential service integration along the continuum from the early years and community environments into the school community with increased community and family engagement. Examples of impact and outcomes already achieved will be provided.

[email protected]

Logan Together: Understanding the Importance of Its Diverse Origins to Achieving Collective Impact

G. Woolcock1, G. Olive2,4, and S. Cary3,4

1 Logan Child-Friendly Community Trust (Deputy Chair), Meadowbrook’, QLD 4131, Australia

2 Centre for Children’s Health & Wellbeing, Children’s Health Queensland, South Brisbane, QLD 4101, Australia

3 Partnerships and Innovation, South East Region, Department of Education & Training, Hope Island, QLD 4212, Australia

4 ARACY (Qld) Co-Convenors, 2017-

The Logan Together Collective Impact initiative continues to build considerable momentum and funding support in its endeavour to improve the wellbeing of Logan’s 0-8yo population, including its key shared outcome measure of lifting Logan to the Queensland AEDC average and then beyond. Already widely perceived as an effective example of integrating diverse systems and networks to achieve measurable shared outcomes, Logan Together nonetheless had a wide array of ‘trigger points’ and influences that each account for its significance today. Particularly powerful were the AEDI Working Groups established through the Centre for Children’s Health & Wellbeing, after Logan was one of the initial AEDI pilot communities. Ongoing neighbourhood network clusters based on AEDC vulnerabilities and coordinated via the Department of Education & Training continue this important local input. This presentation will also focus on how Logan Together is deeply embedded in local, state and federal government social infrastructure and policy reform and in turn, how it is attempting to balance this public service penetration alongside considerable local community engagement and community service participation. Two considerable pieces of formative evaluation conducted in the establishment phase and then second year (2016) of the initiative will inform much of this part of the presentation. It will finish with some preliminary commentary on the perceived effect of Logan Together on similar early intervention, place-based initiatives in Queensland, particularly the question of how crucial an independent and transparent ‘backbone’ organisation is in seeking to achieve long-term outcomes for children’s wellbeing.

[email protected]

I want people to give me baby books for my baby shower

Bates, B.1

1 Paint the Town REaD Ltd, Australia

Paint the Town REaD (PTTR) is a collective impact, community capacity building movement that encourages






everyone in the community to read, talk, sing and rhyme with children from birth, so that they will be ready for reading and writing at school. But how to get this message to our most vulnerable families? This presentation will explore how PTTR does this – through its ‘no door’ framework: using and strengthening existing relationships, creatively developing new partnerships that are community led and exciting children so much that they drag their parents to local community events. Whether it be the young pregnant woman who was introduced to reading with her baby in utero by her child safety officer, to the extent that she only wanted books for her baby shower or the little Aboriginal girl who uses the book swap box in the local community pub as her ‘library’, highly vulnerable families are owning and doing the PTTR message. Planning and evaluating our ‘no door’ framework is underpinned by using the Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) as a key baseline and outcome measure. Local PTTR groups not only use the results of the five domains, but also the additional information including SEIFA, parents under 25 years etc, to plan universal and targeted community strategies. Examples of how the AEDC has been used in PTTR communities across Australia to aid connection with highly vulnerable families will be provided.

[email protected]

Early Years Family Violence Projects

Kornhauser, T.1, Ratnajeya, J.1, Brennan, K.1, Ellis, F.2, and Pazhyannur, S.2

1 Northern Family and Domestic Violence Service (NFDVS) Berry Street, Melbourne, Australia

2 Eastern Domestic Violence Outreach Service (EDVOS), Melbourne, Australia

Research suggests that cross agency collaboration and streamlining referral pathways through network and relationship building delivers the most appropriate intervention in responding to women and children experiencing family violence (Laing and Humphreys

2013). NFDVS’ Hume Early Years Family Violence Project responds to the high numbers of women and young children who have experienced family violence in the Hume Local Government Area (LGA). This project, running for five years, has been provisionally funded as an evidenced-based program through Communities for Children. EDVOS’ Universal Services Team responds to women and children experiencing family violence in the seven LGA’s that make up the Eastern Metropolitan Region. Both projects take a multi-faceted approach to provide support to women with children through the following methods;

1. Practitioner Capacity Building in Universal and Early Years Services-

• Providing training to build capacity to identify and respond to family violence.

• Providing secondary consultation focusing on family violence and its impact on child development and mother-child relationships.

• Posting specialist family violence practitioners in universal services to enable warm referrals and streamline intake processes.

• Coordinating collaborative care between universal and specialist family violence services.

2. Therapeutic Groups-

• Collaborating and co-facilitating therapeutic groups with universal services to respond to needs identified in the community, with a particular focus on repairing the mother-child bond that has been disrupted by the experience of family violence.

3. Individual Client Outreach-

• Providing early intervention to women and children experiencing family violence in the form of intake, assessment and case management provided by a specialist family service.

[email protected]


Trauma informed practice for vulnerable families - universal vs targeted getting the balance right

Fiona Pulford1

1 Mount Gambier Children’s Centre

As a Children’s Centre for Early Childhood Development and Parenting in SA, we have undertaken significant projects to address our AEDC data. We have worked collaboratively with local government, NGO’s Tafe SA and broader community members, children, parents and grandparents on universal projects that were designed to be seen as universal and not just be universal to engage all sections of our community. These projects have had strong uptake and most of our children are doing well, however, the risk is, that the families who engage the most with the general projects are already doing well and they do better. The parents and children, who stand to gain the most, do not always engage as well and the gap widens as they get left further behind.

The philosophy of making population level shift and putting the majority of resources into supporting “most of the children” is all very well in theory, but what happens to those children who are being left behind? The risk is our bell curve becomes wider with a longer tail, who works with them? Very specific and targeted programs designed to understand the parent’s story and support them with where they are at, so they can better support their children are required. As a centre, we have taken on that challenge and are seeing fantastic results impacting re unification rates for children who have entered the child protection system.

In this presentation, we will share our story of working across a community and finding ways to reach all families through universal and targeted approaches so that no one gets left behind.

[email protected]

Using Linked Data to Investigate Developmental

Vulnerabilities in Children of Criminally Convicted

Parents

Bell, M.1,2, Bayliss, D.2, Glauert, R.1, & Ohan, J.2

1 Telethon Kids Institute, Perth, Australia

2 University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia

There is evidence that children of incarcerated parentsare at risk of poor developmental and educationaloutcomes. However, much of this evidence is limitedby biased samples, as studies must rely on opt-inrecruitment. Administrative data present an opportunityto overcome this challenge, as they capture informationon all individuals in contact with the criminal justicesystem. This study used administrative data on justicecontacts of the parents of 19,071 children aged 5-6years in Western Australia. Parental justice records(starting from 1 year prior to the child’s birth) were linkedto children’s scores on the Australian Early DevelopmentCensus. Logistic regression models estimated theodds of children of parents with criminal justiceinvolvement being developmentally vulnerable. Modelswere adjusted for child, parent, and neighbourhoodsociodemographic factors. Compared to children withnon-convicted parents, children whose parent had eitherserved a community order or been incarcerated wereat risk of poor development across all developmentaldomains, even after adjusting for sociodemographicfactors. Furthermore, children of incarcerated parentshad higher odds of developmental vulnerability onmultiple domains compared to children of convictedbut non-incarcerated parents. The results suggest that,although children of convicted parents experiencea higher incidence of sociodemographic risk, theirparents’ criminal activity constitutes an independentrisk factor for their development. Intervention to supportthe early development of children of convicted parentsis therefore essential, and should consider the familycontext. These findings are of relevance to families,communities, educators, and policy developers.

[email protected]










Reimaging vulnerability: Empowering communities to use population data when reflecting on the story of their children and working towards their vision for their future.

David Guy1, Yasmin Harman-Smith2, Elizabeth Button2, Camelia Blitner3, Melissa Watters4 and Vinette Ngalmi4

1 Northern Territory Department of Education, Darwin, Australia


3 FaFT Family Educator, Angurugu School

4 Guluman Child and Family Centre, Ngukurr

Submission summary:

Approaches to responding to AEDC data need to be tailored to the context of individual communities. The Telethon Kids Institute, together with the Northern Territory Department of Education have developed an approach to support remote Aboriginal communities in Northern Territory to use population data when working towards their vision of how they want their kids to be. The aim of this project was to develop a suite of resources that empowered communities by supporting them to reflect, partner and act on who they are and how to they want their kids to be using a strengths based approach in the context of the AEDC data. The resources were designed to be used by communities in the context of their story of their community and their kids.

Presenter: Dave Guy

Development of a culturally inclusive resource:

Remote Northern Territory Aboriginal communities present a unique context when exhibiting strengths and resilience. Many Aboriginal communities have or still are enduring the path of deficit discourse. This approach can take communities on a journey of disillusion and despair, and yet with this deficit approach do we rarely

take the time to focus on what communities/families do well? This project aimed to develop an approach to not only support communities to unpack their AEDC data but to build the strengths they have as parents and community, explore opportunities for co design and the co creation of power. It also gave us the opportunity as researchers and service providers to learn what really works as a way of community engagement, consultation and participation and to support communities to use developmental data that was strengths based and empowering, rather than focusing solely on the deficit or “challenges”. The approach involved the use of a storyboard and cards that were used by communities to record their vision for their children, their story, their partnerships and relationships, and the actions they wanted to achieve.

Presenter: Camelia Blitner, Melissa Watters and Vinette Ngalmi

Consultation from a community perspective:

As part of the development of resources to support remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to use developmental data, two community consultations were undertaken. These consultations trialled a resource that aimed to promote a strengths based and empowering process for communities. This presentation will summarise the consultation undertaken in one particular community. In doing so, the focus will be on the experience of community consultation from the perspective of the community members involved.

Presenter: Elizabeth Button

Considerations when presenting data to remote communities

When presenting child development data to remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, certain challenges must be considered. These remote communities often have a history of having data presented in a deficit-focused way that may not have






been culturally inclusive. In addition, the contexts of remote communities are quite different from other areas in Australia and, therefore, a one-size-fits-all approach is not appropriate. In this environment, the usefulness of comparing community data to national norms is questionable due to the differences in circumstance, and focusing on patterns of development may be more appropriate. Focusing on patterns of developmental strengths and challenges rather than proportion of developmental vulnerability is an approach that may allow communities to identify strengths and starting points rather than focusing solely on deficits.

Presenter: Dr. Yasmin Harman-Smith

Empowering communities to make sustainable change

Child development is impacted by a variety of factors within a community. In remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities there often exists a unique combination of contributing factors that make child rearing especially challenging. In environments such as this, where there are a number of complex problems, it is important that a holistic approach to community development is considered in order to affect change. For holistic approaches to gain traction it is important that they are developed with the community not for the community and that community strengths are identified as a starting point in order to inform strategies moving forward. This presentation will discuss how a holistic approach to child development in remote communities can be considered with an aim of empowering communities to make sustainable change.

[email protected]







Using AEDC data in Early Childhood Initial Teacher Education: Pathways and possibilities for community engagement and professional learning

Jovanovic, J.1

1 Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia

A heavy investment in assessment and testing for robust ‘evidence-informed practice’ is now an intrinsic part of contemporary education, health and social services delivery and decision-making in neoliberal economies like Australia (Goss, Hunter, Romanes & Parsonage, 2015). Yet there are no requirements and very little formal training opportunities for pre-service teachers to learn about or be skilled in the use of government data like the AEDC for pedagogical best practice work with young children. We argue that rich data sets like the AEDC offer the capacity to target teaching and health promotion initiatives, for example, in ways that enable the sector to track children’s and communities’ progress over time. Such work cannot be performed, however, without significant on-the-ground support. This presentation offers an exemplar of how cooperative education partnerships between higher education and early years services can provide a mutually-beneficial means for engaging in quality- or site-improvement planning. Using an inquiry-approach, pre- and in-service Early Childhood Teachers work with local families and other early years professionals with the intent of shifting children’s outcomes by using AEDC data to identify and assess context-specific strategies for improvement in one or more of the five domains. Such work will be of interest to early years professionals, teacher educators and policy-makers seeking to find ways to use government data to meaningfully and sustainably implement evidence-informed change within increasing fiscal, social and administrative constraints.

[email protected]

Healthy Kids – Bringing Early Childhood Education and Care communities together to improve the health of our Queensland kids!

Frazer-Ryan, S.1, and Philipson, A.1

1 Centre for Children’s Health and Wellbeing, Children’s Health Queensland Hospital and Health Services

The Centre for Children’s Health and Wellbeing, in partnership with state-wide early childhood partners including Department of Education and Training, Early Childhood Australia, The Gowrie, C&K and the tertiary sector, have been trialling a cost-effective, community capacity building approach to support early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector staff to increase knowledge of early childhood health messages and integrate this knowledge into daily practice to enhance the health of the communities they service.

This project aims to bring together local ECEC educators and key partners to engage in free face-to-face health professional development (PD) that complements the early years learning framework and provides opportunities for reflective practice to foster good health and wellbeing of children in the local community prior to school-age. Health content planning is informed by Australian Early Development Census data and identified needs from the sector.

Key Healthy Kids Activities include: 1) Local quarterly free face-to-face PD events with web-conferencing including a reflective practice component; 2) Local quarterly CHATs (Child Health Active Talks) between each PD session to connect and support each other in building a healthier early childhood community using participatory critical reflection; 3) A quarterly newsletter providing access to additional resources and information following each PD event.

Process and Impact Evaluation is being undertaken with Griffith University to investigate knowledge, attitude, skills of participating ECEC staff and the application of key strategies within identified participating ECEC services. The authors will present some of the initial findings from the evaluation and lessons learnt thus far.

[email protected]






Building a shared vision of Inclusion. Learnings from C&K’s Community of Practice

Alison Evans1, Diana Homer1 and Kathryn Woods1

1 Crèche and Kindergarten Association, Limited. Queensland. (C&K).

This presentation reports on strategies employed across a large ECEC organisation, documented across a 12-month period. The aim of the project is to develop curriculum and shared understandings about excellence in ECEC, developing models, pedagogies and strategies that are inclusive and that recognise and celebrate differences. Throughout the year, educators were actively linked into communities of practice – working within their immediate workplace, across a wider organisational network, and connecting with the broader early childhood field. Data includes: focus group discussions, online entries, pre- and post- surveys, artefacts, observations and individual interviews. Preliminary analysis suggests that the establishment of communities of practice has resulted in a heightened sense of purpose and commitment to children that respects, reflects and celebrates cultures and diversities. The communities appear to have actively supported staff, through providing opportunities for strengthening content knowledge in particular areas, and supporting the development of effective pedagogies that use both co-construction and instruction. Unexpected additional benefits include evidence of growth in leadership and other strengths, and cultivating a capacity for joint problem solving, and reflective practice. Educators participating in the Community of Practice work in communities with high vulnerabilities across all domains. Access to professional development and networks outside of C&K proved important to providing participants with access to new ideas and outsider perspectives, necessary for innovation. The measure of the effectiveness of the participants championing beyond the immediate community of practice is an area for further investigation.

[email protected]

Supporting Early Childhood Education and Care Centres and Schools use of the AEDC dataset in their planning

Sheree Simmons1, Ashleigh Wilson2,3, Gail Clark4, Stephen Soames5, Mary Lincoln6, Leanne Odorico7 and Yasmin Harman-Smith2,3

1 Department for Education and Child Development, Adelaide, Australia


3 University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia

4 Department of Education, Perth, Australia

5 Westfield Park Primary School, Perth, Australia

6 Department of Education and Training, Queensland, Australia

7 Clontarf Beach Primary School, Queensland, Australia

Submission Summary

The AEDC provides rich data that schools and early learning and care centres can draw upon in their planning. The AEDC is, however, a fairly new dataset, thus the value for early childhood education and care and schools of this population data is not yet broadly understood. Education departments have been working around the Australia to support leaders and educators to integrate AEDC data in their planning. This symposium brings together presentations from South Australia, Queensland and Western Australia that discuss the strategies, difficulties and successes of using the AEDC data in early childhood education and care and the school sectors.

Presenter: Sheree Simmons

Partnerships for success

The South Australian Department for Education and Child Development local partnership model provides a common ground for public sector children’s centres,






preschools and schools to support children’s holistic development and learning. The AEDC provides a lens and common language for understanding the factors that impact on the development of children in their community. The AEDC data has become a valuable contextual and planning tool for early years services and schools but it also presents challenges about identifying and implementing change. The local partnership experience with AEDC data will be shared from a number of perspectives.

Presenter: Ashleigh Wilson

Taking a population approach to planning

Historically, schools and early childhood education and care settings plan for the needs of their children at an individual, class and school level using a range of data collected within the education setting. Population data such as the AEDC can provide a lens for considering the holistic development of children in the community and contexts in which they develop. The AEDC provides educators with data to inform planning for existing frameworks such as the National Quality Standards, Early Years Learning Framework, and Australian Professional Standards for Teachers and the Australian Curriculum The AEDC data can also provide leaders and educators with a common language about what children need and in this way can support them to work in partnership with families, local service providers and their transition partners to plan for the needs of children across the community.

Presenters: Gail Clark and Stephen Soames

Building capacity within the early childhood education sector

The WA Department of Education has worked in collaboration with SA and NSW to develop a suite of resources to increase the capacity of educators and leaders to use population data within their planning. Aimed at early childhood education and care and

schools, the resources provide links between the AEDC and national planning documents and case study videos from sites across the state using the census to shape their practices. Principal Stephen Soames will share his experience integrating the AEDC into practice and planning and describe how community partnerships have been fostered to support children’s development and transitions.

Presenters: Mary Lincoln and Leanne Odorico

Continuity of learning

Opportunities to maximise children’s continuity of learning are strengthened when collaborative partnerships are established between families, early childhood education and care services and schools. Developing shared understandings about, and a common language with which to discuss children’s growth and development supports continuity and successful transitions. Queensland is undertaking a suite of related initiatives that draw on AEDC data as a focal point for school-based decision making in order to enhance continuity of learning and development for all children. Queensland principal Leanne Odorico will share her experiences with the AEDC data, the challenges they faced and the newly developed resources for schools.

[email protected]

A school based child health & development hub – a community development project to build capacity of staff and parents.

Kelly Brand1

1 Coordinator Participation & Partnerships, Hume City Council

A one stop Child Health and Development Hub has been established at Good Samaritan Primary School to support families address the declining results contained in the 2015 Australian Early Development Census.






The “Child Health and Development Hub” is a collaborative early childhood initiative bringing together care, education, health, community development activities and family services for children from 0 to 12 years. The project aims to improve access by children and families to a broader range of services and programs through the single initial access point of the school.

The model is responsive to the needs of the children and families in the area with input from parents, school leadership, community health service professionals and early childhood educators.

Two community engagement roles at the school develop child health and development activities at the Hub. These locally designed community development initiatives partner with local health services and GP Clinics to bring these services into the school setting and improve access and familiarity for families.

The project will develop an improved knowledge base in community. Including:

• Families will have a greater awareness and connection to local services and the ability to self-refer and access these services independently.

• Word of mouth information to newly arrived communities about local services will be more accurate. This will assist these vulnerable communities to navigate the service system more efficiently.

• Medical services and GP’s will have established partnerships with the school and wider community and will have trialled a new model of working in the community.

• Increased capacity of school staff and families to identify developmental concerns and provide correct referrals.

A comprehensive project evaluation will assess the effectiveness of the Child Health and Development Hub.

[email protected]

Breaking down the Barriers to Participation

Lascelles, S.1 and Jones, M.1

1 The C&K Association

This presentation will explore factors around the participation of all children in Early Childhood Programs, including children who are experiencing vulnerability or disadvantage. We will take you on the journey, supported by a Churchill Fellowship around Canada and the USA and showcase strategies used by Early Childhood organisations to increase the participation of all children. Links and similarities will be identified in Australia’s current contexts. The fellowship identified that programs work best for all families when there is a community approach. Programs that build relationships with families support positive parent-child relationships, family well-being, and connections to community.

The workshop will showcase the AEDC data for Bundaberg and the unique solutions Sandi and Meg, have in place for engaging children in early childhood programs in an effort to improve outcomes for families. Strategies will be outlined for ensuring attendance for families experiencing disadvantage and our approach to trauma informed practice will be outlined. Community partnerships will be highlighted with strategies to make these links. A strengths based approach is used to value and develop the skills and strengths of children, families and communities.

Research has shown that disengaged families face disadvantage, linked to inter-generational impacts of trauma and discrimination, which greatly impacts AEDC data. Quality early childhood education has been found to be a significant factor in a child’s ability to learn and contributes to later educational, health and employment outcomes. Access for all has meant creating unique solutions for barriers and allowing every child their right to quality early childhood education.

[email protected]






The Australian Early Childhood Educational Development Experience (AECEDE) Research Project: Early Findings

Sally Brinkman1,2

1 Telethon Kids Institute, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia

2 School of Population Health, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia

There is growing interest globally about the impacts of different early childhood education and care (ECEC) programs on children’s development. However, much of this research has been conducted outside of Australia, and may not generalise to the local context. The Australian Early Childhood Education and Development Experience (AECEDE) is a research project that is funded by the Australian Government Department of Education and Training, and supported by the NSW and NT Departments of Education, with the aim of gaining a better understanding of the impact of Australian children’s participation in ECEC programs on their development. The study is being conducted in specific communities in New South Wales and the Northern Territory that have been selected to be broadly representative of the Australian population in terms of socio-economic, cultural diversity and demographics. The study design involves measuring children’s development in the preschool year (using the Australian version of the Early Development Instrument in their preschools and long-day care centres), and then capturing a second measure of their development in their first year of full-time school through the 2018 AEDC. A primary caregiver survey will collect information about the children’s ECEC histories and home environment. This study provides a good example of how research studies can be designed to leverage off the triennial AEDC collection. This presentation will focus on the early findings from the AECEDE study.

[email protected]

The contribution of home language exposure to intergenerational transmission of inequality

Brushe, M.1, S Reilly2, Lynch, J.3, Melhuish, E.4 and Brinkman, S.1,3


2 Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia


4 University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia

Language is a critical developmental accomplishment of early childhood, enabling later literacy, education and employment – the major social determinants of health. There are vast socioeconomic differences in vocabulary, sentence structure and communication styles. Socioeconomic inequalities in parental verbal input (parent talk) to their children are likely to be crucial to the intergenerational transmission of inequality. Previous studies investigating parent-talk are limited, in that they have not used objectively measured language in the natural environment of the home, and have been limited to small, convenience samples, mainly in the US. The Language in Little Ones study is a 5-year longitudinal study that aims to determine if language is a modifiable mechanism for mediating the large social inequalities in children’s health and development. To do this, the study utilises innovative speech recognition technology called Language Environment Analysis (LENA), which can count the number of adult words, child words and conversational turns occurring throughout a 16-hour period. LENA data will be collected every six months from 6-months until 48-months of age. This study was designed around the AEDC with waves of data collection scheduled so that children will age into the 2021 census. The AEDC will be used as the study’s primary outcome measure of holistic child development to investigate how much parent talk is needed within the home during the first five years of life to ensure children start school on track. Preliminary findings will be presented from the first wave of data collection, with children aged 6-months.

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Game Day: A New Approach to Parenting Programs

Kylie Mulcahy1

1 Burnie Child and Family Centre

Thanks to AEDC funding, I have a short film and a written evaluation of our Game Day program to present. In 2015, AEDC data showed our community to be developmentally vulnerable in language and cognitive skills. Research shows that development in this area can be improved with high quality early years programs in a nurturing environment that is rich language and play experiences. We also know that parents are the strongest influence on their child’s development and when we work closely with them, outcomes for children can be improved.

Game Day is an innovative program which has been running at Burnie Child and Family Centre since February 2017. The program has 3 key objectives:

1) To build capacity of parents.

2) To provide a high quality strengths-based playgroup.

3) To provide an opportunity for Children’s Services students at TasTAFE to gain hands on experience in observing and planning; and building relationships with children and their parents.

Parents say that they feel part of a supportive, non-judgmental network. Attendance has been consistent all year and parents have adopted new strategies with children. Children have grown in confidence both in their play and in their relationships with each other and educators.

By providing an enduring model of a parent and play group, we are acknowledging the time it takes to build relationships and trust, and the time and repetition necessary, for both adults and children, to consolidate and make meaning of new concepts and key ideas.

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Embedding the AEDC in Tasmanian Early Years evidence-based decision making

Dempsey, M.1 and Woolley, C.1

1 Tasmanian Department of Education, Hobart, Australia

Providing data reports to Tasmanian schools, Education and Care providers and other key stakeholders is not enough to guarantee improvements in all AEDC domains. As a result the Tasmanian AEDC co-project initiated grants up to $30,000 for early years service providers and stakeholders to undertake action/reflection projects that embedded the AEDC into local evidence-based decision making practice. This presentation looks at the issues considered when developing the first round of applications, and the implementation and management issues faced by the Tasmanian Department of Education to:

• develop an AEDC grants policy to influence change and raise AEDC awareness

• build inquiry capacity in providers to deliver sustainable change in their communities

• leverage funding opportunities for programs to maximise community engagement

• achieve guaranteed outcomes as part of the wider Tasmanian Department of Education Improvement Strategy

• build data literacy within providers and communities who did not receive a grant.

• use the action/reflection projects as a vehicle for building data literacy capacity across stakeholders

The presentation will outline the learnings and recommendations to enhance any future funding programs. Other presentations at the conference will look at the results of some individual projects.

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Embedding child development and early literacy in an Aboriginal health service: addressing all of the AEDC domains at once

Harvey, L.1, Adams, L.1, Alperstein, G.1, Parker, M.1, Files, J.1 and Dyer, C.1

1 Maari Ma Health Aboriginal Corporation, Broken Hill, Australia

Aboriginal children in the Maari Ma region have higher levels of developmental vulnerability on every AEDC indicator compared to children in NSW (2009 and 2012). Between 23 and 28% of Aboriginal children in far west NSW are considered vulnerable in all 5 AEDC domains. These rates are between 40% and 100% higher than all children in the region, and 300% higher than all children in NSW. Since 2005, Maari Ma has been implementing a whole of life course approach to chronic disease with significant emphasis on pregnancy and early years. In 2009, this comprehensive health-focussed approach expanded to include an intensive supported playgroup for Aboriginal families. Subsequently, an early literacy program, Little Kids + Books, was added in 4 communities, and age and developmentally appropriate books distributed at scheduled visits at the child health clinic in these communities. HIPPY (Home Interaction Program for Parents and Youngsters) has been implemented in Broken Hill for Aboriginal 4 and 5 year olds since 2014 and linkages with preschools through a professional development group, the Early Years Discussion Group, has seen a significant increase in the number of Aboriginal children accessing early childhood education. Maari Ma’s approach is addressing early education and care pathways, working with highly vulnerable families, in both community and health settings. The success of each facet of our Early Years Project has hinged on successful and respectful engagement with Aboriginal families. Maari Ma’s story will have relevance to other health and education services looking to improve outcomes for Aboriginal children.

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The influence of playgroup attendance on early childhood development in Australia

Alanna Sincovich1,2, Tess Gregory1,2, Yasmin Harman-Smith1,2 and Sally Brinkman1,2



Despite the widespread utilisation of playgroups, research quantifying their impact on child development is scarce. We analysed a national dataset measuring the holistic development of children who commenced full time school in Australia in 2015 – the Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) – to explore differences in development between children who did and did not attend playgroup before starting school. Just over a third of children were reported by their teachers to have attended some form of playgroup prior to starting school in 2015. Results demonstrated that children who did not attend playgroup had 1.54 times higher odds of being developmentally vulnerable on one or more domains of the AEDC at school entry, after adjusting for a range of confounding factors including gender, socioeconomic status, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status, language background other than English, and preschool attendance. The benefits of playgroup attendance were observed across all five developmental domains measured by the AEDC, with the largest differences found for children’s Language and Cognitive Skills and Communication and General Knowledge. Further, benefits of playgroup were demonstrated to be universal to children from a range of different backgrounds. While not causal, these findings suggest that increasing the number of children attending playgroup before school may help to reduce developmental vulnerability in Australia. Barriers to accessing playgroup as reported by caregivers and opportunities to increase playgroup attendance in order to maximise benefits will be discussed.

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The role of local government in early childhood development

Calic, S.1 and Davie, A.2

1 City of Hobart, Hobart, Australia

2 Ann Davie Consultancy, Hobart, Australia

The saying ‘it takes a village to raise a child’ is commonly used when describing the environments in which children develop and thrive; yet there is surprisingly little information about the role local government should play in early childhood development. Communities play a major role in connecting families to services, providing play environments, broadening children’s exposure to new and enlivening activities and creating a sense of belonging, safety and security. Local government is the level of government with the closest and most direct interface with communities, families and children, and is responsible for the community environments in which they exist. These environments can either support or hinder the capacity of communities to respond to issues affecting them. There is a recognisable gap in both academic and practice-based research investigating this area. The City of Hobart have worked to address this gap through an action-research project examining the roles that are available to local government in early childhood development. Community profiles were developed using the AEDC and complimentary data sets; positive practice examples that aligned with the work of local government were identified from the literature and two place-based interventions were trialled, working to build community capacity to respond to the AEDC. This approach recognises the differences between various local government bodies and the unique vulnerabilities within communities. The action-research project provides a range of strategies, lessons and practical examples to assist local government in responding to the AEDC.

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Change within Community Changes Data

Fraser, S.1 and Huggett, S.2

1 Sharon Fraser Consulting, Maryborough, Victoria, Australia

2 Go Goldfields, Central Goldfields Shire, Maryborough, Victoria, Australia

Within Central Goldfields Shire, in the physical heart of Victoria, Go Goldfields (how we work together to achieve meaningful social change) has been working to achieve improved outcomes for our children. This initiative uses a deeply considered Collective Impact, Place-based approach to build on strengths as well as addressing social disadvantage.

In working with children who do not have the opportunity to achieve their full potential we often tackle the issues through targeted programs and isolated interventions that are frequently designed centrally by government and rolled out to all jurisdictions. Although this is done with the best of intentions the evidence by researchers is clear, there is a strong correlation between social disadvantage and performance academically and in life, or as Hogan and Rubenstein (2017, unpublished) put it developmental disadvantage is a full grown prodigy of social and economic inequity. But surely this then makes the issue too big for us to tackle, how do we tackle social inequity within a community?

Within Central Goldfields we have been eating the inequity elephant one mouthful at a time. The current paper will explore the work that has been undertaken to change the environment that children and families are held within across the community. Through the paper we will explore what has worked and what has not worked in our journey to change the story for our children so that all can aspire, reach their full potential... so that all can be loved and safe.

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Tasmanian places, connections & AEDC – bringing data to life through stories.

Fuller, A.1, Woolley, C.2 and Bradley, T.3

1 B4 Early Year Coalition, Department of Education, Hobart, Australia

2 Department of Education, Hobart, Australia

3 Wynyard/Waratah Council, Wynyard, Tasmania, Australia

In a small community nestled by the coast, the Mayor was worried. The worries niggled in the early hours of the morning and kept the Mayor up at night. The Mayor knew there must be a solution and googled till the early morn about children’s literacy in the early years. The worries of the Mayor travelled far and wide and were heard in the city far away from his community. The mother that heard the Mayor’s worries shared them with the B4 Early Years Coalition (B4). B4 knew the Mayor’s worries were important and went off to find the Mayor. Listening to the Mayor’s story and the worry for children’s literacy in his community, B4 knew he needed to engage others but needed a strong story to convince others to get involved. B4 connected the Mayor with AEDC and together found the strong story of why they needed a project to support a children’s literacy in a thriving, strong, connected community. The Mayor, B4 and AEDC gathered others and explored “Supermarket Conversations”, bringing the joy of literacy through their local supermarkets to support children and families as confident, involved and curious learners.

This story is one example of Tasmanian places connecting with the AEDC for change. The following principles are emerging as best practice to connect AEDC with places and people for change;

• A common vision

• Collaboration across and between systems and sectors

• Practices that support connections

• AEDC Champions

• Leadership

• Using opportunities

• Building the AEDC community story

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The Kids in Communities Study: A ‘learning from extremes’ mixed methods approach to exploring community-level factors that make a difference to early childhood development in disadvantaged AEDC communities

S. Goldfeld1,2,3, K. Villanueva2,4, I. Katz5 and R. Robinson2, R. Tanton6, G. Woolcock7, B. Giles-Corti4 and S. Brinkman8

1 Centre for Community Child Health, The Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3052

2 Policy, Equity and Translation, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Parkville, VIC, 3052

3 Department of Paediatrics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3052

4 RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, 3000

5 Social Policy research Centre, The University of New South Wales, Kensington, NSW, 2052

6 National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling (NATSEM), University of Canberra

7 Institute for Resilient Regions, The University of Southern Queensland, QLD, 4350

8 Fraser Mustard Centre, Telethon Kids Institute, The University of Western Australia

Submission summary:

The community platform is a potential point of intervention for better early childhood development (ECD) outcomes through place based approaches. This symposium contains four presentations that showcase the findings from the Kids in Communities Study






(KiCS), an Australian mixed-methods investigation of community-level influences on ECD in five domains of influence – physical, social, governance, service, and sociodemographic. Developed from the AEDC, a ‘learning from extremes’ approach explored community-level factors that may signal why some disadvantaged communities had better AEDC outcomes than their disadvantaged neighbours. Together, the panel discusses the measurement, findings, and implications of the potential pathways in which communities might impact ECD.

Presenter: Sharon Goldfeld

About the Kids in Communities Study: study design, methods, and implications for place-based approaches to creating healthier communities for positive early childhood development

Aim: This paper provides the overview for the presentations that follow and highlight the methods and findings of the Kids in Communities Study (KiCS), an Australian investigation of community-level factors influencing early childhood development (ECD).

Methods: The 2012 Australian Early Development Census (AEDC), a population-wide census of ECD, was used to select 25 metropolitan and regional communities (suburbs) in five states and territories were selected based on their diagonality type i.e. those performing better or worse (“off-diagonal”), or as expected (“on-diagonal”) on the AEDC relative to their socio-economic profile. Community factors were conceptualised within five domains: 1) service; 2) social; 3) socio-demographic; 4) physical environment; and 5) governance. Data collection occurred in 2014-2016 using a mixed methods approach. Qualitative methods included stakeholder interviews (n=150), parent and service provider focus groups (n=50), and analysis of policy documents (n=120). Quantitative methods included surveys with general community residents (approximately n=4000) and service providers, mapping of neighbourhood design and local amenities and services, and the use of existing socio-demographic and early childhood education and care administrative data.

Descriptive analysis of the qualitative and quantitative data will be undertaken to understand differences or similarities between paired community diagonality types in disadvantaged communities (i.e. on versus off-diagonal).

Conclusion: This study is among the first internationally to explore how communities influence ECD. Study strengths include having qualitative data to complement quantitative findings, and the selection of communities of different geographic and socioeconomic status. Challenges include using a relatively small number of study sites, and the time and resources required for community engagement. Such evidence and data can be used to develop community-based indicators of ECD that can be implemented and utilised to both inform and evaluate local place-based effort.

Presenter: Ilan Katz

Multi-method approaches examining the social contribution of community-level factors influencing early childhood development

Background: Factors such as trust in neighbours, feelings of safety and connectedness to the community can all affect the way parents bring up their children and the children’s own experiences of the community and others. However these are subtle processes which require multiple methods to examine in depth. Aim: This paper discusses some of the conceptual and practical challenges in undertaking community research on young children, presents some preliminary findings on the contribution of social capital and other social processes within communities to ECD.

Methods: Interviews, focus groups, and community surveys were among the multiple methods used. Mixed method analysis involving the ‘triangulation’ of different types or sources of data including quantitative and qualitative data as well as subjective data and objective data about the communities.

Findings: Our mixed methods approach to exploring community-level factors presents some challenges for data collection and analysis. Social factors that






appeared strongly related to ECD included perceived stigma. Stigma (negative community reputation) emerged as a key factor; local communities where children were doing better than expected on the AEDC had a better reputation (less stigma) than local communities where children were not doing well, despite being socio-economically disadvantaged.

Conclusion: Our approach provides lessons for further multi-method research on community level wellbeing of children and very early conclusions about the specific social factors which are most likely to facilitate and inhibit the wellbeing of young children, and how the social domain interacts with other domains (e.g. physical and governance domains).

Presenter: Karen Villanueva

Does the neighbourhood physical environment make a difference to early childhood development?

Background: Neighbourhoods are where young children spend most time outside of home, childcare and school environments; it is plausible the wider physical environment of neighbourhoods, including access to local amenities such as parks, impact on ECD. Providing opportunities for active play, mental and social wellbeing are the cornerstones for good health in early life, but there remains a paucity of evidence about how the physical environment influences ECD.

Aim and methods: This paper highlights the use of a range of methods, including interviews, focus groups, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for creating measures of physical environment features (neighbourhood design). Neighbourhood design features for disadvantaged local communities with poorer and better AEDC outcomes were compared, and preliminary relationships will be presented. Findings: Physical environment relationships that were associated with better AEDC outcomes in disadvantaged local communities included public housing, higher-density housing, and housing tenure. However, there a number of strengths and limitations of measuring the neighbourhood physical environment using GIS.

Conclusion: Not all neighbourhoods are the same, and there are often more differences within rather than between neighbourhoods. Disadvantaged neighbourhoods vary in terms of risk factors (e.g. crime rates, neighbourhood safety) and protective factors (e.g. social capital, collective efficacy). Such ‘pockets of dis/advantage’ within each community make it difficult to draw robust conclusions. However, there are unique opportunities to innovatively link spatial measures of the physical environment to the breadth of the AEDC to explore relationships with ECD at a large scale. Providing the evidence to build healthy and liveable neighbourhoods for young children has implications for policy and practice.

Presenter: Rachel Robinson

Governing Early Childhood Development: Community-Level Effects

Background: The developmental and economic benefits of a comprehensive universal early childhood system and integrated place based approaches to implementation have become widely accepted. However, despite considerable effort, children and families experience social gradients for access, quality and outcomes raising equity concerns for planners and policy makers.

Aim: This paper examines and compares various governance forms and actors at work in local ECD policy in KiCS sites and considers these in respect of community indicators of child outcomes.

Methods: Governance literature was consulted to develop a framework to guide data collection and inform analysis. Interviews and focus groups with local leaders about the decision-making environment as well as parent focus groups and quantitative information concerning institutional trust and participation were conducted and examined. Qualitative analysis sought to understand the unique ways in which local communities respond to the multi-level governance environment and influence the local decision making and ECD environment.


Findings: Three promising governance factors have emerged from our work so far, each linking to each other and the development of local social capital and participation. The presence of local leaders; the harnessing of local effort in response to an historical event; and the presence of novel approaches or solutions.

Conclusion: This paper considers local networked governance, and explores the agency of policy actors that enable the development of innovative solutions within the structural and institutional environment. Findings have the potential to build understanding of place based governance effort, leverage change for healthier child development and influence the future direction of policy.

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Prioritising families: public libraries as agents for change

Louise Denoon1 and Rachael Browning1

1 State Library of Queensland

Public libraries are transformative places and literacy is the bedrock of their ethos and rationale. State Library of Queensland supports a statewide network of over 320 public libraries and Indigenous Knowledge Centres, with a reach to over 2 million members. Digitally inclusive, literate communities that are skilled for the 21st century is a strategic priority for the State Library of Queensland and through initiatives such as First 5 Forever families and children aged 0-5 have been prioritised.

Commencing in 2015, First 5 Forever is a four year family literacy initiative delivered by public libraries with the primary aim of providing strong early literacy foundations for all Queensland children aged 0-5. This initiative focusses on building parent confidence in their ability to meet their child’s needs and strengthen local connection.

One of the key messages from the AEDC is that good programmes at critical points in development are able to shape children’s outcomes across five domains. Utilising the data provided by the AEDC in conjunction with local community knowledge public libraries across Queensland are able to identify the needs of and develop programs for their communities.

Insightful evaluation data will be presented with over 1 million attendances at over 50,000 events in the first 2 years of the initiative demonstrating evidence of a building momentum state-wide. Libraries have been activated and library staff empowered to reach out to their community. Research findings by Queensland University of Technology will also be utilised to demonstrate the broader societal impact with specific reference to the value of public libraries.

In this presentation you will hear how public libraries are using AEDC data to inform programming to bring about long-term positive change.

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Literacy for Littlies – A whole of community approach to sustained improvements in early literacy

Bobbermein, J.1,2, Hawkins, J.1,2 and Virtue, N.1,2

1 Sarina & District Community Kindergarten, Sarina, Australia

2 Grandmas Place, Sarina, Australia

The Literacy for Littlies was project designed to improve literacy rates for children in Sarina, (Queensland) and reduce the number of children arriving at school vulnerable according to AEDC results. Local professionals raised concerns of an emerging trend of children arriving at school with a widening gap in oral language skills. The project brought together three early childhood education care services, local playgroups and local secondary students to work collaboratively with Queensland Department of Education and Training (DET) to achieve sustainable literacy results for our children. Participants were










trained, mentored and coached in the Abecedarian Approach by DET affiliated trainers. Our project focused on improving early literacy skills in children from birth to 5 years and to reduce the percentage of vulnerable children either overall or at least in one of the AEDC domains. The Approach supported educators working with children from birth to five years of age, to implement evidence-based teaching strategies to enhance literacy levels. Participants implemented Language Priority, Enriched Caregiving, Conversational Reading, and the Learning Games – and how to plan, implement and evaluate these strategies in each ECEC setting. It supported community education leaders to build a shared language and approach of advancing children’s learning outcomes within our community. Our long term success measures are a further reduction of percentage of vulnerable children arriving at school in the one or more domains of 2021 AEDC data, improved literacy rates of children and improved relationships amongst children, families and our local community.

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Using the Pyramid Model to Address the Social Competence and Emotional Maturity Domains of the AEDC data

Lawrina Osbourne1, Megan Noack1 and Mary McLennan1

1 Elsie Ey Children’s Centre, Department for Education and Child Development (DECD)

Educators at Elsie Ey Children’s Centre made a program-wide decision to address the increasing number of children who are developmentally vulnerable on their social competence and emotional maturity domains on the AEDC data in the Gawler region in South Australia. They are in their first year of researching and implementing the Pyramid Model. The Pyramid Model provides a tiered intervention framework of evidence-based interventions for promoting social, emotional, and behavioural development of young children. Their focus in the first year is on providing nurturing and

responsive caregiving relationships with all children including children with disabilities and on implementing supportive environments. They are collecting qualitative and quantitative data to conduct real-time assessment of their Pyramid Model implementation process while also assessing changes in context, facilitating quality improvement using PreSet data, Teaching Pyramid Observation Tool (TPOT) data, Reflect, Respect, Relate, (RRR) data, behavioural data, Inclusive Classroom Profile data, stages of Active Implementation Framework, and Plan-Do- Study- Act (PDSA) rapid cycles of improvement. A collection of teacher’s perspectives, data results, and future action plans will be shared to illustrate how one early childhood program is proactively supporting their increasing number of children who are developmentally vulnerable on their social competence and emotional maturity domains on the AEDC data.

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AEDC: Active Engagement with Data in Communities

G. Harris1, S. Milbourne2, K. Brettig3, H. Rynsent4 and E. Parker4

1 Ph D candidate, TSA Logan Communities for Children and Griffith University Knowledge

2 Manager South East Tasmania Communities for Children Facilitating Partner

3 Manager Salisbury Communities for Children Facilitating Partner

4 Community Development Worker Logan Communities for Children Facilitating Partner

Submission Summary

The Communities for Children Initiative, is the longest running place-based early intervention and prevention model for young children in Australian history (CCCH, 2017). For over a decade, the AEDC has provided CfC with a way to actively engage with data in living communities. This symposium will illustrate how for the






Salvation Army, as facilitating partner for the Hobart, Logan, and Salisbury CfC sites, the AEDC became a catalyst for affirmatively engaging with data at a community level, and helped mobilize an integrated approach to supporting the health, education and wellbeing of young children and their families in local communities.

Using data to inform and drive service planning in a local community

The release of the 2012 AEDC data highlighted a significant increase in vulnerability (2009 AEDC data) across 5 AEDC domains in the Communities for Children area of Brighton in S.E. TAS, with communication the only domain to not show any significant change. The release of this data resulted in alarm bells ringing in the site and all the early years providers in this area coming together to form an Early years Coalition specifically to address the 2012 AEDC data and its implications.

The Brighton area has some 50 early year’s programs/activities for a population of 16 000 of which 1400 are children under 4. Membership of the Early Years Coalition includes Dept. of Educ. NGO’s, long and home day care operators etc. who all began to work collectively together to identify how to;

• Better engage with parents

• Deliver consistent messaging across providers for families,

• engage vulnerable families into programs

• create a strategic plan that focussed on delivering the best outcomes for families and children under 5

The above actions happened as a direct result of the 2012 AEDC data. This was a significant influence in driving the change to bring services together to address the issues and collectively create better outcomes for children. The 2015 AEDC data showed a significant positive change across 5 out of 6 domains in Brighton. This presentation will look at how AEDC data is being used as a driver towards collaborative impact in

the lives of children at risk of vulnerability in South

Eastern Tasmania.

Designing and implementing place-based early years’ service approaches

In the north of Adelaide the Salisbury C4C site has implemented a number of place based early years’ service approaches to supporting families at risk of vulnerability. The AEDC has played a significant role in the locating and monitoring of these initiatives and this presentation will highlight how data is being used in the planning and implementation process. It will also look at some of the outcomes for children that are being measured in these communities. We will consider some key principles in planning and implementing place based approaches in local communities that have a strong emphasis on early intervention and prevention as well as the capacity to engage some of the most vulnerable families in the process.

The presentation will have a particular focus on using a place based, family centre approach that has been developed in the Nordic countries, is now being implemented more broadly across Europe and has strong parallels with some local C4C initiatives. We will consider:

• how proportionate universality can be employed in the process of service mapping

• some encouraging child development outcomes being measured across several Australian locations using this approach

• some of the challenges likely to be encountered and

• Strategies that may be useful in implementing place based integrated service collaborations.

Place-based Responses to Service Delivery: Transdisciplinary Models for Practice

Since 2005, the Logan CfC has used the AEDC as the catalyst to bring organisations and community together for collective action to improve the wellbeing of children and enter into respectful dialogues around children, families and workforce needs.

The Facilitating Partner (FP) model draws together key stakeholders to co-design and co-implement






place-based responses to meet the needs expressed by community members, emerging initially as small relational community movements, to more recently, co-creating cultural and systemic changes. The recent emergence of Logan Together A Collective Impact movement, has complimented this work by drawing together multiple levels of government to support the community-led action that has begun to change the design and engagement of the community services workforce within Logan. CfC FP Logan is supporting the emergence of a transdisciplinary workforce that is becoming a community of practice for the outworking of early intervention and prevention programs at a place-based level.

This presentation will share how The Family Place Approach: a Framework of Practice (Macfarlane, 2016) was co-created from within the community, led by the CFC FP and the Griffith University Knowledge Partnership to produce 13 Principles of practice, as a way of knowing and being in place-based working. The reciprocal interactions of which are both evidenced-informed by the AEDC data, and becoming evidence-informing through the Framework of Practice, in the practical application of data within a living system of the Logan Community.

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Associations between child development at school entry and student wellbeing in the middle years

Tess Gregory1,2, Eleonora Dal Grande1,2, Mary Brushe1 and Sally Brinkman1,2


2 The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia

Previous research has established that school readiness across multiple developmental domains predicts children’s success at school, with academic achievement used as the primary outcome measure in most studies. However, success at school is much broader than just academic success, and student wellbeing is increasingly being recognised as a central objective of schooling systems across the world. The present study focused on children’s development when they start school and how strongly it predicted both positive (optimism, life satisfaction, prosocial skills, and peer relationships) and negative (sadness and worries) aspects of student wellbeing in Year 6. This data linkage study utilised two population data sets – the 2009 Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) and the 2015 South Australian Wellbeing and Engagement Collection (WEC) – that were linked for about 4,000 school children. Linear regression analyses showed that children who were “vulnerable” or “at risk” in Social Competence and/or Emotional Maturity at school entry had significantly lower levels of optimism, life satisfaction, peer belonging, and higher levels of sadness and worries in Year 6 than children who were “on track” after adjusting for a range of individual and family level covariates. Children who were “vulnerable” in Physical Health and Wellbeing, Language and Cognitive Skills, or Communication and General Knowledge had higher levels of sadness and worries in Year 6 than children who were “on track” but the links to positive aspects of wellbeing were weaker and less consistent. Implications for schools and governments for supporting student’s wellbeing and mental health will be discussed.

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Using the Australian Early Development Census to understand the mental health needs of Australian children

O’Connor, M.1,2,3, Kvalsvig, A.1, O’Connor, E.1, Gray, S.1 and Goldfeld, S.1,2,3

1 Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia

2 University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

3 Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, Australia

In Australia, 1 in 7 children aged 4 to 17 years meet criteria for a mental health disorder. The earlier that a young person experiences mental illness, the greater the risk of lifelong negative consequences. For those that seek support, both the education and health systems provide a major resource. Understanding the mental health needs of Australian children is vital for planning appropriate responses across these systems. This presentation will describe how the AEDC data can be used to measure the mental health of Australian children. In doing so, it is essential to look not just at symptoms of difficulties (e.g., anxious and fretful behaviour, aggressive behaviour); but also at mental health competence (e.g., social competence, prosocial and helping behaviour). The AEDC allows both of these aspects of mental health to be examined. Analysis of the 2015 AEDC cohort shows that just 23% of children have an optimal mental health profile, with high competence and low difficulties. Children’s mental health profile is related to important outcomes like their early learning progress. Approaches to improve child mental health need to address both competence and difficulties to have the greatest impact.

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Do latent profiles of early developmental (AEDC) vulnerability predict mental illness up to age 13 years?

Melissa J. Green1,2, Stacy Tzoumakis3, Maina Kariuki1, Kristin R. Laurens1,4, Felicity Harris1 and Vaughan J. Carr 1,2,5

1 School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

2 Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia

3 School of Social Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

4 School of Psychology, Australian Catholic University, Brisbane, Australia.

5 Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia

The New South Wales Child Development Study (NSW-CDS) is a longitudinal study of a NSW population cohort of children who were assessed with the Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) in 2009; successive waves of record linkage bring together data relating to the child’s birth, health, education and child protection status, and their parent’s health, crime and mortality information. The first record linkage (RL1; conducted in 2013-14) brought together data up to the child’s age 5 years (Carr et al., 2016); using these data we elucidated four classes of children according to patterns of vulnerability on 16 AEDC subdomains (Green et al., ANZJP, 2017). These classes represent children showing putative: (1) ‘misconduct risk’ (N=4,831; 6.9%); (2) ‘pervasive risk’ (N=2,734; 3.9%); (3) ‘mild generalised risk’ (N=7,694; 11.1%); and (4) ‘no risk’ (N=54,278; 78.1%) for later mental disorders. Using data from our next wave of linkage (conducted in 2016, bringing child data up to age 13 years), we determined 3876 children with a mental health service contact among the NSW Health’s Mental Health Ambulatory, Admitted Patient, and Emergency Department data collections, from 82,891 children with an AEDC record. The likelihood of mental health service contacts by age 13 years was examined for each of the age 5 years putative ‘risk’ classes, relative to the ‘no-risk’ class, using multinomial logistic regression with child’s sex included as a covariate. Mental health service contacts by age 13 years were approximately 2.5 times more likely among children in the ‘pervasive risk’ (OR=2.5; 95% CI=2.2-2.8) and ‘misconduct risk’ classes (OR=2.6; 95% CI=2.4-2.9); a relatively lower likelihood of mental health service contacts was observed for the ‘mild generalised risk’


class (OR=1.3; 95% CI=1.2-1.4), and male sex was also significantly associated with mental health contacts by age 13 years (OR=1.18; 95% CI=1.11-1.3). These findings provide initial support for the predictive utility of latent classes of early childhood developmental vulnerabilities identified at age 5 years, representing putative mental health risk.

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Redesigning child and youth community health services to respond to developmentally vulnerable populations.

Callard, N.1

1 Children’s Health Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

Access to quality health care, along with social and economic factors are significant predictors of child development outcomes, and those we are most able to influence. Until recently, the Children’s Health Queensland Child and Youth Community Health Service has been based on historical locations and traditional models, no doubt models and structures that once met the needs of the community. Changing population demographics, including the influx in families from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds, lower socio-economic status and lower levels of parental education and literacy has seen the increase in vulnerability across the catchment. As one would expect, the growing population has been attracted to new and developing communities where cost of living is more affordable, which has created vulnerability ‘hotspots’ where developmental vulnerability measured by AEDC is up to 13% higher than the state average. This shift in population demographics calls for a dramatic shift in what, where and how paediatric community healthcare is provided, if we expect to address the social and health determinant of early childhood development. The data captured in the Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) has been critical in identifying geographical areas of current developmental vulnerability and as well as contributing

to predictive analysis to identify at risk communities. The insights generated out of AEDC data sets has informed a series of clinical service redesign projects where service architecture, systems, processes and workforce factors have been critically reviewed to identify opportunities for reform. Project outcomes to date have mobilised transformational systems and cultural change which is expected to translate to improved health and development outcomes.

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Data-driven decisions - The journey to population-based planning for better outcomes for Queensland’s children

A. Clutterbuck1, B. Bumbarger2, A. Sharman1 and F. Tracey1

1 Children’s Health Queensland Hospital and Health Service, South Brisbane, QLD 4101, Australia

2 Institute of Criminology, Griffith University, Mount Gravatt, QLD 4122, Australia

Children’s Health Queensland Hospital and Health Service (CHQ) is a specialist state-wide health service provider, delivering an integrated network of services through the Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital, Community, Mental Health and Statewide Services/Programs (including outreach and telehealth), and collaborative partnerships with other organisations to improve health outcomes for children and young people across Queensland and Northern New South Wales.

CHQ is developing a Health Intelligence function to support a data-driven approach to population health planning. With a state-wide remit for the health and wellbeing of children and young people, CHQ is well positioned to lead the development of cross-sector partnerships utilising existing data sets to inform policy, planning and commissioning of services and interventions that can improve outcomes for children, families and communities.






CHQs approach is aligned to the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth (ARACY) ‘The Nest framework’ and uses a population-focused evidence base that incorporates a health and wider social determinant view, including Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) data.

CHQ has mapped over 140 key indicators to the framework and has developed a proof of concept to guide the design build of a common data-driven profile to help identify where children are exposed to a range of multiplicative risk factors. The initiative underpins collaborative work with partners including Health, Education, Communities and other key agencies with the aim of making greater use of collective data to guide investment and build improved system responsiveness and sustainability.

Showcasing this initiative through a facilitated panel discussion will assist knowledge development.

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Harnessing the Hive: engaging stakeholders to improve outcomes for children and young people in Queensland.

P. W. Moss1, 3, B. Bumbarger2, G. A. Olive1, 3, D. L. Newcomb1, H. L. Johnson1 and F. Tracey1, 4

1 Community, Mental Health and Statewide Services, Children’s Health Queensland Hospital and Health Service, South Brisbane, QLD 4101, Australia

2 Institute of Criminology, Griffith University, Mount Gravatt, QLD 4122, Australia

3 Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia

4 The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4067, Australia

Children’s Health Queensland Hospital and Health Service (CHQ) is a specialist state-wide health service provider, delivering an integrated network of

services through the Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital, Community, Mental Health and Statewide Services/Programs (including outreach and telehealth), and collaborative partnerships with other organisations to improve health outcomes for children and young people across Queensland and Northern New South Wales.

By harnessing international best practice in Collective Impact and Integrated Care theory, CHQ is transforming the way the organisation interfaces across a geographic and culturally-diverse state with partners in health, education, disability and child safety sectors.

CHQ leverages the AEDC and other data as a universal narrative to inform decision-making, investment and the initiation of partnerships with collaborators (including consumers, families, communities, service providers and academics). CHQ has a successful track record fostering co-design, delivery and evaluation of place-based, state-wide, virtual, and other integrated approaches to service provision that target the evolving needs of children and young people. For example, CHQ has been working with over ten vulnerable communities across metropolitan, regional and remote areas concurrently since 2015 in community capacity building programs. Through CHQ’s leadership approach, capacity building has empowered partners to innovate and sustain services despite evolving environments.

Showcasing critical success factors and lessons learnt through a facilitated panel discussion will provide conference attendees with a targeted snapshot of the Queensland experience, and what future opportunities exist. These and other key examples will be directly translatable into other jurisdictions.

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Revitalising Child Development Outreach Services for Children in Rural North Queensland

Walls, K.1, Smith, M.1 and Hislop, C.1

1 Child Development Service, Townsville Hospital and Health Service, QLD, Australia










Child Development Service (CDS) Townsville has long provided developmental services to children and families in Townsville and across the Hospital and Health Service (HHS). While the CDS model of care delivered to children and families in Townsville is contemporary and aligns with evidence informed best practice, the outreach model of care was inefficient, ineffective and dislocated from local services. The Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) indicates that geographic isolation and socio-economic disadvantage are associated with higher rates of developmental vulnerability. CDS Townsville outreach sites demonstrate levels of developmental vulnerability significantly higher than state and national averages on the AEDC, yet, historically, referral numbers from these communities were very low. CDS Townsville developed a new, evidence based model of care to improve HHS-wide access to high quality, integrated, and contemporary specialist child development services, and to improve outcomes for children and families living in outer regional, rural and remote North Queensland. The model is transdisciplinary in nature, family-centred, partners with local community service providers and paediatric medical services, and utilises telehealth to support care provision. The new model of care was implemented from July 2016. Service evaluations were conducted in January 2017 and July 2017. Results demonstrated that the model increased family and community engagement and lead to earlier identification of children with development delay.

Consumers and communities demonstrated higher levels of satisfaction with the service and community partnerships were strengthened between Health and other agencies. Henceforth, strategies to ensure the sustainability of the service will be implemented and evaluated.

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“Alone: great, together: exceptional”: Education and Nutrition inter-professional collaboration for better childhoods

Alison Evans1, Megan Gibson2, Lyn Zollo2, Julie Davis2, Maria Viviani2, Danielle Gallegos3 and Carolyn Keogh3

1 Creche & Kindergarten Association, Limited. (C&K). Queensland

2 Faculty of Education, QUT

3 Faculty health, QUT

This presentation reports on a Pilot study, conceptualised as an inquiry into a transdisciplinary collaboration across two University Faculties – Education and Health. Participants included preservice early childhood education students who completed their Work Integrated Learning field experience placements alongside nutrition students, who were simultaneously completing their professional experience placements. Academics from Education and Health disciplines, Creche & Kindergarten educators and leadership personnel, and colleagues from Qld Health worked together to produce an appropriate focus that would work as a ‘vehicle’ for collaboration – this shared project was “Social mealtimes”. Sites were chosen by referring to AEDC data, identifying locations where health and nutrition indexes indicated concerns. With the increasing negative impacts of poor diet, inadequate exercise and high levels of screen time experienced by children, families and communities around Australia, early childhood settings have become crucial places to provide support for children’s health and wellbeing. They offer a unique opportunity to create healthier and happier communities. For provision of holistic care that integrates pedagogy with everyday decisions about eating and physical activity it is essential to integrate cross-discipline perspectives.

Findings highlighted the differences and similarities in practice models, frameworks, language and terminology across disciplines, and the importance of strategies and time spent in building shared understandings. This research is particularly timely, given the current work with NDIS implementation and the need for improving ways of working in services with different disciplines, not only Health (e.g. Speech and OT), but also other professionals and support personnel (artists, music specialists, community support workers).

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Physical health and wellbeing: innovative approaches in an inner-city community

Gibson, M.1, Hills, A. P.2 and Brown, T.3

1 Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia

2 University of Tasmania, Launceston, Australia

3 Lady Gowrie Tasmania, Hobart, Australia

This collaborative action research project, led by Dr Megan Gibson from the Faculty of Education, QUT, together with critical friend, Professor Andrew Hills from the University of Tasmania, in partnership with Gowrie Training & Consultancy, focuses on enhancing children’s physical health and wellbeing through attention to:

• building educator capability in relation to using AEDC data sets to inform professional decisions

• enacting pedagogical practices that afford children opportunities to engage in challenging physical play, and

• measuring and communicating about the effects of intentional, sustained and contextual practices to parents and families, the local community and other early years services.

Undertaken at a long day care service located in an inner-city suburb of Hobart, the project has seen educators apply key elements of action research to explore possibilities for children to flourish physically. Pedagogical documentation has been key to the project as a tool for reflective practice that enables different ways of thinking about physical development.

Key project milestones and activities to date include:

• building knowledge about physical literacy and locomotor skills

• re-considering risk

• using the outdoor environment and equipment in new and innovative ways

• developing pedagogical documentation to make thinking and learning visible

• celebrating educators’ immense skills with movement, music and singing.

The presentation will demonstrate how engaging with AEDC data has changed pedagogy and practices within an early childhood centre, and in doing so, created the conditions for young children to flourish in the domain of physical health and wellbeing.

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Nature Play- The Developing Brains Superfood

Hyahno Moser1

1Program Manager for Nature Play QLD

We are in the middle of one of the single greatest shifts to childhood in human history. Childhood has gone from largely outdoors, explorative, independent, tactile, highly social, highly active and all sense engaged. To now largely indoors, sedentary, isolated, risk averse and fearful. This is having an enormous impact on our children healthy development and overall wellbeing as well as setting them up for many health challenges in later life.

Nature play or outdoor free play has long been a staple for healthy wholistic development of children and play is well recognized as the work of childhood. Recent neurological advancements have further uncovered why outdoor play is so important for the developing brain.

This discussion will:

Explore the latest research on outdoor free play and healthy brain development

Reminding us why outdoor free play is just as important as adequate nutrition for our children’s overall healthy development

Introduce the not for profit Nature Play community service championing for outdoor free play in Queensland






Explore a wealth of provides many free resources and ideas to revitalize outdoor free play as a normal part of childhood again

Participants will walk away from this talk reconnected to their childhood, inspired to make a difference and armed with a wealth of free tools to make a difference their communities.

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The academic outcomes of children with additional health and developmental needs

O’Connor, M.1,2,3, Chong, S.1, Quach, J.1,2, O’Connor, E.1 and Goldfeld, S.1,2,3

1 Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia

2 University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

3 Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, Australia

Many children have additional health and developmental needs that are milder or not yet formally diagnosed as they start school (known as emerging needs). These children sit at the intersection of the health and education systems. The AEDC is an important source of information about these children, who are not designated as having additional needs but are identified by their teacher as requiring extra support at school. Data from the AEDC shows that the proportion of children with emerging additional needs has remained consistently high from 2009 to 2015 (17-19%). For 42,619 children in Victoria, data from the AEDC was linked to the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN), a direct assessment of reading and numeracy skills at Grade 3. Children with emerging needs had reading and numeracy scores that were 0.30 of a standard deviation lower than the standard population. The combination of emerging needs and low maternal education was more detrimental than just the sum of their individual effects (relative excess risk due to interaction (RERI)=0.38 (95% CI 0.22, 0.55) for reading and 0.27 (95% CI 0.10, 0.43) for numeracy). The large numbers of children starting

school each year with emerging needs are at increased risk for poor academic outcomes, particularly when this co-occurs with socioeconomic disadvantage. Coordinated supports across the health and education systems are needed. These supports should be proportionate to the child’s level of disadvantage.

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New skills and understandings for implementing NDIS within early years services

Diana Homer 1 and Alison Evans 1

1 Creche & Kindergarten Association, Limited, Queensland (C&K)

This presentation draws on data from a number of preliminary and pilot studies, each designed to trial and inquire into contemporary ways of working in early childhood education and care settings, to increase the chances for success for all children. The new government reform, National Disability Insurance Scheme, (NDIS) is being implemented across Australia. It is essential to the success of the NDIS that new models and frameworks are developed for supporting the needs of young children and their families. The NDIS model of bringing allied health and education together in one setting potentially provides opportunities for shared learnings across disciplines, with reciprocal skill sets being shared in practice. Innovative practices will develop within frameworks for family-centred support models, when programs for young children are designed as inclusive and responsive, increasing the chances for success for all children. A number of pilot studies are described in this presentation. The sites were selected using AEDC data, where indicators highlighted vulnerability across domains. Findings across pilot studies draw from ongoing evaluation, analysis of strengths and barriers, and the development of reflective practice components. Different practice models are enabling the development of evidence-based practices, informed by lessons learned from international successes and ultimately, testing how collaborative approaches will benefit children and their families.

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Rumble’s Quest: An innovative interactive system for measuring and supporting the wellbeing of children aged 5-12 years

Kate Freiberg1, Ross Homel1, Sara Branch1, Greer Johnson2 and Brian Bumbarger1

1 Griffith Criminology Institute

2 Griffith Institute for Educational Research

Rumble’s Quest is an interactive game for tablets and computers that gives children an opportunity to report for themselves about their feelings and lives as they progress through primary school. It provides a range of reliable data at the individual, school, agency, or community level that complements and builds on AEDC profiles. It has been developed as a key component of a Prevention Translation and Support System (PTSS) that is being built and field-tested in nine Communities for Children communities in New South Wales and Queensland, as part of the CREATE-ing Pathways to Child Wellbeing Project, a national program of preventive research with 15 partner organisations, including the Department of Social Services. The aim of the CREATE Project is to evaluate the impact of the PTSS on measures of child wellbeing, educational performance, and behaviour, as well as on family-school engagement and the quality of functioning of local partnerships involving schools and community agencies. As well as electronic tools and resources, the PTSS incorporates the services of a new profession in each community, Collective Impact Facilitators (CIFs).

Rumble’s Quest provides a robust and reliable measure of child social-emotional wellbeing. It is suitable for use in non-clinical settings with large numbers of children aged 5-12 years, has been tested for psychometric quality (validity and reliability) with 8,000 Queensland children, and is being progressively implemented in NSW and Queensland primary schools. The tool

measures factors strongly related to educational success and positive youth development: attachment to school; supportive home-family relationships; social and emotional confidence; self-regulation and prosocial behaviour; impulse control; focused attention; and working memory. The PTSS includes a range of additional tools and resources that allow Rumble’s Quest users (schools or community agencies) to view and interrogate their organisation’s wellbeing data as soon as testing is completed, and to explore evidence-based programs and initiatives that match their profile in their Rumble’s Quest report.

Rumble’s Quest data can be used for a range of purposes, including:

1. Identification of priority child needs at the community level by aggregating Rumble’s Quest reports from local schools (ideally alongside AEDC and other community data);

2. Selection of evidence-based strategies to guide schools or agencies in suitable responses to their data profile;

3. As a social indicator of trends in child wellbeing at a local, state or national level;

4. Evaluation of preventive or remedial interventions;

5. As a screening tool to identify children who may benefit from specialized assessment and support (most children report high levels of wellbeing, but a small minority evince very low scores that necessitate supportive system responses).

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Wellbeing and engagement collection, South Australia

Sam Luddy1

1 Department for Education and Child Development, Adelaide, Australia

The words wellbeing, engagement, character strengths, resilience, positive education, the General Capabilities, social and emotional skills are often used interchangeably. These terms each refer to a broad set of skills that help people succeed at school and later in adulthood. In the past, education systems lacked system-wide measures of these concepts. But since 2013, South Australian young people have participated in a survey known as the Wellbeing and Engagement Collection. The number of schools participating in the collection of this data has steadily grown and in 2017, 96% of public schools participated. This now means that every middle years student has the opportunity to put forward their views about themselves, their school and what they do out of school. And it means that every school has a detailed profile of their students and how they compare to those across the State. This presentation will address the questions:

1. How is this information used by the education system…and how could it be used better?

2. How does wellbeing and engagement information help children have a great start, high achievement and prepare for work and life after school?

3. What has underpinned the strong participation from young people and schools in collecting this data? And, can it last – what are the challenges for the future?

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NOTES

Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre 14 - 16 March 2018

Learning from the Australian storyWhat we know works to improve outcomes for children

AEDC NATIONAL

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Transcript of AEDC NATIONAL