Early childhood approach
Early childhood intervention is about giving your child the best possible start in life. If your child is younger than 7 you may be able to access our early childhood approach.
Our nationally consistent early childhood approach is for children with developmental delay or disability.
Children who do not fully meet the definition of developmental delay and have developmental concerns will also be supported through the early childhood approach.
If you have concerns about your child’s development your first point of contact will usually be your doctor, child health nurse, or other health professional.
They will help you work out what supports you and your child might need and they may connect you with our early childhood partners. Our early childhood approach is about helping you support your child to learn new skills.
It will also help your child to develop and take part at home and in the community. Your child doesn’t need a diagnosis to get support.
This guideline explains our current early childhood approach and will be updated as we implement recommendations from our early childhood early intervention review.
When we say ’you’, we mean anyone responsible for the care of a child. You may be a parent, carer or legal representative.
When we say ‘child’, we mean children younger than 7.
When we say ‘we’, we mean the NDIA.
Browse the guideline using the links or download a copy: