What happens after early connections?

Your journey through early connections may be very short or could be up to several months. Early connections will give you more capacity and confidence to support your child’s needs. After you move on from early connections, you can reconnect with an early childhood partner at any time in the future if your child is younger than 9.

If you are likely to need continued support after your child turns 9, you can contact us , or your early childhood partner can give you information about your local area coordinator. Your local area coordinator will become your new partner in the community. Local area coordinators can help you learn about, and connect with, services and activities available in your community. They can also help you to understand the NDIS, and if your child is, or becomes, a participant they may help to develop the plan. To learn more go to Our Guidelines – Community Connections.

Example

Khalid is 3 years old and has a small vocabulary. He recently started to combine words into short sentences. Fatima, Khalid’s mother, is concerned about his speech and social skills. She also finds it difficult to manage his behaviour at home. Khalid goes to his local preschool, where he enjoys playing outside, especially in the sandpit. His preschool teachers say that sometimes Khalid has trouble understanding what they are asking him to do. They also report that he finds it hard to share toys with other children or to transition to new activities.

Fatima seeks advice from her GP who refers her to an early childhood partner. The early childhood partner meets with Fatima and Khalid at their home. The early childhood partner discusses Fatima’s concerns and observes and assesses Khalid playing. They also work with Khalid at preschool and observe that his behaviour stems from frustration and not knowing what is expected of him or what is coming next.

Based on observations and assessments, the early childhood partner recommends Khalid receives early supports to address the developmental concerns. The early childhood partner works together with Khalid’s family to record their goals, likely support needs, strategies, and next steps. Next steps include:

  • The delivery of early supports at Khalid’s home and his preschool.
  • Giving his family and teachers strategies and resources to support his speech and language development and manage his behaviour.
  • Recommending that Fatima and Khalid attend an 8 week social skills group run by their early childhood partner. As part of this group, they can connect with other families and children in a supportive setting.

After a couple of months, Khalid’s speech and understanding of instructions continue to improve. Khalid’s preschool teachers report that his behaviour is improving. Khalid and Fatima no longer require early supports, however Fatima knows she can connect back with the early childhood partner if she needs to.

This page current as of
8 January 2024
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