Ready for school: helping our children to achieve developmental milestones
Mar 24, 2025
Ready for school: helping our children to achieve developmental milestones
Mar 24, 2025
Almost 70 per cent of children in the Moreton Bay region reside in low socio-economic households, over twice the rate of children in other communities across Queensland.
Combined with a 10 per cent decrease in children under five years of age achieving developmental milestones and less than 70 per cent of children achieving the national level of physical health and wellbeing indicators, there is a significant need for further action to target school readiness and developmental delay in the North Brisbane and Moreton Bay region.
In response, Brisbane North PHN has commissioned the Institute for Urban Indigenous Health (IUIH) and Youthrive Integrated Therapy Services to provide school readiness support across two early education centres in Caboolture and a playgroup in Redcliffe.
Our approach
Central to our school readiness approach is utilising Allied Health Professionals (AHPs), such as occupational therapists and speech pathologists, to assess children while onsite at these centres for developmental issues. Assessments target:
- speech and language development
- emotional regulation
- fine and gross motor skills
- social emotional skills
- phonological awareness and literacy
- activities of daily living.
If developmental delay is identified, the AHPs construct a support plan that keeps parents or caregivers informed about their child’s progress, facilitate linkages to local primary health services, while also collaborating with teachers and childcare educators to offer the necessary support.
Impact
A successful proof-of-concept of the Youthrive program has shown pleasing results, including children’s school readiness increasing by 70 per cent.
It also found children improved in one year their social skills by 21 per cent, gross motor skills by 50 per cent, and language skills by 25.5 per cent, all foundational development milestone needs for school.
The North Brisbane and Moreton Bay Joint Regional Needs Assessment 2025-27 key findings included a need for:
- services which provide assessment, management and support for developmental delay in children
- better assessment, therapies, and professionals for children with developmental delays and neurodiverse conditions including those linked to mental health
- identification and response to the pockets in North Brisbane and Moreton Bay where children are developmentally vulnerable.
Brisbane North PHN would welcome the opportunity to expand the School Readiness program to further support vulnerable children and families in our community.
Areas of identified need that would be supported with additional funding include Caboolture, Deception Bay, Redcliffe, Strathpine and suburbs in the North Brisbane region including Banyo, Bracken Ridge, Hendra, Nudgee and Zillmere.
