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While many stakeholders are ‘cautiously optimistic’ that the Thriving Kids program will support kids with developmental delays and autism, some are concerned the program hasn’t had enough time in planning. InSight+ spoke with Autism Awareness Australia (AAA) CEO Nicole Rogerson after her recent conversation with NDIS Senator Jenny McKallister.
In recent weeks Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has flagged his commitment to reducing NDIS ‘blowout,’ telling The Age newspaper last week that the program is there to assist people who have a permanent incapacity, and that “it’s undermined if four out of 10 kids in a class are on the NDIS.”
The Thriving Kids program is aimed at providing children under 8 years of age who have developmental delays or autism access to ‘foundational supports,’ without an individual NDIS plan.
Nicole Rogerson is CEO of Autism Awareness Australia. She published an interview last month with NDIS Minister Jenny McKallister in which they discuss the government’s plans for Thriving Kids.
Ms Rogerson said that while she didn’t necessarily find out anything new in speaking with Senator McKallister, she had a better understanding of the government’s intentions for early intervention.
“We didn’t get anything concrete, but the idea of simplifying the process is that we don’t require a child to see a paediatrician and have a formal diagnosis in order for some of those supports to begin.”
“I think it’s important to say that we don’t yet 100% know what Thriving Kids is going to be,” said McKallister.
“The government announced this change mid last year, and it is trying to rethink how we manage children 0-9 who are displaying some kind of developmental delay or autism.”
“It is trying to put a system in place that supports those children at scale, rather than hurrying them into the NDIS and getting an individual package,” she said.
“That meant involving the states, and anybody who knows anything about politics knows that immediately makes it messy. It involves eight governments. So we don’t actually know what it is yet.”
“Whether the child is in daycare, or they’re with the parent, or in school, and they’re displaying certain developmental delays or issues, the idea is we don’t wait: we just get kids the support they need when they need it.”
“There’s murkiness about what that’s actually going to look like once it’s up and running, but certainly I felt the Minister was giving her commitment to the fact they’d like it to be easier.”
GPs and schools on the front lines
Ms Rogerson said that GPs will be on the front lines of the Thriving Kids program.
“Which is great too, because they don’t have to worry about the rules of the NDIS. They’re able to see a child who either they’re noticing isn’t developing, quote-unquote ‘normally,’ or the parents are concerned about how this child’s developing.”
“I think it’s really good that the GPs will have something really easy they can point to. Theoretically, Thriving Kids should be a low barrier to access those kinds of services.”
Ms Rogerson said that schools will need to be well-enough resourced, and is concerned about ‘postcode lottery.’
“Schools are already really behind the eight ball in how they’re managing students with autism.”
“There’s some exciting work being done in pockets around Australia, but it’s not going to happen tomorrow. And it’s certainly not going to be ready by the time Thriving Kids launches in October.”
“I jokingly said at the start, if we had had our choice, it would have been great to have three-to-five years to look at the evidence, to look at best practice around the world, and plan for a workforce.”
“Let’s make sure literally no child is left behind, as that’s the name of the report that Thriving Kids planning came out with.”
Expert groups still cautious
In November, The Royal Australian College of GPs (RACGP) welcomed the release of a proposed Thriving Kids model, and called for strong state and federal government investment in primary care.
“This is a welcome shift back to putting children and families at the heart of early support. But this system will only succeed if general practice is properly supported to play its central role in early identification and navigation,” said RACGP President Dr Michael Wright.
The RACGP said that an independent review of the NDIS highlighted major gaps in early childhood supports, finding that too many families were turning to the NDIS because appropriate services outside the scheme were limited or difficult to access.
The College particularly welcomed the proposed MBS-funded three-year-old health and development check, which would enable GPs, child and family health nurses, practice nurses, and Aboriginal Controlled Community Health Organisations to identify concerns earlier, provide advice, and connect families to the right supports before issues escalate.
National Voice for our Children (formerly Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care – SNAICC) chief executive Catherine Liddle said the reforms could deliver “generational change for our children,” but cautioned that “if we get it wrong, these incredible reforms that everyone has been working on may lay shattered in pieces”.
In February, the Disability Representative Organisations Program (DRO) said that the bigger issue is whether governments are prepared to deliver a functional, nationally consistent Foundational Supports system.
“The disability sector has consistently called for sufficient time to enable genuine co-design across all jurisdictions, development of strong safeguards, workforce planning, and appropriate piloting and testing prior to large-scale implementation,” wrote the DRO.
“Communities experiencing intersecting disadvantage [such as] language, cultural background, disability type, geographic location, or other intersecting factors will be most at risk when support boundaries shift.”
The federal government has announced that Thriving Kids will commence rollout of state services no later than 1 October 2026 and is expected to be at scale from 1 January 2028. Changes to NDIS access arrangements will begin from 1 January 2028.
Becca Whitehead is a freelance journalist and health writer. She lives in Naarm and is a regular contributor to the MJA’s InSight+.
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