Tapping into early child intervention

This is the message from Chloe Chui, a Sutherland Shire early intervention expert who has launched a new business that supports children in the shire and St George.

Mrs Chui operates Little Blossoms Therapy Services, which helps families address concerns about their child's development and behaviour. The founder and director of the service, who has worked with children for more than nine years, says demand for this type of support, has increased.

"A lot of families are struggling and don't know where to seek support in the community," Mrs Chui said.

Whether it's in-home support or in preschool sessions where she trains educators, Mrs Chui says early intervention not only enhances the child's developmental trajectory but also reduces the need for more intensive interventions later in life, making it a cost-effective strategy for families and healthcare systems.

It's a timely apparent trend, as NDIS reforms, aimed at reining in the scheme's costs, hopes to reduce the number of eligible new participants, and change the criteria for funding. Mrs Chui also helps families with advice about the NDIS scheme.

After she graduated from the UNSW with a Bachelor in Psychological Science, Mrs Chui, 28, worked in private clinics, with disability support organisations, in hospitals and community settings. She is a certified Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) therapist, NDIS registered Behaviour Support Practitioner and Early Intervention Consultant. By offering evidence-based intervention, she works with children who have developmental delays, autism, global development delay, ADHD and social-communication difficulties.

Giving children the best start in life, she said, started early. "Early intervention addresses developmental delays or disabilities during infancy and early childhood when the brain is most receptive to growth," Mrs Chui said. "Research shows that the second year of life is a particularly critical developmental period for children. The second year is a dynamic period of brain growth, during which increases in brain volume and substantial neural plasticity providing greater potential to increase the developmental course."

The aim of early intervention is to enable children to increase their ability to learn new skills in school, at home, and in social environments by incorporating more learning opportunities into everyday activities, she said.

By using ESDM, a naturalistic early intervention that focuses on building play skills, co-regulation, and targeting all developmental domains through individualised teaching goals, children can learn shared engagement and communication through the simple acts of play.

Mrs Chui said by engaging children in interactive and reciprocal exchanges with their caregivers and peers, ESDM enhances developmental progress and fosters strong, supportive relationships that are crucial for the child's overall growth and well-being.

In May this year, the Australian Government launched its Early Years Strategy 2024-2034, which outlines a 10-year framework to shape how the government prioritises young children's well-being, and signposts areas for future government action. It focuses on four priority areas: value the early years, empower parents, caregivers and families, support and work with communities and strengthen accountability and coordination.

The government consulted widely to develop the strategy, including consultations with children aged 3 to 5 years old, and with parents, carers and families.

The strategy will be implemented through three action plans over 10 years, with the first action plan to be finalised later this year. The first action plan will be informed by the consultations undertaken to develop the strategy. The action plans will provide practical steps developed in the context of the vision and priorities and with an eye to what needs to be achieved to deliver good outcomes for children in Australia.