WITH the Liberal National Party now sworn in as the new Queensland Government, the party policy on new health checks for younger ages is sure to please parents.
Every child attending an approved kindergarten program will have access to a free health and developmental check under a new $27.5 million Healthy Kindy Kids program.
The free health checks will assess vision, hearing, and speech in the year before starting prep on-site at Queensland kindergarten and childcare centres.
Identifying health or developmental concerns before children start prep and school allows children to receive the treatment before they fall behind in their formal education.
Early childhood educators are reporting undiagnosed health and development issues are causing children to fall behind in their early years of schooling, leading to long-term learning difficulties and disengagement from education.
New Premier David Crisafulli said early detection and intervention were critical to ensuring children don’t fall behind.
“The LNP’s Healthy Kindy Kids program will deliver hearing, vision and speech health checks, so kids are ready and raring for their first years of school,” Mr Crisafulli said.
“Healthy kids are healthy learners and this will give kids the best start to school possible.
“Kids shouldn’t be left behind before they even get to school, by identifying health issues early, we’re giving parents, teachers, and children the best tools to succeed.”
Under the policy, kindergarten providers will prepare a handover report for each child, giving schools critical insights into any health, developmental, or behavioural concerns before the start of the school year.
Children identified with health or developmental needs will also receive follow-up checks in Years 1, 3, and 5 to ensure they continue to receive the support they need.
“This plan ensures that no child slips through the cracks, and it helps teachers by reducing the guesswork and setting kids up for success from the start,” Crisafulli said.
