Consultation Paper – Towards the Development of a National Agenda for Early Childhood

Overview

SNAICC commends the Federal Government for taking the initiative to place the need for a more concerted and coordinated approach to supporting child development on the nation’s agenda. We are cognisant of the fact that securing cooperation and commitment across a range of Commonwealth agencies as well as across States, Territories and a diverse set of non-government bodies is a great challenge.

Securing such cooperation will be more likely if the Commonwealth makes a clear, substantial and long term funding commitment to improving support for children in their early years. As the draft consultation paper outlines nowhere is this more important than in respect of Indigenous children. SNAICC believes that for the Commonwealth’s commitment to a national agenda to be taken seriously and be responded to by States and Territories as such then the Commonwealth must commit new resources. The current socio-economic disadvantage which confronts Indigenous children, combined with the
age structure of the Indigenous population, makes the need for a very significant increased investment in Indigenous children’s development inescapable.

The Commonwealth must lead the way in this area by making additional investments in areas such child care, child nutrition and immunisation and child abuse prevention whilst securing additional State and Territory investment in areas such as early childhood education, child protection and child health.

The SNAICC national executive have endorsed the proposal for a National Agenda for Early Childhood. We are committed to pursuing the development and implementation of a national agenda which can bring about long term and sustainable improvements in the health and well being of Indigenous children. Central to this will be working to build pride amongst Indigenous children in their cultural identity. In our experience cultural pride and strong sense of self identity provide a platform upon which other forms of resiliency and strength, such as those outlined in Appendix B of the consultation paper, can be built.

Supporting Indigenous children to take pride in their culture and in themselves presents challenges not just for governments and services but equally for Indigenous parents, families and community leaders. One challenge which a National Agenda would face is providing the right forms of assistance and support to Indigenous families and communities such that they are better able to care for their children. Understanding that caring for children is a shared societal obligation should in our view underpin any proposed National Agenda for Early Childhood.

SNAICC looks forward to the next stage in the development of a National Agenda for Early Childhood. We will continue to contribute our ideas and energy and will take our own steps to encourage other stakeholders including other levels of government to support something which we consider long overdue.