That was the starting point I brought to a discussion about Thriving Kids at the DSC Annual NDIS Conference 2026.
I spoke from three perspectives: as a community-based early childhood intervention provider, as a parent of an adult son with disability, and as someone whose research has focused on how systems shape the choices families make.
For me, the starting point is simple: families love their children and want them to have a good life. They want their child to grow into a life of acceptance, belonging, citizenship, purpose, relationships and opportunities to contribute.
The role of systems is to help families see the pathways, build confidence and capability, and move towards that vision without having to work it all out on their own.
That is why I often use a bridge model to explain this to families of children from birth to eight years.
The early years are when we help families get onto that bridge. The destination is a good life for the child and family.
Families travel across that bridge through childhood towards adulthood, with three key lanes:
- Community inclusion
- Peer-led organisations, parent-peer workers and parent-to-parent support
- Specialist supports, if and when needed
Families should be able to move between those lanes easily over time. Some families will move quickly. Some will take longer. At different times, a family may need more specialist support. At other times, peer connection, inclusion or support in everyday settings may make the biggest difference.
Thriving Kids is about strengthening the support ecosystem around children and families, so all three lanes are visible, credible and easier to travel.
Under the NDIS, specialist services have been the easiest lane for many families to find and use, because that is where the funding has been. The inclusion and peer support lanes are there too, but they can feel bumpy and dusty — less visible, less resourced and harder to travel.
The opportunity for Thriving Kids is to build all three lanes, so families can access the right mix of support at the right time, build confidence and capability, and keep moving towards the vision they have for their child as an adult.
Specialist support remains important. The question is how it is provided. It needs to be delivered in ways that are consistent with the National Best Practice Framework for Early Childhood Intervention: family-centred, participation-focused, relationship-based, culturally responsive and connected to everyday life.
So for me, Thriving Kids is not just about a new program pathway. It is about building a better early childhood support ecosystem around families, so they are supported to help their children, and their whole family, move towards a good life.
Thank you to Team DSC and Roland Naufal for creating the space for this important conversation, and to my fellow panellists Professor Frank Oberklaid and Jill Hellemans.
There is a lot still to work through as Thriving Kids takes shape, but I think we have a real opportunity to build a better support ecosystem around children and families, one that helps families see and travel all the pathways towards a good life.
DSC conference August 14th 2026
Sylvana, Plumtree CEO
Explore the ideas in practice
Interested in how these ideas connect with Plumtree’s work? Explore:
- Thriving Kids: supporting children to grow and thrive – information and updates as Thriving Kids develops.
- Now & Next research – research into family capacity building, peer support and family-professional partnerships.
- Parent peer work at Plumtree – how lived experience and professional expertise can work alongside each other in early childhood intervention.
- Creating Ready Spaces Together – practical partnerships with early learning teams to strengthen inclusion by adapting environments and practice.
- Pictability Facilitator Training – professional learning that supports families to develop a vision and set goals around what matters to them.