Early Childhood Development: Our Position

Why is early childhood so important?

Learning during the critical stages from birth to five years of age has a lasting impact on children’s health, future learning and life success. In this period, children’s bodies and brains grow rapidly, language skills develop, the seeds are planted for future health, and lifelong learning and social skills are shaped. Eighty-five per cent of their brain’s core is formed by the age of three.

To reach their full potential, children need parents who can nourish their inquisitive minds, a secure home environment, good quality health care and importantly, stimulating early learning programs. The amount and quality of early language activities that children are exposed to is a key factor in early literacy success. Strong language skills allow children to observe the world, learn its rules and control their own behaviour.

It is widely agreed that good quality early childhood learning and care leads to better social, emotional, and educational outcomes for children, particularly for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Prevention and early intervention programs are most effective during childhood and they are one of the most effective ways to improve a child’s success at school and in adulthood. Preschool education promotes better intellectual development, independence, improved concentration, creativity and resilience.

A strong investment in children’s development in the earliest stages is estimated to result in 17% improvement per year in classroom performance at school, fewer health care costs, higher workforce productivity, lower welfare costs and less crime.

However, poverty, unemployment and homelessness compromise the health and wellbeing of approximately one in 10 Australian children, particularly those living in remote regions. The most vulnerable are: Indigenous, refugee, asylum-seeker and migrant children, children with disability, children in institutional care, homeless children, those in the juvenile justice system and those with teenage mothers. Their wellbeing is strongly influenced by breastfeeding rates, childhood immunisation and access to early childhood education from birth to four years.

Investing in quality preschool programs narrows gaps in academic achievement for disadvantaged children. It improves their school readiness and makes the transition to school smoother.

Early childhood development in Australia

There are an estimated 1.4 million children aged under five in Australia. While most children live with both parents all the time, increasing numbers live in single-parent households. About 68,000 young children are Indigenous and many others come from diverse cultural backgrounds. Others have particular needs – around 165,000 children aged under 15 have a severe disability.

An estimated 830,000 children use Australian Government-approved child care services and 570,000 of these children are aged five and under. The average time children spend in child care is between 20 to 26 hours a week.

The first-ever census of the nation's five-year-olds, released in December 2009, showed nearly one in four Australian children were considered developmentally vulnerable. The Early Development Index measured school readiness among 98% of the country's five-year-olds – equating to 261,000 children.

Location had the biggest impact on children’s developmental readiness and revealed a stark difference between rich and poor areas. About 47% of Indigenous children were developmentally vulnerable by the

time they are at age five compared to 22% of non-Indigenous children. 'Developmentally vulnerable' means a child is in the lowest 10% in at least one of five categories, including physical health, behaviour, emotions, language and communication. One-third of children living in Australia's poorer suburbs fell into the lowest grouping at some point, compared to 6% of those in wealthier suburbs.

Save the Children’s State of the World’s Mothers Report in 2009 revealed that paid parental leave is one of the most significant ways to support optimum child development in their early years because it gives mothers the opportunity to bond with their children.

The Australian Government will introduce paid parental leave in 2011. The 18-week scheme for people who earn less than $150,000, which can be shared between a mother and father, gives parents the time, flexibility and financial support to focus on their babies. This is expected to improve the wellbeing of children in Australia, which is ranked 27 out 43 developing countries in terms of children’s health and wellbeing. The State of the World’s Mothers Report in 2009 concluded that a lack of qualified carers and quality pre-school education programs compromised the ability of children reaching their full potential.

A 2006 OECD report found Australia has among the lowest-paid child care staff, and that less than two-thirds of four-year-olds are enrolled in pre-school and that Australia spends 0.4% of GDP on early childhood services, less than half the amount spent in other countries such as Sweden. Additionally, 42% of Indigenous children did not attend preschool programs in the year before school.

A lack of available places prevents nearly 109,000 children aged up to four from attending formal child care while the prohibitive cost of care affects a further 15% of children. Availability is the biggest barrier in major cities but cost of services is a significant issue in regional areas.

On 2 July 2009, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) endorsed the National Early Childhood Development Strategy, Investing in the Early Years. The strategy provides a national framework to guide action by all governments to improve outcomes for children and their families. The strategy will lead to better engagement across and between governments, with the non-government sector and with families.

Early childhood development globally

More than 30 governments across the globe have national policies for early childhood development and many more are being developed. More than 70 countries have developed national committees or task forces for early childhood development to co-ordinate the work of ministries and organisations that work with young children.

However, nearly 10 million children die before their fifth birthday each year and more than 200 million children do not reach their full potential because their care-givers lack the basic skills and conditions needed for young children to survive and thrive. Parents worldwide face tremendous obstacles including the effects of HIV/AIDS, drug use, increased poverty, working far from home, and the impact of armed conflict. When parents have access to the necessary skills and information, children grow to their full potential, emotionally, socially, physically and mentally.

Early childhood development in emergencies

Young children are particularly vulnerable in situations of crisis, instability and violence. The greatest risk for young children is any formative environment that blocks creativity and lacks conditions for healthy physical and mental development.

In the immediate aftermath of an emergency, restoring primary health care, maternal child health care and food supply, access to clean water and a hygienic environment are critical elements of an effective early childhood development response. Child-friendly spaces are important post-emergency interventions because they provide children with essential health services, allow children to continue schooling, play with other children and receive psychological support.

Save the Children’s position and recommendations

Good quality early childhood development programs give children the best start to life and profoundly impact their health and wellbeing throughout their lifetime.

Save the Children supports investment in the improvement of children’s health and wellbeing in their early years. This includes promoting early stimulation, good nutrition and greater support for parents and care-givers. Save the Children makes the following recommendations:

In Australia:

The Federal Government should increase its investment in early childhood development from 0.4% of gross domestic product to more than 1% of GDP.
Paid parental leave, due to come into effect in Australia in 2011, should be extended from 18 weeks to a minimum of 26 weeks to give mothers the opportunity to breastfeed exclusively for six months. Working mothers need support, including legislative measures, to enable them to continue breastfeeding. Mothers should be encouraged to breastfeed for the first six months of their child’s life, in line with the World Health Organization recommendation for healthy, optimum infant development and bonding.
We encourage employers who currently offer parental leave to remain committed to providing employees with this entitlement.
Subsidised parenting programs should be made available for families to give parents skills and knowledge about children’s development stages; providing adequate care, nutrition, play and protection for their children; and an understanding of the importance of positive discipline (rather than physical punishment).
Staff-to-child ratios are at the core of the ability to provide quality child care. The current legal minimum staff-to-child ratios are too low. There should be fewer children under the care of each staff member in all age categories. The current legal minimum child-care ratio for babies aged up to two years is 1:5 throughout Australia, except in Queensland and Western Australia where it is 1:4. The other States and the Territories should at least match the Queensland and Western Australia standard.
Qualified child care employees deserve a substantial increase in wages and benefits to improve retention rates. Consistency of care and forming attachments with children benefits the children, their families and child care staff.

Globally:

All countries should make early childhood learning and development a priority and a central part of their education policies.
In 2015, as many as 70 countries are expected to fall short of providing a basic education to each of their young people, so failing to meet Millennium Development Goal 2 – achieving universal primary education. Investing in early childhood is critical to school readiness. Such investment gives children the language and social skills needed for a school environment.

What is Save the Children doing in Australia?

The Mobile Playbus Program offers isolated and economically disadvantaged families access to playgroups, games and toy libraries. It also provides informal links to local services. The program operates in Victoria, South Australia, New South Wales, Queensland and the Northern Territory.
Save the Children’s Early Learning Centres operate in Nowa Nowa and Mooroopna in Victoria. The centres were established more than 40 years ago and provide accessible preschool education for local children who would otherwise miss out.
‘It Takes a Village…’ Multicultural Early Learning Program provides early childhood development activities and support to newly-arrived refugee families and children in Perth.
‘Mums and Bubs’ Playgroups in the East Kimberley, Western Australia, are for pre-natal and post-natal mothers. The playgroups focus on healthy pregnancies, nutrition and healthy lifestyles.
Early learning centres in Warmun and Wyndham provide early learning activities for young Indigenous children aged 0 - 5, also in the East Kimberley region of Western Australia.
The play scheme program in Queensland and South Australia is a mobile playgroup that helps marginalised families by providing intensive support. Playgroups provide safe and supportive environments for children and their parents or carers, who can develop their skills and understanding of the importance of early childhood development.
The Bourke early-intervention program in New South Wales is a partnership between Save the Children and Eternity Aid to address development delays among Indigenous children through training and support for pre-school and primary school teachers and health care workers.

What is Save the Children doing overseas?

In Bangladesh, children of sex workers attend nine early childhood development centres at the Daulatdia brothel at Goalundo.
In Laos, a new education program in Sayaboury Province aims to help more than 100,000 children access quality preschool and primary school education.

References and Further Reading:

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), A Picture of Australia’s Children 2009, AIHW, Canberra, 2009, viewed 23 April 2010.

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), The Health and Welfare of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, AIHW, Canberra, 2008, viewed 23 April 2010, viewed 23 April 2010.

Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth (ARACY), ARACY Report Card: The Wellbeing of Young Australians, ARACY, Canberra, 2008, viewed 23 April 2010.

Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, Policy Agenda, Canberra, 2010, viewed 23 April 2010.

Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, Investing in Early Years – A National Early Childhood Development Strategy: An initiative of the Council of Australian Governments, COAG, Canberra, 2009, viewed 23 April 2010, <>.

Save the Children, State of the World’s Mothers 2009, viewed 23 April 2010.