Thriving Kids support: your questions answered

Understanding the Thriving Kids program

What is Thriving Kids?

Thriving Kids is a new Australian Government initiative for children aged 8 years and under who have developmental delay or autism with low to moderate support needs.

Thriving Kids is designed to:

help families identify concerns early in their child’s development
connect families with supports to help their child’s development.

How is Thriving Kids different from the NDIS?

Thriving Kids is separate and different from the NDIS.

Thriving Kids is a new system of supports for children aged 8 years and under who have developmental delay or autism with low to moderate support needs.

The NDIS is Australia’s national scheme for funding reasonable and necessary supports for children and adults with permanent and significant disability that affects their ability to take part in everyday activities.

Why is Thriving Kids being introduced?

The Australian Government says that Thriving Kids is being introduced as part of a bigger plan to offer more support outside the NDIS.

Thriving Kids will help children get supports earlier and more easily – for example, without needing to get a diagnosis or apply to the NDIS.

When will Thriving Kids start?

The Australian Government says that Thriving Kids will be rolled out gradually. The first state-based services and supports will be available to families from 1 October 2026, with full rollout expected by 1 January 2028.

Thriving Kids is a new program, so some details are still being worked on. For more information, visit Australian Government, Department of Health, Disability and Ageing – Thriving Kids.

Thriving Kids supports

What supports can your child and family get through Thriving Kids?

The Australian Government says that Thriving Kids will offer a range of supports. These supports include:

information and activities to help communities, parents and families better understand developmental delays and differences
routine child development and health assessment checks to identify developmental delays or differences as early as possible
information and advice about child development and where to get help
parenting supports and programs to help parents build skills, foster relationships and get peer support – for example, online courses, short videos, peer support groups and supported playgroups
targeted supports to help children build everyday skills and independence – for example, speech therapy, occupational therapy and psychological therapy.

The supports that are right for your child and family will depend on your child’s needs and your family’s circumstances.

Why are the supports in Thriving Kids called foundational supports?

Foundational supports are supports that are designed to give children the best start in life by helping them and their families build skills and knowledge in the early years.

Thriving Kids is the first phase of the Foundational Supports initiative, which gives people access to supports outside the NDIS. Australian, state and territory governments are working together on Foundational Supports.

Who will pay for the supports in Thriving Kids?

The Australian Government says it will fund Thriving Kids together with state and territory governments. The governments are still working out the details of who will pay for various supports.

Eligibility for Thriving Kids vs eligibility for NDIS

Is your child eligible for Thriving Kids?

The Australian Government says that if your child is aged 8 years and under and has developmental delay or autism with low to moderate support needs, they are eligible for support from Thriving Kids from October 2026.

Is your child eligible for the NDIS?

The Australian Government says that children with significant and permanent disability, including those with developmental delay or autism with high support needs, will continue to be eligible for the NDIS, subject to the usual criteria.

Why is Thriving Kids appropriate for autistic children?

Thriving Kids is designed to support children based on their developmental needs. This includes autistic children.

Evidence shows that early, individualised support – like the support offered through Thriving Kids – can help autistic children and children with other developmental needs develop well. It can help these children reach their full potential in areas like communication, social skills, daily living, and mental health and wellbeing.

Until now, it has been challenging for many families to access this kind of early, individualised support. Thriving Kids aims to change that by making support available earlier and more easily.

Access to Thriving Kids

How can your child get access to Thriving Kids?

The Australian Government says that all children aged 8 years and under with developmental delay or autism with low to moderate support needs will be able to get support through Thriving Kids. Your child won’t need a diagnosis.

You’ll be able to access some Thriving Kids supports without needing to do anything special. These supports might include things like websites with information about early child development.

You might access other supports through community settings like GPs, early childhood services and schools.

The Australian, state and territory governments are still working out how families will get access to supports.

What if your child is moving from the NDIS to Thriving Kids?

If your child is aged 8 years and under, has developmental delay or autism with low to moderate support needs, and is in the NDIS, they’ll be assessed before 1 January 2028 and moved to Thriving Kids if appropriate.

The Australian Government says that it’s still working out how assessment and transition to Thriving Kids will happen.