BUSHkids Annual Report 21 | 22

Early Childhood Approach (ECA) BUSHkids delivers the Early Childhood Approach (ECA) on behalf of the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA). In line with the NDIA’s Early Childhood Early Intervention (ECEI) reset, there has been a shift this year in renaming this program as ECA. This change was recommended as part of public consultation to better match the work that the NDIS Early Childhood Approach (ECA) teams do. Our ECA teams are based in Rockhampton, Emerald, Gladstone, Bundaberg, Hervey Bay, Kingaroy, Cherbourg, Gympie, Maroochydore, andCaloundra. Our current funding contracts havebeen extended by a further two years as the federal government reviews implementation of the Scheme. Over the next two years, BUSHkids will be working with the Agency to evolve our services in alignment with the reset. Thiswill meanworkingwith children up to eight (previously six) years of age, providing more community capacity building and therapy supports. NDIS Early Childhood Practice Forum BUSHkids attended this event and our

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NDIA National Partner Forum The NDIA hosted this event in Geelong in June, an opportunity for organisations to come together and hear from various branches within the Agency on upcoming changes, from participants about their own experiences, and to workshop and discuss with the Agency upcoming changes and how initiatives such as the Early Childhood reset have progressed. Over the two days there was a real sense of NDIA and Partners all working towards making the Scheme’s systems and processes better – it is a constantly-evolving space, but all have the ultimate aim of facilitating great outcomes for all participants and their families and carers. Gladstone’s Ministerial visit We were delighted to welcome the Hon. Bill Shorten MP, Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, to our Gladstone Centre. Minister Shorten and other members of the new Federal Government were in Gladstone for the first of a series of regional cabinet meetings. The Minister toured our Centre, chatted to staff about how they found working with the NDIS and spoke with one of the families with whomwe are working about their experience under the Scheme. Gladstone is one of our nine NDIS ECA Centres and Minister Shorten was particularly interested in the ECA support we provide to children with disabilities in the Gladstone area, reiterating the new government’s desire to make the NDIS better meet the needs of people with a disability.

team presented on BUSHkids’ journey with telepractice, its benefits and barriers, and a demonstration of how effective and engaging telepractice can be.

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