Great Southern Children’s Services Plan CONFIDENTIAL DRAFT Disclaimer: The information and advice within this document is provided voluntarily by Department of Local Government and Communities as a public service. The information and advice is provided in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. No representation or warranty, express or implied, is made as to the accuracy, completeness or fitness for purpose of this document. The reader of this document should satisfy him or herself concerning its application to their situation. The State of Western Australia, the Department of Local Government and Communities and their officers expressly disclaim liability for any act or omission occurring in reliance on this document or for any consequences of such act or omission. Current as at July 2014. Executive Summary The Great Southern Children’s Service Plan is a component of the Regional Child Care Development Fund (RCCCDF). This project is managed by the Department for Local Government and Communities. The RCCCDF has been funded through Royalties for Regions in recognition of the challenges faced by community managed education and acre services operating in regional Western Australia. RDA Great Southern tendered for the contract to undertake the research and development of the Great Southern Children’s Services Plan as it aligned with our stated development priorities for the region and met with our goals and vision for the region. The Great Southern has 11 Local Government Areas (LGAs) and covers 39,007km2 of diverse landscape with magnificent scenery and represents almost 2% of Western Australia’s total land mass. The region’s main economic product is agriculture, and viticulture and tourism ventures are expanding. As the State's oldest European settlement the port City of Albany is the region's administrative, business and financial hub. Shires in the Great Southern region with populations of around 5,000 include the towns of Denmark, Katanning and Platagenet. Towns with less than 5,000 include Mt Barker, Kojonup, Gnowangerup, Broomehill, Tambellup, Cranbrook, Jerramungup, Woodanilling and Kent. This Plan has been developed through a range of field and desk top studies and broad consultation throughout the region; local geographies, statistical and population trends, and key stakeholders and providers were identified. Following this, overall services coverage was rated, and information gathered to summarise demand and supply trends across the region. These studies were utilised in conjunction with interviews with key regional stakeholders, including Local Government, parent and activity groups and Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) service providers. The planning process also considered leading research into Early Childhood development and learning. Through this planning process RDA Great Southern has received positive feedback from research participants and stakeholders and is recognised as an impartial regional development organisation. This project involved working with stakeholders to develop a vision for early childhood and family support services, identifying regional trends and issues and charting a course for implementation of recommendations. The Vision for Services in the Great Southern The Great Southern aspires to Early Childhood Education and Care and Family Support Services that are sustainably managed and place based, and which meet the differing needs of our region’s families and communities Regional Trends and Issues Identified Some of the challenges faced by families, communities and service providers in the Great Southern are: Limited funding and consequent competitive behaviours between providers funded for ‘out-reach’ services in our more isolated communities; Limiting and unsustainable reliance upon volunteer and community good-will and fundraising to support services that provide local community needs locally Low levels of collaboration and consultation between service providers and Local Governments and communities regarding the planning and delivery of services. The impact of distance and isolation on providing place-based services that reach areas of demonstrated need, and under-supply of regional ‘mobile’ providers who can re-engage families and children unable to access support and assistance; Opportunity for more targeted Allied Health programming and support for communities with clearly demonstrated developmental needs; Limited knowledge of or published information about funding in our region. Implementation, Planning and Priority Actions The Great Southern Children’s Service Plan is a two year phased project, with the first spent producing the Plan and identifying recommended strategies and actions, and the second year spent on development work throughout the region to see those strategies implemented. Recommendations have been ranked in order from highest to lower priority actions. These actions have also been outlined in relation to coverage areas; some apply on a state level, some on a regional level, and most at an LGA level. RDA Great Southern has identified the resources and collaborations and partnerships required to bring recommendations to fruition. A full List of recommendations is provided in Parts 4 and 7 of this Plan. Implementation work is expected to commence in late 2014 and to continue until October, 2015. Contents Executive Summary ........................................................................................................ 3 The Vision for Services in the Great Southern ...................................................... 4 Regional Trends and Issues Identified ................................................................. 4 Implementation, Planning and Priority Actions ..................................................... 4 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 7 1. Background and Methodology .............................................................................. 8 Desktop Review .................................................................................................... 8 Mapping and Service Coverage ........................................................................... 9 Consultation and Engagement ........................................................................... 11 Great Southern Regional SWOT Analyses ......................................................... 11 2. Regional Overview ............................................................................................. 14 Geography & Demography ................................................................................. 14 2.1 Great Southern Services Overview .................................................................... 20 Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Services ...................................... 20 Children’s and Family Support Services ............................................................. 20 Recommendations for ECEC and Family Support Services ............................... 21 Integration and Collaboration of Regional Services ............................................ 22 Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) Data in the Region ................... 24 Regional Survey of Community Perceptions ...................................................... 26 3. Regional Trends and Issues ............................................................................... 27 3.1 City of Albany ..................................................................................................... 27 3.2 Shire of Broomehill-Tambellup ........................................................................... 37 3.3 Shire of Cranbrook ............................................................................................. 47 3.4 Shire of Denmark ................................................................................................ 56 3.5 Shire of Gnowangerup ........................................................................................ 64 3.6 Shire of Jerramungup ......................................................................................... 72 3.7 Shire of Katanning .............................................................................................. 82 3.8 Shire of Kent ....................................................................................................... 94 3.9 Shire of Kojonup ............................................................................................... 101 3.10 Shire of Plantagenet ......................................................................................... 110 3.11 Shire of Woodanilling ........................................................................................ 121 4. Key Findings and Recommendations ............................................................... 127 4.1 Early Years Communications and Networking.................................................. 127 4.2 Collaboration across Sector .............................................................................. 135 4.3 Limited Regional Out-of-School Hours Care..................................................... 138 4.4 Improving Local and Regional knowledge of Early Years Development ........... 140 Page 5 – Great Southern Regional Children’s Services Plan 4.5 Capacity building for Aboriginal Organisations ................................................. 144 4.6 Parent and Family Mental Health, Allied Health and Literacy