The key worker model is the best practice approach recommended by the NDIS for children with developmental delays or disability.
Image Description: key worker and child laughing together while playing in living room
Families benefit most when early childhood professionals work to form a team around their child, working together to support the child’s learning and development across their everyday routines and activities.
👉Within this team, a key worker is the primary early childhood professional that works in partnership with the child’s therapeutic team to provide a child’s therapy.
A key worker will get to know the child and family well, recognise their strengths, identify their needs and goals, and bring together expertise of the child’s team to achieve positive outcomes.
While a child’s team might include professionals from the same service or organisation, the team can also be made up of professionals from different services or organisations. In this latter scenario, you will need to be proactive in determining which of the professionals is the best fit key worker for your child and family.
Who is a key worker specifically?
A key worker can be a speech pathologist, early childhood educator, occupational therapist, physiotherapist, social worker or psychologist. They’re highly skilled within their own discipline, and have a good understanding of child development, positive behaviour support and effective parenting strategies.
If you have, or care for a child with developmental delays or disability, here are the benefits of engaging a key worker:
• They will provide you and your child with consistent advice, strategies and emotional support that’s tailored to your family.
• They will ensure the child and family gets support from all the professionals in the team, without the disruption of having to engage with multiple therapists, reducing the number of people the child and family need to get to know
• They will collaborate with other people involved in your child’s care, like their childcare, preschool, health services and community, sports or recreation providers to provide strategies to promote learning, development and participation in their various settings.
• They will provide assistance to help you navigate the NDIS’ early childhood approach, access resources, and advocate for your child.
When you are new to the NDIS, having a go-to like this in your corner can change everything.
Here is an example of how the key worker approach has been adopted by an early childhood early intervention provider.
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Have a question about the key worker model or early childhood development?
This month on Kinora, we’ve teamed up with subject matter expert Allie who will answer your questions and support you on your journey. Allie is an early childhood teacher and early development specialist, with working experience of the NDIS early childhood approach.
