What’s Happening?
Queensland’s Healthy Kindy Kids program has expanded to Townsville following a successful pilot, bringing free developmental health checks into local kindergartens.
The initiative provides vision, hearing, speech and language screening for children attending government-approved early learning settings. It aims to identify potential concerns early, giving families more opportunities to access support before their children begin Prep.
Queensland Health allied health assistants conduct the screenings under the supervision of senior health professionals. With parental consent, children can complete the checks in familiar kindergarten environments rather than attending separate health appointments.
Why It Matters
Early identification of health and developmental concerns can make a significant difference to a child’s confidence, communication and learning.
When hearing, vision or language difficulties go unnoticed, children may struggle to follow instructions, communicate with others or participate in activities. These challenges can become more difficult to manage once formal schooling begins.
By introducing screening during the kindergarten years, Healthy Kindy Kids gives families an opportunity to address potential concerns sooner. The program also connects early childhood education with healthcare services, helping children receive appropriate assessment and support when needed.
Local Impact
Having health screenings available at kindergarten removes some of the practical difficulties associated with arranging appointments. Working parents, in particular, may find it challenging to manage additional healthcare visits alongside employment and everyday family responsibilities. Providing the service where children already attend kindy makes participation easier without disrupting their usual routines.
The Townsville pilot also highlighted the importance of identifying developmental concerns before children enter school. Its findings showed that some children required further assessment in several areas, reinforcing the value of checking different aspects of development together.
For local educators, the initiative provides another opportunity to work alongside health professionals and families when children need additional support.
By the Numbers
- Five Townsville kindergartens are currently delivering Healthy Kindy Kids, while the program is also expanding to 11 kindergartens on the Gold Coast.
- More than 70 per cent of children screened during the Townsville pilot required follow-up support in at least one area. Some were identified as needing further assessment across multiple developmental areas.
- $37.5 million over five years has been committed to the program, including almost $9 million in 2026-27. Once fully implemented statewide, Healthy Kindy Kids could reach up to 60,000 children annually.
Zoom In
Little Scholars Early Learning Group Quality Practice Manager Jennifer Haydock said identifying concerns during kindergarten could prevent difficulties from affecting children’s learning.
“When concerns are not picked up early, we often see children becoming frustrated, finding it hard to follow instructions or losing confidence, and that can affect how they learn for years to come,” Ms Haydock said. “Healthy Kindy Kids brings free, simple checks right into the kindy, with parents’ consent, so families get a clear next step early.”
The benefits also extend to parents, who can gain a clearer understanding of their children’s developmental needs before they begin school.
Townsville parent Tjana Burrett said the program offered reassurance while making important health checks more accessible for busy families.
“Knowing we can identify areas that our children may need a little bit of extra support in early on is really reassuring and allows us to give them the best possible start, especially as they prepare for school,” Tjana said. “As a busy working mum, trying to juggle work, appointments and everyday family life can be challenging, so having these screenings available at kindy is absolutely fantastic.”
Zoom Out
Healthy Kindy Kids forms part of Queensland’s broader effort to strengthen early childhood health services by bringing developmental screening into education settings.
Rather than relying solely on families to seek individual assessments, the program introduces health checks during children’s regular kindergarten attendance. This approach may help identify concerns that might otherwise remain unnoticed until children experience difficulties at school.
Health and education leaders consider kindergarten an important setting for early screening because children are developing essential communication and learning skills.
The initiative also aims to strengthen referral pathways between early learning providers and healthcare professionals, making it easier to connect families with appropriate services.
What To Look For Next?
Following its Townsville rollout, Healthy Kindy Kids will continue expanding across South East Queensland before progressing towards wider statewide implementation.
As more kindergartens join the program, additional families could benefit from earlier identification of developmental concerns and improved access to support.
The program offers an opportunity to address potential difficulties during their early learning years, helping them enter school healthier, more confident and better prepared to learn.
