Family Connect
Family Connect and co-locating at Evatt Primary School
We are excited to inform you that Evatt primary school launched their Family Connect program in early April. This program is the inspiration of Evatt Primary School and is a new community initiative located at the school. The model aims to improve outcomes for children and their families by bringing together early years learning, education, wrap-around health and community services – all under one roof. The Collective at Evatt forms part of Family Connect and involves community services co-locating at Evatt on a weekly basis to connect, collaborate and support the delivery of targeted and coordinated services that meet the needs of the local community.
Family Connect will oversee and coordinate health and community services, aiming to provide holistic supports to children and families.
Family Connect has developed partnerships with a number of different services, such as the West Belconnen Child Family Centre (including Women’s Legal), Child Development Service, ACT Libraries, UnitingCare Kippax, EACH and The Smith Family to provide the wrap around services that families require to thrive. These service will be co-locating at Evatt Primary to allow for ease of accessibility and engagement with families.?Being based in a school allows Family Connect to provide continuity of care and adapt and change supports for families as their needs change overtime.?
A key focus for Family Connect is engaging families from birth to ensure that they have access to early intervention and a community that supports healthy development. To achieve this, Family Connect has also worked to develop partnerships with all the local ECECs, which will support the engagement of approximately 200 additional families that are not yet school aged.?
Family Connect has a number of initiatives that families can access, commencing at the beginning of Term 2. This includes the Giggle and Wiggle playgroup run by ACT Libraries at Evatt Primary. Family Connect will also be commencing their Sports Connect program, which aims to provide children with opportunities to trial a sport for a five week period and then connect families with a pathway to engage in the sport ongoingly if they would like this option. The first sport will be Netball and will be run after school on a?Thursday afternoon.
Family Connect has partnered with UnitingCare Kippax to run the Tuning into Kids parenting program. The program aims to support parents to better respond to their children’s emotions, building stronger parenting skills and family units. Family Connect will also continue their partnership with the Child and Family Centre to provide the opportunity for families to access targeted social work support. Family Connect is further partnering with the Child Development Services to provide?Speech, Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy drop in assessment clinics to be located at Evatt at the beginning of Term 3. Family Connect will continue to work closely with community and health services to coordinate and promote universal and targeted supports to families.?