Australia's new $4 billion Thriving Kids program begins its first stage of rollout today, 1 October, marking a significant shift in the way young children with developmental delay and autism receive support. The program, co-funded by federal, state and territory governments, is designed to move eligible children with low to moderate support needs toward community-based services — though no child will be removed from the NDIS today.

What Is Thriving Kids and Why Was It Created?

Thriving Kids was announced in August 2025 as part of sweeping federal government reforms to the National Disability Insurance Scheme. The government has argued that the NDIS is carrying more participants than originally intended, with its budget growing at an unsustainable rate.

Children under 15 are described as particularly over-represented on the scheme, making up just under half of all NDIS participants. Remarkably, one in two new entrants to the NDIS is under the age of nine, and across Australia, one in ten six-year-olds currently receives NDIS support — many of them with autism or developmental delay.

The government's position is that many of these children would be better served by strong mainstream and community services rather than individual NDIS funding packages, and that the current scheme does not adequately serve all young children in its care.

What Support Will Thriving Kids Actually Provide?

Rather than providing individual funding packages, Thriving Kids will deliver what are called foundational supports — assistance delivered in the places children already spend their time, including schools, early childhood centres, libraries, community sporting programs and healthcare settings.

The program is built around two tiers of support:

  • Universal supports, available to all children and families, including information about child development and links to local services. Supported playgroups for children aged five and under begin today, with a Medicare-funded health check for three-year-olds — conducted by GPs — rolling out in November.
  • Targeted supports, directed at children with more specific needs and delivered by allied health professionals such as speech pathologists, occupational therapists and physiotherapists. Some form of assessment will be required to access these services.

Critically, the program is designed to respond to a child's needs rather than simply their diagnosis, recognising that developmental needs can change over time. This is a departure from the current NDIS model, where children are individually assessed and given a funding amount their family can direct toward specific services.

Children with permanent and significant disability, including those with high support needs, will remain eligible for the NDIS. State and territory governments will take the lead on designing and commissioning services suited to their communities.

When Will NDIS Access Rules Actually Change?

Despite today's launch, families should be aware that changes to NDIS eligibility criteria will not take effect until January 2028. No child is being transitioned off the scheme as a result of today's rollout. The coming years will see Thriving Kids services developed and expanded before any shift in access conditions occurs.

When Thriving Kids was first announced, the lack of detail caused considerable anxiety among families and disability advocates. Since then, an advisory process, a parliamentary inquiry and lengthy negotiations between the Commonwealth and the states and territories have provided greater clarity on the program's shape.

What Questions Remain?

While the broad framework is now clearer, the finer details of how targeted supports will be assessed and delivered — and how consistently services will be available across different states and territories — remain to be worked through. For Australian families navigating these changes, understanding how shifting government priorities shape policy outcomes may help contextualise what lies ahead.

The coming months will be a critical test of whether Thriving Kids can deliver on its promise of reaching more children earlier — without leaving vulnerable families without adequate support.