What is an ECDP?
Early Childhood Development Programs and services aim to give children a strong start to education by supporting them to have positive and confident transitions to daycare , kindergarten and school. The ECDP is based at Clinton State School, however we service all of Gladstone region and surrounds.
This support is provided to children from birth to 5 years who have been diagnosed, or are suspected to have (by a recognised professional), the following disabilities;
· Autism;
· Hearing impairment;
· Intellectual disability;
· Physical impairment;
· Speech-language impairment, and/or
· Vision impairment.
Programs and Services
The type of program or service a child may access will depend on the child's age and the functional impact of their disability taking into account the:
· curriculum outcomes (Early Years Learning Framework or Queensland Kindergarten Learning Guidelines);
· child's strengths, abilities and interests, including their cultural background;
· parents/carers goals for the child;
· health support needs, access and environmental adjustments required; and
· other services the family and the child are accessing.
Every child registered with the ECDP are also encouraged to attend an approved kindergarten program in the year before they start school.
Playgroup (Birth— 5 years)
ECDP teachers facilitate playgroup to offer stimulating and evidence-based early childhood experiences. We support the connection of families to build parent/carer networks and share information to relevant resources and services in the community.
Playgroup will operate once a week on Wednesday from 9:00am to 10:30am at the ECDP site based at Clinton State School (Week 2 - 9 school terms). Please click here for more information.
Babies/Infants (Birth— 3 years)
Teachers in partnership with Advisory Visiting Teachers (AVT - Vision Impairment, AVT - Physical Impairment, AVT - Deaf & Hard of Hearing) and community agencies can provide support with building parent/carer confidence to support their child as they progress in their learning and wellbeing.
Other ECDP services for this age group include:
· supporting transitions to an early childhood education centre (ECEC);
· building networks and partnerships with service providers and health services; and
· referral to other services.
Centre-Based Programs (3—5 years)
Centre-based programs offer intensive and explicit teaching in the skills and understandings children need to access/participate in educational settings.
These programs are delivered by a multidisciplinary team and operate in two sessions (Pre-Kindergarten age and Kindergarten age) at the ECDP site based at Clinton State School.
Outreach Service (3—5 years)
For those students who are not accessing a centre-based program or at the age to be eligible for Prep, an outreach service is offered. At the ECDP we provide a multidisciplinary outreach service in collaboration with the child's family and early childhood education centre (e.g. daycare, State Delivered Kindergartens) to support access and participation.
Application Process
Applications to access ECDPs and services are processed by the department's regional office. To make an application, parents/carers must complete an Application to Access Early Childhood Development Program.pdf This form can be completed at the ECDP building at Clinton State School or online and emailed to ecdp@clintonss.eq.edu.au. In combination with the form, parents/carers need to provide evidence from a relevant registered medical specialist or allied health professional, that their child has been diagnosed with, or is suspected of having, one of the six eligible disabilities. Placement in the ECDP will be determined by meeting the necessary eligibility criteria.
Please allow up to 7 weeks for ECDP applications to be completed and finalised by regional office.
For information please read the Early Childhood Development Program Factsheet for Parents.
