By Charlene Gatt
MORE than one in four Maribyrnong young school children are considered to be developmentally vulnerable, according to the latest Australian Early Development Index (AEDI).
The AEDI was rolled out as a national program in 2009 and is a measure of children’s development as they enter school.
Based on a teacher-completed checklist, the AEDI measures five key areas of early childhood development – physical health and wellbeing, social competence, emotional maturity, language and cognitive skills and communications and general knowledge.
Results show that of the 726 City of Maribyrnong preschool and primary school students interviewed, 25.3 per cent were developmentally vulnerable in at least one of the five key markers.
A further 12.8 per cent were developmentally vulnerable in two or more key markers, while 6.1 per cent of kids interviewed had special needs.
In Maribyrnong, the vast majority (87.4 per cent) of Prep children were reported to be either in excellent or very good health.
Maribyrnong City Council took part in the AEDI pilot project between 2005 and 2008 and used the findings to drive the consultation process to develop the Maribyrnong Early Years Plan 2010/2014.
The council will use the data to understand key trends and impacts from local actions and interventions.
“The demographic profile shows that Maribyrnong has significant levels of disadvantage which are known to impact on family access to early childhood services,” a council report read.
“This is often related to poorer parental knowledge and skill in early childhood care and education.
“Much of the focus of the local actions have, and continue to be, on improving parental skill and knowledge, and addressing families’ barriers to early years services.”
The report said this year’s AEDI figures show that early years intervention programs have had a positive impact on the community.
