Local Health Forum: Supporting your child’s access to health

We all want our children to grow up happy and healthy. For some families, accessing the right health services can be difficult, especially during early childhood and primary school years.

Some children need extra support for their health, development, or behaviour. When services are difficult to access or poorly coordinated, families can experience delays, stress, and missed opportunities for early support.

SWSPHN is hosting a series of local health forums: Supporting your child’s access to health to better understand the barriers parents and carers face when trying to access healthcare and support services for children aged 0 to 12 years.

The forum will bring together a range of professionals and community members, including school counsellors, preschool teachers, day care educators, community services and non government organisations, parents, carers, and health professionals. Participants will share experiences, identify gaps, and contribute insights which can inform future planning and coordination of childhood health services across South Western Sydney.

The Local Health Forums are free to attend, and a two-course dinner is provided.

Some topics included in the discussion

• child development, behaviour, and developmental milestones
• physical health and prevention, including immunisation
• ongoing health needs such as asthma
• healthy growth, nutrition, and childhood obesity

The forums are designed to explore access to health and primary care services for children aged up to 12 years. While families may raise experiences across different systems (eg the NDIS), discussion will focus on areas where local health services can make practical improvements.

Who is this forum for

This forum is open to anyone who works with children, supports children and families, or has lived experience related to children’s health and wellbeing. This includes, but is not limited to:

• parents and carers of children aged 0 to 12 years
• school counsellors
• preschool teachers or day care educators
• health professionals
• community service providers
• non-government organisations
• Anyone with experience supporting children and families, even if their role is not listed above

For health professionals, this activity is eligible for 1.5 hours of self-reported CPD hours.

The forum aims to:

• better understand the experiences of parents and carers when accessing healthcare and support services for children aged 0 to 12 years in South Western Sydney
• identify barriers and enablers to accessing timely, appropriate, and coordinated care for children
• explore strengths and gaps in how primary care, community services, and public health systems respond to childhood health and developmental needs

Online survey

An online survey is also available for people who would like to contribute but cannot attend.

Why your input matters

Planning for children’s health services in South Western Sydney relies on accurate data and local insight. Some existing population health data for children is limited or outdated, and recent planning activities have identified gaps in services for children and families.

Feedback from 2023 consultations highlighted challenges with access to mental health support for children under 12 years, services for eyesight and hearing concerns, and the cost of specialist care such as psychologists and psychiatrists. Limited access to group programs and coordinated support for families was also raised.

Insights shared at this forum will help highlight barriers to care, identify service gaps, and support improvements in how childhood health services are planned and delivered locally. Feedback will be used to inform future priorities across South Western Sydney. 

To read previous forum reports, visit the Local Health Forum page.