The Access and Inclusion Model or AIM is a programme of supports designed to ensure that children with disabilities or additional needs can access the Early Childhood Care and Education or ECCE programme. The goal of AIM is to empower early learning and care providers to deliver an inclusive pre-school experience, ensuring that every eligible child can meaningfully participate in the ECCE programme and reap the benefits of quality early learning and care in any mainstream service participating in ECCE.
A core feature and strength of AIM is that it does not require a diagnosis. Instead, resources are allocated based on a child’s individual needs.
It is intended that, over time, all children with additional needs registered in Early Learning and Care services will have access to supports under AIM.
A comprehensive policy development process is underway at present to extend AIM to children aged under three in future years. It is critical that the new model will be strongly evidence-based and reflective of the developmental stages of children not yet in ECCE.
It is also intended to give consideration at a later date to an extension of AIM for children attending school-age childcare (SAC).
It is critical that both of these policy responses are strongly evidence-based and reflective of the needs of children. This requires tailoring of AIM and differentiation of approaches for each age cohort. Funding will also be required through the annual budget process.
While AIM provides for a series of in-service supports including advice, equipment, therapeutic supports and additional staffing depending on the individual needs of the child, it does not provide funding for transport. General funding through state subsidised fees may at the discretion of the provider be used to support a transport service offer.
For school age children, the Department of Education and Youth provides a School Transport Scheme, the purpose of which is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children who reside remotely from their nearest school.
The National Council for Special Education acts in an advisory role to the Department of Education on the suitability of placements for children with special educational needs. Under the terms of the School Transport Scheme for Children with Special Educational Needs, the Department of Education and Youth will consider the report of the Special Education Needs Organiser (SENO). School transport is provided by that Department to children with special educational needs who are attending the nearest school to their place of residence that is or can be resourced to meet their educational needs, as identified by the SENO.
