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

Help us better understand the barriers parents and carers face when trying to access health care and support services for children.

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 local health forum to better understand the barriers parents and carers face when trying to access health care 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.

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

This forum is not intended to discuss NDIS access or disability specific services.

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

Local health forums are free to attend, and a two-course dinner is provided.

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