Guides & campaigns relevant to early support

Building a strong foundation through early childhood care and education - report
Inclusive and quality early childhood care and education (ECCE) are vital for promoting school readiness, foundational learning, and lifelong well-being. Yet almost 60% of children in low-income countries do not have access to early care and learning opportunities. To meet national targets of providing at least one year of organized learning before primary school, low-income and lower-middle-income countries must fill an annual financial gap of USD 21 billion and recruit at least six million more educators before 2030.
https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/right-strong-foundation-global-report-early-childhood-care-and-education

Childcare gap in the Eurpean Union
This remains one of the most pressing challenges facing new parents across Europe today. This gap arises following the birth of a child, when well-paid parental leave has been exhausted, but access to state-supported full-time Early Childhood Education and Care is not yet available.
https://coface-eu.org/factsheet-on-childcare-gap-in-the-european-union/

Child Compass 2030
Shaping a healthy society, environment and economy fit for children
https://coface-eu.org/child-compass-2030-shaping-a-healthy-society-environment-and-economy-fit-for-children/

Key concepts in child development
The concepts outlined below reflect over 20 years of collaborative work between the Center and the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child to advance public understanding of early childhood development.
https://developingchild.harvard.edu/key-concepts/

What is the Behaviour Checklist?
Cerebra: The Behaviour Checklist is a list of the things that are important to assess when thinking about the behaviour and wellbeing of children and adults with severe learning disability and complex needs. Using the list ensures that these things are not missed or forgotten.
https://cerebra.org.uk/get-advice-support/emotional-mental-health/behaviour-checklist/#:~:text=The%20Behaviour%20Checklist%20is%20a,are%20not%20missed%20or%20forgotten.

What is Fragile X?
https://media.wix.com/ugd/038e80_ba0a50287b614dff9d4b35db7d31a190.pdf

Early Start Africa
- continues to transform the lives of young children by expanding access to quality early childhood care, education, and essential support. Across communities, we are enabling children to thrive through play, nutrition, safety, and early learning opportunities.
https://earlystartafrica.org/

Healthy Trajectories
By building a strong network of research partners across the Melbourne Children’s Campus and the University of Melbourne we will be able to learn more, faster, to improve the lives of those with child-onset disability and their families. We want to help change the way our society views and includes those with disability.
https://healthy-trajectories.com.au/

Zero to Three about babies
https://www.zerotothree.org/babies/

Parents with disabilities: Interview with the European Network for Independent Living
Parents with a disability are often missing from policy discussions because disability policy is frequently framed around individuals being a recipient of care, and not as someone who is also a caregiver, a worker, and a parent....
https://coface-eu.org/discussion-with-the-european-network-for-independent-living-on-parents-with-disabilities/

The Case for Investing in Young Children and Their Families
Kaufmann K et al. Strong, nurturing relationships with trusted adults are fundamental not only to healthy brain architecture during this time, but also to the regulation of stress and the development of executive function—the “air traffic control” system for learning and behavior regulation...
https://www.bridgespan.org/getmedia/49baa8e0-aadc-4b3f-a1f6-6560e210a0c9/Investing-in-Our-Future-Critical-Ways-Philanthropy-Can-Help-Every-Young-Child-and-Family-Thrive.pdf

Inclusive education is changing the future for children with disabilities across Uganda.
A unique project, focused on teacher training, has helped to create sustainable change and support children with disabilities to realise their potential. This forms part of the Ugandan government’s ambition to ensure that all children with disabilities are taught by teachers who are trained in inclusive education.
https://www.sightsavers.org/programmes/uganda-inclusive-education-project/?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=c9e85fcf-0dec-401d-bc7f-0a0fdd5780d1

How States Can Help Young Children Thrive (US)
There’s increasing recognition of the need to extend beyond traditional “children’s issues” to include a wide range of policy domains that shape children’s environments, from economic security to housing.
https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/policy-insights/policy-qa-how-states-can-help-young-children-thrive/

National Collaborative for Infants and Toddlers (US)
Information and tools you need to take action and advance policies and programs that support infants, toddlers, and their families in your community or state. Resources include case studies that showcase what’s working, steps for getting started, the latest research, information on using data to track success...
https://ncit.org/

The right to a strong foundation. Global Report on early childhood care and education
The report, which is a key response to the commitments outlined in the Tashkent Declaration, synthesizes scientific evidence on ECCE’s importance, and exposes persistence gaps in policy and investment.
https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/right-strong-foundation-global-report-early-childhood-care-and-education

Training manual for establishing child development and disability services in Bangladesh
This manual is a comprehensive document which provides information and training materials for setting up child development centres within hospitals and similar facilities.
https://www.bpfbd.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/10-page-1.pdf

Transition from Special Education to Inclusive Education Systems
A collection of 16 case studies from 11 European countries, ranging from day-to-day knowledge-sharing initiatives within school communities to nationwide reforms of the formal education system, holding the potential for wider adaptation in different countries and local contexts.
https://easpd.eu/publications-detail/transition-from-special-education-to-inclusive-education-systems/?mc_cid=408787bcb7&mc_eid=3e9c6fc78e

Developing Holistic Integrated Early Learning Services for Young Children and Families Experiencing Socio-economic Vulnerability
Moore T G. National and international examples of holistic, integrated early learning programs for young children and their families experiencing socio-economic vulnerability.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353506255_Developing_Holistic_Integrated_Early_Learning_Services_for_Young_Children_and_Families_Experiencing_Socio-economic_Vulnerability

Ubuntu-Hub - about families under enormous strain
Across the world, over 50 million children live with developmental disabilities, such as congenital zika syndrome and cerebral palsy. Usually, the main carers for children with disabilities is the family, who often have access to very few services able to provide family and clinical support...
https://www.ubuntu-hub.org/

Use of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory - Computer Adaptive Test in Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway
Hansen T N et al. To investigate whether the items of the Danish, Dutch, and Norwegian versions of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory - Computer Adaptive Test (PEDI-CAT) align with the location-order used in the original algorithm and to assess their structural validity.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/dmcn.16324?af=R

Protecting Infant Health: Closing Early Intervention Service Gaps
Gilliland S et al. Early intervention helps strengthen cognitive, motor, and language skills; reduces the likelihood of childhood maltreatment; and can lower education costs through reduced need for special education.
https://www.newamerica.org/new-practice-lab/reports/protecting-infant-health/

Education Sector Analysis (ESA) and Education Sector Plan (ESP) development tools
These are the essential foundations for all other planning and implementation. The toolkit is a “living” toolkit that will be added to over time. In the future, additional tools across the other stages of the Education Sector Planning (ESP) cycle will be developed.
https://www.ece-accelerator.org/about/about-the-toolkit

Removing barriers to learning for children with disabilities
Children with disabilities face disproportionate barriers when it comes to accessing education and reaching foundational learning milestones.
https://www.globalpartnership.org/content/factsheet-removing-barriers-learning-children-disabilities

Families of children with disabilities: Exploring perspectives from South Asia in the Focus Project
Families with a member who has intellectual and developmental disabilities face many challenges These challenges are often worse in countries like India and Sri Lanka, and for South Asian families living in other countries.
https://www.uea.ac.uk/groups-and-centres/projects/focus-project

The Countdown to 2030 country profiles on early childhood development (ECD)
Helping establish a global monitoring and accountability system for ECD. The initiative is affiliated with the Countdown to 2030 for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health.
https://data.unicef.org/resources/countdown-to-2030-ecd-country-profiles/

Changing The Way We Care (CTWWC)
To promote safe, nurturing family care for children: those reunifying from residential care facilities or those at risk of child-family separation. This includes strengthening families and reforming national systems of care for children.
https://bettercarenetwork.org/about-bcn/what-we-do/organizations-working-on-childrens-care/changing-the-way-we-care

IAACD's Vision (International Alliance of Academies of Childhood Disability)
A world where all those with child onset disability and their families attain optimal health and wellbeing and live in inclusive societies which allow them to reach their full potential for independence, societal participation and happiness.
https://iaacd.net/about-iaacd/mission-values/

‘About My Child’ - a caregiver report tool
It can be used to collect narrative descriptions of a child and family's strengths and to document concerns related to 20 areas of child development.
https://canchild.ca/en/shop/58-about-my-child

Definition for Early Childhood Intervention from PRECI in Australia
Early childhood intervention refers to specialist services and supports provided to young children with developmental concerns, delay or disability and their families...
https://mailchi.mp/278a6e16a12f/preci-connect-newsletter-november-8335482?e=3a564d64b5

Contrasting a therapy approach with an educational approach to the early skill of moving on the floor
Limbrick P. Building the case for moving early child and family support out of hospitals into education settings

Assessing the home environment to promote infant-toddler learning within everyday family routines
Research has demonstrated the importance of assessment and intervention that focuses on the social interactions, physical features, and temporal environments of everyday family routines that make up the child’s learning environment.
https://www.preci.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Article-Summary_Keilty_No4_2022.pdf

Pre-school education in Ethiopia
Despite these achievements, true integration of pre-school education remains a complex challenge in Ethiopia’s diverse and multicultural context. Integration means more than including children with disabilities...
https://earlysupportimprovement.com/good-practice-in-special-needs-education#ethiopia-2025

Nepal: Partnership for Sustainable Development (PSD) bridges the gap
PSD builds capacity in the poorest and most vulnerable communities in Nepal, notably amongst children, women, orphans, those with disabilities, and in rural communities.
https://www.psdnepal.org/

National Best Practice Framework for Early Childhood Intervention released
The endorsed National Best Practice Framework for Early Childhood Intervention has now been released by the Australian Government. This Framework is the official Framework endorsed by Minister Mark Butler and available on the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing
https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/national-best-practice-framework-for-early-childhood-intervention

Mattering in early childhood
Our sense of mattering—the feeling that we are valued and have value to add to the world—is a key ingredient for lifelong well-being, and it begins in the earliest days of infancy.
https://us4.campaign-archive.com/?e=04c910e11f&u=641f78fe500d565329121ffc9&id=b7c6fcb19b

Guide to Communicating About Early Childhood Development
When we communicate this information to various audiences, it’s important to remember that it’s not as simple as deciding what to say—we can also make strategic choices about how we say it, what we emphasize, and what we leave unsaid.
https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resource-guides/guide-to-communicating-about-early-childhood-development/

Stimulating inclusive outdoor play: breaking the vicious circle between physical segregation and lack of social acceptance
Visser K et al. Inclusive play is a critical catalyst for social inclusion and has developmental benefits for all children. This research explores barriers that adult stakeholders perceive towards inclusion of children with disabilities in ‘playing together’ with peers with and without disabilities.
https://experts.mcmaster.ca/scholarly-works/3782527