The Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) is a nationwide data collection that looks at how young children are developing at the time they start their first year of full-time school. The data helps communities gain insight into what is working well and what needs to be improved or developed so children can thrive.

Community organisations, non-government organisations (NGOs), local governments, businesses and community members can use the data to see how they can best support children in their community.

About the AEDC

The AEDC measures children’s development in 5 areas (or domains) and can help predict how children will do in health, education and social life as they grow up.

Learn more about the AEDC, what the collection measures and how to access and understand the data:

About the AEDC

What the SA results show

Current AEDC results for South Australian children show that:

• over 50% of children are developmentally on track on all 5 domains as they start school
• 1 in 4 children are developmentally vulnerable – these children are found across all socio-economic areas and communities in our state.

SA results and resources

Why early development is so important

The environments and experiences children are exposed to from pregnancy through to school age shape their development.

Starting behind can have lifelong health, wellbeing, academic, social and economic impacts.

We want all children to have access to the building blocks of healthy development, including:

• nourishing food
• economic and housing security
• access to education and learning
• opportunities for play
• safe, green environments
• supportive communities.

If we can recognise and address developmental needs of children early, we can help get them back on track. This may prevent the need for more costly and intensive help in the future.

Your role in supporting local children and families

Community organisations, NGOs, local government, businesses and community play a vital role in providing important care and public health support for children and families where they live and when they’re needed.

Investing time, effort and resources in children’s early years – when their brains are rapidly developing – brings lifelong benefits to them and to the whole community.

Find more details in the:

• Public Health Indicator Framework (PDF 281KB)
• core care conditions for children and families: implications for policy and practice.

Early childhood education and care services and schools also have a key role.

How the data can help you

AEDC results provide a common language to help:

• explore the lived experience of children and families
• share data and other information
• consider who else to connect with
• plan, monitor and evaluate actions in response to early childhood development needs.

When community organisations collectively explore their results, it can help:

• plan for and choose effective interventions
• provide better support for local children and their families
• improve children’s likelihood of developing on track and help build thriving communities.

Access the data

AEDC data provides important population-level evidence. Your community can use the data to:

• understand the factors affecting children’s health, development and wellbeing in your local area
• make decisions about resources, services and programs to meet the needs of children and families
• identify other partners to work with.

Community profiles present results for a suburb or geographic area, usually aligned to local government areas. They include:

• demographics and characteristics of children in the area – providing context for the results
• data for each domain – the proportion of children who are developmentally  on track, at risk or vulnerable
• the proportion of children developmentally on track on all 5 AEDC domains, developmentally vulnerable on 1 or more and 2 or more domains.

The domains are:

For more information read:

• about the AEDC domains fact sheet
• about the summary indicators fact sheet
• accessing community results
• understanding AEDC community boundaries.

What you can use the data for

Use the AEDC data as an evidence base to:

• inform policy and planning
• review services
• allocate resources and assets
• inform grant processes
• inform collaborative approaches and community engagement
• inform evaluations
• measure progress over time.

The reporting, publication or analysis of AEDC data and results must be in accordance with the AEDC data guidelines.

Tips for local governments

Local governments can use AEDC results when implementing the Reading and Literacy Framework for SA public libraries and SA Outcomes Framework for Children and Young People, planning for preventive health, planning for regional public health and more.

The regional public health planning: using AEDC data guide (PDF 484 KB) provides valuable insights and practical steps for local governments to incorporate AEDC data into their planning processes, ensuring that community needs are met and resources are allocated effectively.

Guidance for policy makers

We have more guidance for you on using AEDC data to support policy and planning for early childhood development. Read our page:

AEDC for policy makers

Examples of how communities are using the data

Explore examples of communities using AEDC results including:

• Uniting SA’s Community Strategic Plan 2022-2026
• Campbelltown council child friendly city approach
• Southern and Hills local government area Regional public health and wellbeing plan 2022 – 2027 (PDF 4 MB)
• local government early childhood community initiatives 
• AEDC community stories.

Video: Mid Murray family connections (4:58)

This video shows how a network of over 60 stakeholders collectively responds to their community AEDC results.

Video transcript – Mid Murray family connections story

Got a story to share?

If you have an AEDC story to share, we'd love to hear from you.

Email us at education.AEDCTeam@sa.gov.au

Development guides

Print and display or share the development guide posters:

Physical health and wellbeing poster

This fact sheet provides examples of behaviours through which adults can support children’s development of physical health and wellbeing.

Supporting early childhood development guide: physical health and wellbeing

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Social competence poster

This fact sheet provides examples of behaviours through which adults can support children’s development of social competence.

Supporting early childhood development guide: social competence

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Emotional maturity poster

This fact sheet provides examples of behaviours through which adults can support children’s development of emotional maturity.

Supporting early childhood development guide: emotional maturity

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Supporting early childhood development guide: language and cognitive skills (school-based)

This fact sheet provides examples of behaviours through which adults can support children’s development of language and cognitive skills (school-based).

Supporting early childhood development guide: language and cognitive skills (school-based)

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Communication skills and general knowledge poster

This fact sheet provides examples of behaviours through which adults can support children’s development of communication skills and general knowledge.

Supporting early childhood development guide: communication skills and general knowledge

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More resources for families

There are many services and resources that you can use in your work to help families and support children’s development and learning. For example:

• Starting Blocks
• Playgroup SA 
• Raising Children Network 
• Parenting SA
• ASK Adults Supporting Kids
• Families Growing Together

Guidance for families

We also have a page on how families can help support their own child's development and how they can use AEDC results in their community:

AEDC page for families

Service listings, programs and workshops

• ASK (Adults Supporting Kids) – connects parents and caregivers to information, free local support services and other contacts to support children and young people
• Families Growing Together – Department for Human Services program workshops to parents and caregivers to about parenting
• Preventive Health SA – resources, tools and information to support South Australian families to stay healthy, active and connected
• Raising Children Network  – parenting videos, articles and apps backed by Australian experts
• Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne Centre for Community Child Health resource hub – evidence-based publications and resources to support your work with children and families
• SNAICC (National Voice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children) – works to improve outcomes and opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and strengthen the capacities of families across Australia

Data

• Australian Bureau of Statistics – for demographic data to understand community context
• Australian Child and Youth Wellbeing Atlas – visualises health and wellbeing metrics for children and young people
• .idcommunity – demographic, economic, and social profiles by council area
• Wellbeing SA Open Data Portal – access to a wide range of data regarding the health and wellbeing of the South Australian community
• Social health atlases – PHIDU, Torrens University Australia

Funding

• Community grants listing

Community engagement

• Local Government Association community engagement handbook (PDF 8.4MB)