Early Childhood Developmental Supports Across Western Australia

At Belong Health, we provide developmental support services for children and families across Western Australia through Occupational Therapy, Speech Pathology, Psychology assessments, Counselling, Positive Behaviour Support, parent coaching, and telehealth services.

Every child develops differently, with their own strengths, communication styles, interests, sensory experiences, and support needs.
Some children and families may benefit from additional support with:
  • Communication and language
  • Emotional regulation
  • Sensory processing
  • Attention, focus, and concentration
  • Play and social interaction
  • Motor development
  • Daily routines and independence
  • School readiness
  • Behaviour support
  • Participation in everyday activities

Whether your child has a diagnosis, is waiting for assessment, or you are beginning to notice developmental differences or support needs, early developmental support can help children and families build confidence, participation, communication, emotional wellbeing, and practical everyday strategies.

Our approach is collaborative, neurodiversity-affirming, strengths-based, and family-centred.
What Is Developmental Support?

Developmental support focuses on helping children participate meaningfully and comfortably across everyday environments while supporting communication, emotional wellbeing, relationships, independence, learning, and participation.

Developmental support does not focus on changing who a child is.
Instead, supports aim to:
  • Understand the child’s strengths and support needs
  • Build confidence and participation
  • Support emotional wellbeing
  • Develop practical everyday strategies
  • Create supportive environments
  • Empower families and caregivers
  • Support communication and connection

Developmental supports may help children who:
  • Are autistic
  • Have ADHD
  • Have developmental delays
  • Experience sensory processing differences
  • Have communication differences
  • Experience emotional regulation needs
  • Have learning or attention differences
  • Experience participation challenges at home, school, or in the community

Children do not always need a formal diagnosis to benefit from support.
Developmental Support and Thriving Kids WA

Families across Western Australia may also be hearing more about Thriving Kids WA and the new Foundational Supports system.

Thriving Kids WA is expected to support children aged 0-8 years with developmental differences, developmental delays, autism, and low-to-moderate support needs through earlier and more accessible developmental supports.

The direction of these supports focuses on:
  • Early support and intervention
  • Family-centred approaches
  • Parent and caregiver capacity building
  • Participation in everyday environments
  • Accessible developmental supports
  • Supporting children where they live, learn, and play

Developmental support services align strongly with these approaches by helping children and families build practical strategies across everyday life.
Accessing Support Before Diagnosis

Many families begin noticing developmental differences or support needs before:
  • Receiving formal diagnosis
  • Accessing specialist assessments
  • Seeing paediatricians
  • Navigating longer waitlists

Children may benefit from developmental support based on:
  • Functional support needs
  • Participation challenges
  • Communication differences
  • Emotional regulation needs
  • Sensory processing differences
  • Learning or attention differences

Early support may help children and families build:
  • Communication strategies
  • Emotional regulation skills
  • Everyday routines
  • School readiness skills
  • Participation and confidence
  • Practical supports for home, school, and community environments

At Belong Health, we recognise that families often need guidance, understanding, and practical support while navigating developmental pathways.
Occupational Therapy Developmental Supports

Occupational Therapy can support children to participate more confidently, comfortably, and independently across everyday activities and environments.

​Occupational Therapy may support:
  • Emotional regulation
  • Sensory processing differences
  • Fine motor development
  • Motor planning and coordination
  • Self-care and independence skills
  • Daily routines
  • Attention and concentration
  • Play and social participation
  • School participation and transitions
  • Functional everyday skills

Our Occupational Therapists work collaboratively with families to build practical and individualised supports that align with each child’s strengths and participation goals.
Fine Motor and Independence Skills

Children often develop school-related independence skills at different rates.
Some children may benefit from support with:
  • Pencil grasp and early handwriting readiness
  • Scissor skills
  • Fine motor coordination
  • Dressing and toileting independence
  • Managing lunchboxes and belongings
  • Following routines
  • Organising tasks and transitions

Occupational Therapy supports may help children build confidence and participation within everyday school activities and routines.
Speech Pathology Developmental Supports

Speech Pathology supports children with communication, language, social interaction, speech development, feeding, and participation in everyday environments.

Speech Pathology may support:
  • Speech sound development
  • Language differences and delays
  • Social communication
  • Understanding and following instructions
  • Early communication development
  • Play-based interaction
  • Feeding and mealtime support
  • Emotional expression
  • Communication confidence across everyday environments

We value all forms of communication and support children in communicating in ways that feel meaningful and supportive for them.
Positive Behaviour Support

Some children may communicate stress, overwhelm, frustration, anxiety, sensory overload, or unmet needs through behaviours that impact participation across home, school, or community environments.

Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) focuses on understanding the reasons behind behaviours while supporting children, families, educators, and support networks to build safe, supportive, and meaningful environments.

Positive Behaviour Support may help with:
  • Understanding behaviour and support needs
  • Identifying triggers and environmental factors
  • Building supportive routines and transitions
  • Communication and participation strategies
  • Emotional regulation supports
  • Sensory-informed approaches
  • Reducing stress and overwhelm
  • Supporting participation at home, school, and in the community
  • Collaborative strategies for caregivers and educators

Our approach is neurodiversity-affirming, strengths-based, and focused on improving quality of life, participation, communication, emotional wellbeing, and everyday functioning.

We do not use approaches focused on punishment, compliance, masking, or suppressing autistic traits. Instead, we focus on understanding behaviour within the context of communication, sensory processing, emotional regulation, environmental demands, and support needs.
Counselling and Emotional Wellbeing Supports

Children and families may also benefit from counselling and emotional wellbeing supports to help navigate emotions, relationships, stress, adjustment, confidence, and everyday life experiences.

Counselling and emotional wellbeing supports may help with:
  • Emotional regulation
  • Anxiety and worries
  • Confidence and self-esteem
  • Emotional expression
  • Family adjustment and change
  • School-related stress
  • Friendship and social connection
  • Coping strategies
  • Emotional wellbeing and resilience

Our counselling approach is collaborative, supportive, family-centred, and tailored to each child’s communication style, strengths, interests, and support needs.
Supports may focus on:
  • Building emotional awareness and coping strategies
  • Supporting emotional regulation
  • Helping children express thoughts and feelings safely
  • Supporting family communication and relationships
  • Developing practical everyday supports
  • Building confidence and participation across everyday environments

Our goal is to create safe, supportive, and respectful environments where children and families feel heard, understood, and empowered.
Parent Coaching and Family Support

Parents and caregivers play an important role in supporting child development and participation.

Parent coaching may help families build confidence with:
  • Emotional regulation support
  • Sensory processing strategies
  • Communication supports
  • Daily routines
  • Behaviour support approaches
  • School transitions
  • Play and interaction
  • Participation in family and community environments

Our parent coaching approach is practical, collaborative, and tailored to the child and family’s individual strengths, goals, and support needs.
Psychology Assessments and Developmental Understanding

Some families may seek Psychology assessments to better understand:
  • Autism pathways
  • ADHD pathways
  • Cognitive strengths and support needs
  • Learning profiles
  • Emotional wellbeing
  • Attention and concentration differences
  • School participation and learning needs

Assessments may help families, educators, and healthcare professionals identify practical supports, strategies, and recommendations that support participation and wellbeing across everyday environments.

Our assessment approach is collaborative, respectful, and neurodiversity-affirming.
School Readiness and Participation

Developmental supports may also help children prepare for school and learning environments.

Some children may benefit from support with:
  • Emotional regulation
  • Communication and interaction
  • Fine motor development
  • Following routines
  • Attention and concentration
  • Independence skills
  • Sensory regulation
  • Social participation
  • Transitions and flexibility

School readiness support focuses on helping children participate confidently and comfortably within learning environments while supporting families with practical strategies and guidance.
Telehealth Developmental Supports Across WA

Belong Health provides telehealth developmental support services across Western Australia, including regional and remote communities.
Telehealth may support:
  • Parent coaching
  • Emotional regulation strategies
  • Behaviour support guidance
  • Communication support
  • Sensory support strategies
  • Developmental consultation
  • School consultation
  • Flexible access to allied health supports

Telehealth can help families access support earlier and more flexibly regardless of location.
Signs Your Child May Benefit From Developmental Support

Every child develops differently, and support needs can vary from child to child.

Some signs that a child may benefit from additional developmental support may include:
  • Communication differences
  • Emotional regulation differences
  • Sensory sensitivities or sensory-seeking preferences
  • Difficulty with routines or transitions
  • Attention and concentration differences
  • Differences in play or social interaction
  • Fine motor or coordination difficulties
  • Difficulty participating confidently in everyday environments
  • Anxiety, overwhelm, or stress in group settings
  • Functional support needs impacting daily activities
Seeking support early does not mean something is “wrong” with your child.

Developmental support can help children and families build confidence, understanding, participation, emotional wellbeing, and practical everyday strategies.
Our Family-Centred Approach

At Belong Health, we value collaborative, neurodiversity-affirming, strengths-based, and family-centred support.
We work alongside:
  • Parents and caregivers
  • Schools and educators
  • Childcare providers
  • Allied health teams
  • Healthcare professionals
  • Community supports

​Our goal is to help children participate meaningfully and comfortably across everyday life while empowering families with practical guidance and support.
Supporting Families Across Western Australia

Belong Health supports children and families across:
  • Mandurah & Peel Region
  • Perth Metro
  • Regional WA
  • Remote WA communities
  • Telehealth across Western Australia

​We provide flexible support options including:
  • Home visits
  • School visits
  • Community-based supports
  • Telehealth appointments
  • Clinic-based services
Contact Belong Health
​
If you would like to learn more about developmental supports, Occupational Therapy, Speech Pathology, emotional regulation support, Psychology assessments, parent coaching, school readiness supports, Positive Behaviour Support, or telehealth services, contact Belong Health today.
​
Our team supports children and families across Perth, Mandurah, regional WA, and throughout Western Australia.
Frequently Asked Questions - Developmental Support 

Does my child need a diagnosis for developmental support?
Not always. Many children benefit from developmental support based on functional needs, participation challenges, communication differences, emotional regulation needs, or sensory processing differences, even before a formal diagnosis.

What age groups do you support?
Belong Health supports children across a range of developmental stages, including early childhood supports for children aged 0-8 years and beyond.

Can developmental support occur at school or childcare?
Yes. Services may be delivered within home, school, childcare, clinic, community, or telehealth environments depending on the child’s goals and needs.

Can developmental support involve multiple services?
Yes. Many children benefit from multidisciplinary supports involving Occupational Therapy, Speech Pathology, parent coaching, Psychology assessments, Positive Behaviour Support, and Counselling supports.

Does Belong Health provide telehealth services?
Yes. Belong Health provides telehealth developmental supports across Western Australia.

What does developmental support mean?
Developmental support helps children build communication, emotional regulation, participation, independence, social connection, learning, and everyday life skills across home, school, childcare, and community environments.

What are some examples of developmental supports?
Developmental supports may include Occupational Therapy, Speech Pathology, parent coaching, emotional regulation support, sensory processing support, Positive Behaviour Support, school readiness support, communication development, developmental consultation, and telehealth services.

What are common developmental differences children may experience?
Children may experience developmental differences related to communication, emotional regulation, sensory processing, attention, play and social interaction, motor development, learning, participation, routines, and independence.

What are early signs a child may benefit from developmental support?
Some children may benefit from developmental support if they experience communication differences, emotional regulation difficulties, sensory sensitivities, attention differences, motor coordination difficulties, participation challenges, or difficulty with routines and transitions.

Does NDIS cover developmental delay?
Some children with developmental delays or developmental disabilities may be eligible for NDIS supports depending on their age, functional impact, and individual circumstances.

Can children with ADHD access developmental supports?
Yes. Children with ADHD or attention-related differences may benefit from supports related to emotional regulation, attention, communication, participation, school readiness, parent coaching, and behaviour support strategies.
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What assessments may be used for developmental support?
Assessments may include functional assessments, autism assessments, ADHD assessments, cognitive assessments, communication assessments, Occupational Therapy assessments, Speech Pathology assessments, and school readiness assessments.
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Belong Health's Community Services for Occupational Therapy, Speech Pathology, Occupational & Speech Therapy Assistants, & Counselling. Our Services NOW cover Peel to Perth regions.

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Phone: 08 9586 3934

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