NDIS Paediatric Early Childhood Services

With over 30 years of experience working with children and families, Plumtree can work with you to help you achieve your NDIS funded goals. Download our free NDIS Guide for families of children birth to 8 years.

During COVID19, the NDIA has made some major changes to the operations of the NDIS in response to the pandemic. These will have a huge and likely positive impact on participants in the Scheme. Find out more.

Your NDIS plan

We are a registered NDIS provider and work with children birth to 8 years old. If you have an approved NDIS plan, please contact us so that we can talk with you about how to get started.

We tailor each package to suit your individual situation so that together we can work towards achieving the outcomes in your NDIS plan. All families want their child to thrive and flourish. We work together with you towards this goal through our own approach called Plan and Do.

All our staff use the Plan and Do approach because we believe families are the experts about their child. We use this approach to help you break down your NDIS goals so that we can work out our first steps with you. Professionals come and go, but families are always an integral part of their child’s life. That is why we work regularly and closely in partnership with you to help meet your goals. Together we plan and then we do! This makes the most of your NDIS resources and helps us all work towards reaching the outcomes you want for your child. For more information download Plan and Do.

Learn more about Plumtree’s early childhood approach children’s therapy services.

Therapy sessions do not all look the same!

Every family has their individual priorities so we tailor our sessions to meet your circumstances. Sessions can happen in different places such as your home, neighbourhood, childcare centre, preschool, school or at our centre in Marrickville. Some sessions are one hour long, but they can be longer if that’s the best approach to meet your goals. Sessions can be weekly or fortnightly over a longer period of time or shorter, more intense block.

For more information see What happens during a therapy session?

For children with an NDIS package, Plumtree offers a range of specialist supports through a range of different programs.

How Plumtree works in educational settings

We work together with you and the school, or early childhood setting, so that your child is participant in all the routines. We adjust the environment or resources when needed, so that your child is learning alongside other children.

As the family, you have the main relationship with the school. We are there to assist as part of the team around your child. When we visit schools or early childhood settings, our appointments are 1.5 hours. This ensures that we can make the most of the time we are in the education setting, by sharing information and strategies with the staff. They can then follow through during their daily routines when we are not there.

What is a parent only meeting?

Usually, your Therapist/Key Worker will involve your child in sessions. However, there may times when a ‘Parent Only’ meeting is a better option to help reach your goals. Families often think that professionals must follow the traditional approach and work directly with their child to achieve outcomes. However, what is most important is that we work together with you to reach your goals. This is where Parent Only meetings can help.

What happens when my child is sick?

Illness happens to all of us and is common in early childhood. If your child is sick, your first concern is to get him or her well again! But it can be frustrating and disappointing when sudden illness means that you need to miss therapy sessions or other services at short notice.

The NDIA allows us to charge where less than 48 hours notice is given, however we prefer to plan ahead and make advance arrangements that suit us all and avoid charges. Talk to your Plumtree team member about what will happen if your child wakes up sick and you need to cancel. There are lots of things that your therapist can do to make good use of the session time on your behalf.

For more information download What happens if my child is sick and Cancellation planning when we can’t meet.

Working together with Plumtree

If you decide to appoint Plumtree as your service provider under the NDIA, together we will complete a Service Agreement. This agreement is relevant whether you are Plan-Managed, NDIA-Managed or Self-Managed. We both make agreements to each other to ensure you achieve the goals for your child.

For more information download Plumtree service agreement. Also download our Service agreement FAQ’s which may answer many of your questions about working together.

Don’t have NDIS funding?

We also offer a number of free programs and services available to all families.

If you have concerns about your child’s development please feel welcome to attend one of our drop-in playgroups so that you can get started straight away. Contact us.

You can also contact Lifestart who are the NDIS Early Childhood Early Intervention Partner for the Sydney region. Read more about accessing support through the ECEI Approach.

Early Childhood Early Intervention for children 6 and under

The Early Childhood Early Intervention (ECEI) approach is available to all children aged under 7 with a developmental delay or disability. For information on how these works see https://www.ndis.gov.au/understanding/families-and-carers/how-ecei-works-step-step-process

For families in the Sydney region, the ECEI partner is Lifestart. They will spend time getting to know you and your child and will listen to what is important to you and assist you to plan the next steps. They will explain the different kinds of services and supports available at Lifestart ECEI and from other service providers in the community. They will also support you with your own needs as parents.

Some of the ways in which the ECEI partner can help you include:

Sharing information to help you understand your child’s needs
Suggesting supports available in the community to help you achieve your goals for your child
Providing initial early supports if your child needs these
Linking you with other families who also have concerns about their child, if this is something you would like to do
If your child will be best supported by an NDIS Plan and funding package, we will help you to get started and then work to develop a plan with you