Community-led health research offers lessons for ECEC family partnerships

An ANROWS report from Beaudesert highlights the importance of cultural safety, community leadership and accessible support. For early childhood services, it raises questions about how family partnerships connect with the services around them.

A community-designed health service model in South East Queensland is drawing attention to the relationships and practical support that make care accessible and the barriers that can prevent families from seeking it.

Published in September 2026, ANROWS’ Healthy minds, healthy bodies, healthy relationships examines the violence-prevention and healing needs of the Mununjali people and their community in Beaudesert.

The project brought Elders, community members and researchers together to develop a model organised around physical health, mental wellbeing and relationships. Its findings identify gaps in culturally safe care while recognising the community’s resilience and cultural strengths. 

For early childhood education and care (ECEC), the report offers a perspective on family and community partnerships. It is health-service research, so its implications for early learning require careful interpretation.

The research used participatory methods, involving community co-researchers, qualitative discussions, workshops and a health survey of 105 adults.

Community involvement extended into interpreting findings and developing the proposed service model. The full report describes an approach centred on local knowledge and self-determination, with community members contributing to decisions throughout the project.

That approach prompts a useful reflection for ECEC leaders: when a service develops its family engagement practices, whose knowledge shapes the decisions?

Inviting feedback is one opportunity. Involving families and community partners while priorities are being identified can create another. A conversation may reveal that the information a service considers helpful does not address the questions families actually have.

These are possible applications for early childhood settings, rather than practices evaluated by this study.

ANROWS identifies barriers including transport limitations, unavailable services and distrust arising from experiences of racism, disrespect and poor listening. Its recommendations include community-controlled health hubs, coordinated support and connections between local services. 

For an early childhood team, those findings raise a practical question about what happens after information is shared with a family.

Providing a telephone number or website may be useful, but a family may still have questions about eligibility, appointments or whether a service will understand their circumstances. Educators can consider how their existing community relationships help them provide relevant information, while respecting family choice and the boundaries of their role.

A current resource list is a starting point. Knowing the organisations behind that list and understanding how families access them—can make the conversation more meaningful.

This reflection connects with Quality Area 6 of the National Quality Standard.

Element 6.1.3 addresses access to current information about community services and resources supporting parenting and family wellbeing and Element 6.2.3 focuses on services building relationships and engaging with their communities.

For providers, those elements offer a framework for considering whether community partnerships are visible in everyday practice. Do staff know where to find current information? Do families have opportunities to explain what support would be useful? Are local relationships maintained as staff and community needs change?

The answers will differ between services. A partnership useful in one community may need a different approach elsewhere.

The report proposes a service model; it does not establish that the model has reduced violence or improved children’s developmental outcomes. Its survey was small, and the authors identified limitations affecting the breadth of the analysis. 

It should therefore inform reflection without being presented as a universal blueprint for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families.

For ECEC leaders, its relevance lies in considering how local knowledge, trusted relationships and practical access shape family support. The ANROWS publication page provides the report and accompanying community resources.