World-first program to help babies communicate launches in South West

A world-first program for babies showing the differences in social and communication skills is now available in regional WA, with Bunbury and Karratha the first programs to be set outside of Perth. Inklings— led by The Kids Research Institution Australia — is a program for babies aged six to 18 months whose communication skills are developing differently to expected milestones. It aims to supports parents of babies who may be showing early differences in the way they communicate and interact, including their name response, communication with sounds or gestures and shared interaction skills, as well as play and eye gaze. Following demand from regional and remote families, Out Loud Development Services in Bunbury will join Inkling’s three delivery partners, making the program face-to-face for the first time in regional WA. This, as well as a set-up at Connect Paediatric Therapy Services in Karratha, are the only sites outside of Perth for the program. First time mum Chloe Young found out about the program after a pathologist recommended sessions for her one-year-old son Atreus Carty. She said the program was life-changing and opened up her at first “stand-offish” son. “He was born prematurely, and premi-babies tend to be a bit slower with hitting milestones,” Ms Young said. “At the beginning it was difficult because he didn’t want to be held or cuddled and had a different way of playing, he was a bit stand-offish. “We learnt we were missing a lot of his forms of communications, it was like talking to a foreigner without a translator. “Every baby is different, we just learnt his way of playing, and he’s a completely different baby now. He was feeling like he wasn’t being heard and now he’s opened up to everyone.” Disability Services Minister Don Punch said the program being available in regional areas was a positive step forward. “It can often be difficult for families to access services in regional and remote towns. Having a program like Inklings so readily available is a huge win for regional and remote WA,” he said. “The program has some amazing impacts for babies experiencing differences in social and communication development, so I’m looking forward to seeing these success stories extend across the State.” Angela Wright Bennett Professor of autism research at The Kids Research Institute Andrew Whitehouse said the expansion of Inklings into regional WA was well overdue. “It’s been so great to see such life-changing research make an impact on so many families this year, and I’m looking forward to seeing this impact extend to regional and remote WA,” he said. “Inklings is all about helping every child reach their full potential and our goal is to give this opportunity to as many babies as possible, both across WA and beyond.”