What Minister Butler’s Thriving Kids Initiative Means for Allied Health Business Owners
Last Wednesday, 21st August 2025, Minister Mark Butler announced sweeping reforms to the way early intervention and developmental support services for children will be funded and delivered in Australia. The centrepiece of these reforms—the Thriving Kids Initiative—will fundamentally reshape the landscape for Allied Health Business Owners providing services to NDIS-funded children under nine years old (at this stage). As the sector digests the implications, it’s essential for Allied Health Business Owners to understand what’s changing, find their voice, and proactively plan for business sustainability and continued impact.
Sector Context & Advocacy
We actively participated in the PRECI Roundtable consultations across 2024 and 2025, and we look forward to welcoming positive, well-researched, and co-designed change for children and their families through this highly anticipated framework. However, the release of this report and framework has been substantially delayed.
Minister Butler’s announcement landed with force and stands to impact tens, if not hundreds of thousands of people—children, families, providers, suppliers and more. The rage and outcry have been significant and frankly, justified. We stand with Disabled People’s Representative Organisations in their protest against the ignorance and arrogance of both Minister Butler’s message and the Thriving Kids proposal. Suddenly, the Grattan Institute’s lengthy 2025 publication “Saving the NDIS – How to rebalance disability services to get better results” has become essential reading for context alone. Cronyism appears rife; deals seem to have been struck, playgroups are on the agenda, the Inklings program is under the microscope and schools will likely increase their support role nationwide.
Will Thriving Kids look the same across all states and territories? That’s hard to predict. Reportedly, Minister Butler’s announcement took Premiers by surprise, despite years of financial wrangling for agreement on Foundational Supports. The battles have begun and will continue well into the future.
Policy, Protest, and Uncertainty
The Australian Neurodivergent Parents Association (ANPA) is formally challenging the government (Hon Mark Butler MP, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, and Hon Dr Jim Chalmers MP, at the time of writing) for breaching the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), especially around NDIS reforms affecting autistic children. ANPA has given the Ministers 30 days to act or face escalation to international advocacy and legal bodies. We support and watch ANPA’s work and this complaint closely.
The Minister has committed to a period of co-design with the NDIS Reform Advisory Committee, states, territories, parents, and others to design the program, with oversight from paediatrician Dr Frank Oberklaid AM. The initial $2B funding won’t go far. It’s critical that a diverse range of providers are engaged in this co-design process—not just the well-established NFPs who may allegedly benefit from a shift back to block-type funding or any pre-arranged agreements.
Minister Butler also indicated changes to Medicare Allied Health items—including Occupational Therapy, Speech Pathology, and Psychosocial Therapy (curiously)—alongside a new “bulk billed” item for 3-year-old child checks. We know that bulk billing alone won’t suffice, and the assumption that families will make a co-payment is fraught.
Thriving Kids will roll out as a nationwide ecosystem, requiring a significant uplift in early education and school systems, Child and Family Service centres, a national information line, and workforce child development training.
12 Key Strategies Every Allied Health Business Owner Must Implement to Prepare for Thriving Kids
Now is the time for courage, creativity, and leadership. While the Thriving Kids Initiative brings uncertainty and disruption, it may also present a unique opportunity for Allied Health Business Owners to reimagine their role in children’s development and family support. Those who act decisively—embracing change, seeking out new partnerships, and staying relentlessly focused on measurable quality—will not only weather this transition but may set new standards for excellence in early intervention.
We do not believe that this will be the wholesale collapse of the entire small Allied Health Business sector.
Here’s how you can get your business ready for what’s next:
1. Audit Your Client Base and Revenue Streams
- Identify which current clients are likely to transition from NDIS to Thriving Kids.
- Identify which children on your waitlist are likely to transition from NDIS to Thriving Kids
- Quantify your current reliance on NDIS funding and forecast potential revenue impacts.
2. Engage with Local and National Sector Networks
- Join co-design consultations and advocacy groups.
- Sign up for, read and engage with relevant newsletters and social media pages and groups. Its time to be alert and not alarmed.
- Build relationships with community hubs, schools, and early childhood services that may become key referral sources or program delivery partners.
3. Review and Upgrade Your Tech stack
- Invest in technology that supports new reporting, data collection, and compliance requirements.
- Shift up to more sophisticated Practice Manager Software with better forecasting and reporting capabilities.
- Sharpen your Excell spreadsheet skills and usage for live data dashboards.
4. Upskill and Cross-Skill Your Team
- Read and discuss with your team the pros and cons of the early childhood ecosystem, service model and therapy programs being suggested.
- Consider training up clinicians in multidisciplinary, early intervention approaches.
- Encourage professional development in areas likely to be prioritised under Thriving Kids.
5. Diversify Your Service Offerings
- Explore provision of current services to new markets or the development of new services for new markets and write a business case for each.
- Consider group programs, parent education sessions, and telehealth services.
- Consider outreach to underserved or rural communities.
6. Strengthen Quality Assurance and Clinical Governance
- Review and update all clinical governance policy and procedures.
- Review and roll out clear clinical outcome measurement frameworks to align with anticipated quality standards.
- Understand and embrace contemporary models therapy, neurodiverse affirming practice and co-design.
7. Prepare for New Funding and Contracting Models
- Invest in your knowledge and networks regarding who is doing what, where and when, local intel is key
- Explore opportunities to partner, subcontract, or tender for block-funded or similar service delivery.
- Stay alert for new grant and contract opportunities as they emerge.
8. Communicate Proactively with Families
- Keep clients informed about policy changes, eligibility shifts, and service options.
- Offer transition support and clear pathways for families affected by funding changes.
- Coach clients to understand the changes, their rights and to self advocate effectively
9. Scenario Plan for Workforce and Capacity
- Assess your ability to scale up or down based on demand, funding, and referral changes.
- Prepare flexible staffing and service models to adapt quickly.
- Prepare and use a succinct communication plan for your clinical and customer service team.
10. Monitor Legislative and Policy Developments
- Stay up to date with government announcements, sector feedback, and evolving guidelines.
- Assign a team member to track and interpret policy updates.
- Guide and support Allied Health peak bodies, AHPA and relevant advocacy agencies.
11. Participate in Sector Advocacy
- Add your voice to campaigns for adequate funding, fair access, and meaningful co-design.
- Collaborate with professional associations, consumer groups, and advocacy organisations.
- Be prepared to roll up your sleeves, march in the streets and advocate effectively
12. Prioritise Financial Resilience
- Build a budget and use it, this is not negotiable.
- Build cash reserves, review expenses, and plan for revenue fluctuations.
- Seek advice on business structures, services, scale or sale to weather funding transitions.
Final Thoughts
The Thriving Kids Initiative marks a seismic shift for Allied Health Business Owners serving children under nine. While the path ahead is uncertain, those who act now—auditing their business, investing in quality, and engaging in sector advocacy—will be best placed to survive and potentially thrive in the new era of early intervention.
The overwhelm is real right now and the commercial reality of the Thriving Kids initiative is starting to hit home for many Allied Health Business Owners. Good news is that nothing appears to be set in concrete and the government is getting a lot of “feedback”, we believe there is still a window to influence the proposed changes. If you’re not sure how you will navigate all this and what ever comes next, and there will be more, then it’s time for that Power Call, book it in now.
