This report lays out an ambitious research agenda for building a stronger, home-grown evidence base using early childhood data. It aims to guide work by AERO and their partners across the ECEC sector, policy and research.

This study examines access to and quality of public open space and young children’s mental health across eight Australian capital cities using a unique population linked dataset, the Australian Early Development Census—Built Environment.

This literature summary reviews key research studies that compare developmental, educational, health and wellbeing, and criminal justice outcomes for maltreated children who were placed in out-of-home care with those who remained with their birth families.

In 2021, more than 63,000 children were assessed as developmentally vulnerable when they started school, according to the Australian Early Development Census (AEDC). This analysis highlights the circumstances of disadvantage experienced by many of these children, how inequity of access to high quality Early Education and Care (ECEC) services contributes to this issue, and how...

This position paper outlines a number of policy initiatives the Mitchell Institute would like to see the next Australian government take action on.