Foreword from the Minister for FaHCSIA

For the Australian Government, the safety and wellbeing of all children is a national priority and a national responsibility. It is the right of every Australian child to have a safe, healthy and happy childhood. To achieve this we need strong, resilient families and supportive, inclusive communities.

We also need the flexibility to identify and adapt to the changing needs of families and children. This requires investing in high quality research to better understand the environment in which Australian children are growing up. We need this solid evidence base to develop and implement polices that are effective and targeted.

Growing Up in Australia: the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children, managed jointly by the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, the Australian Institute of Family Studies, and the Australian Bureau of Statistics, is an important part of this evidence base.

The study collects a range of information about children and their families including children's academic ability, their health and emotional wellbeing, parenting, family functioning, early childhood care, and education and schooling. Since the study began in 2004, around 10,000 children and families have taken part in three main waves of interviews and three mail-out surveys.

The third wave of Longitudinal Study of Australian Children data was collected in 2008 and released in 2009. This data shows a very positive picture overall for most children and parents involved in the study. For example, teachers reported that over 80 per cent of children enjoyed school, preschool or child care and were eager to learn new things. Ninety-two per cent of mothers and 80 per cent of fathers often have warm, close times together with their child. And around three-quarters of eight to nine year-old children reported that they had fun with their family lots of times.

Naturally, not all findings from the study are good news. One area of concern is that more than one in five study children are overweight or obese, even though 87 per cent of parents believe that their children are of normal weight. Around a third of 8 to 9 year olds reported that other kids at school had treated them badly or picked on them. Although concerning, these findings will assist us in shaping our policies and programs to help deal with these problems.

Strong partnerships between policy makers and researchers can provide vital evidence to identify new opportunities for prevention and intervention, and to focus on what children need to have healthy, productive lives.

Of course, this research could not be possible without the support and enthusiasm of the parents and children participating in the study. To these parents and children, I would like to say thank you for your commitment and time. The contribution you are making will help achieve our national goal to give all Australian children the best start in life.

Jenny Macklin
Minister for Families, Housing,
Community Services and Indigenous Affairs