A Research Evaluation of the School-Centred Community Hub Initiative

The Blue Mountains School-Centred Community Hubs (SCCH) Project is an innovative initiative of the Blue Mountains Stronger Families Alliance (SFA). The SFA is a strategic collaboration among government, non-government and community organisations representing all possible interfaces Blue Mountains families are likely to have with agencies providing for the care and education of young children aged birth to 12 years. The SFA, with the support of the Sidney Myer Foundation, has developed three School-Centred Community Hubs (SCCH) in disadvantaged areas of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales. The goal of the Hubs is to contribute towards disadvantaged children, between the ages of 0-6 years meeting their age-appropriate milestones. The Blue Mountains SCCH Project proposed achieving this through three interrelated strategies, specifically: 1. improving the children’s home learning environment; 2. enhancing child centred referral networks and 3. enabling successful transition to school.