18th July 2025
Welcome to this week's ARACY Insider!
This week, we’re focusing on The Nest — Australia’s first evidence-based framework for national child and youth wellbeing.
The Nest brings together evidence and partnerships to help children and young people grow up safe, healthy, loved, learning, and connected.
Together, we can make sure every child and young person has what they need to thrive.
What is Child Wellbeing? Discover the Definition with ARACY and Emerging Minds!
"Wellbeing" is a term we hear often, but its meaning can vary widely. This can make it tricky to truly understand and improve the health and wellbeing of our children and young people.
To cut through the confusion, ARACY teamed up with Emerging Minds to create an engaging animation! This short video not only helps clarify what wellbeing means but also introduces The Nest, ARACY's evidence-based wellbeing framework for Australian children and young people. The Nest was developed using research, expert input, and, crucially, the perspectives of children and young people themselves.
When we all share a common understanding and language around wellbeing, we can better work towards a single, powerful goal: ensuring every Australian child and young person thrives. This shared clarity breaks down barriers to understanding and collaboration, leading to more effective programs, services, and evaluations.
We invite you to watch this brief animation and learn how we can all contribute to the wellbeing of children and young people.
Let's work together to help them thrive in every aspect of their lives!
What’s in The Nest?
The Nest embodies ARACY’s vision for the wellbeing and health of all Australian children and young people. It recognises that every part of a child’s life is vital — from preventing illness and intervening early to creating the conditions they need to thrive.
At its heart are six interconnected domains that ensure children and young people have what they need for the best possible start in life:
Co-designed in 2013 with input from over 4,000 children, families and experts, The Nest is Australia’s first evidence-based national framework for child and youth wellbeing.
Just like a blueprint for change, The Nest comes to life when people and organisations across Australia use it to guide their work — whether they’re delivering services, designing programs, shaping policy, driving research or advocating for better outcomes.
By working together, we can help all children and young people thrive.
About The Common Approach
The Common Approach® is ARACY’s flexible, prevention-focused way of supporting children, young people, and families. It helps professionals and services work in genuine partnership with families, focus on strengths, put children at the centre, and consider every part of their wellbeing.
The six wellbeing areas it covers align directly with The Nest domains— Healthy, Valued, Loved and Safe, Material Basics, Learning, Participating, and Positive Sense of Identity and Culture — ensuring a shared language and framework for what every child needs to thrive.
Originally developed in 2010, the Common Approach was created to shift the sector towards more proactive, early support for families.
Underpinned by strong evidence and best practice, The Common Approach training strengthens the capacity of those working with children to prevent harm, intervene early and build the right conditions for lifelong wellbeing.
Training includes:
Sign up online for individual or small group training (under 20) or contact us for more information on larger groups of over 20.
Find out more and start your training:
Putting The Nest into Action
The Nest isn’t just a framework — it’s a practical guide for creating real change. Organisations, schools, services and communities across Australia use The Nest to plan, measure and improve outcomes for children and young people.
Putting The Nest into action means looking at all six wellbeing areas:
and asking, How can we work together to ensure every child has what they need to thrive?
Across the country, we’re seeing inspiring examples of this in action:
Case studies show how different sectors use The Nest to guide planning, funding, partnership and practice. These stories demonstrate how shared language and evidence lead to better results for children and young people.
We've highlighted some case studies below, but you can find more on our website on both ARACY's The Nest projects and The Nest initiatives from other organisations.
Explore the Australian Child and Youth Wellbeing Atlas
The Australian Child and Youth Wellbeing Atlas is an interactive online tool that visualises the health and wellbeing of children and young people aged 0–24 across Australia. Free and easy to access, the Atlas helps governments, researchers and communities understand local needs, identify service gaps and target support where it’s needed most.
Grounded in The Nest wellbeing framework, it maps data across six key areas — from health and safety to learning and culture — offering a shared, strengths-based view of child and youth wellbeing.
Originally based on the WA Child Development Atlas, the national Atlas launched in November 2023 and continues to grow, empowering better decisions and collaboration for children and young people, no matter where they live.
Mapping Child Wellbeing in Greater Shepparton
Communities across Australia are putting The Nest into action, and Greater Shepparton is a great example. In 2024, Greater Shepparton Best Start, Communities for Children, and the Lighthouse Project launched an interactive online dashboard to track local child wellbeing, using The Nest as its organising framework.
This new digital tool builds on the State of Greater Shepparton’s Children Report, making data easier to update, share and use. By mapping local wellbeing across The Nest’s six domains, the dashboard helps the community see where children are thriving and where more support is needed.
It’s a powerful example of how The Nest can drive collaboration, inform local action and keep children’s wellbeing front and centre.
The Story of Our Children and Young People (NT)
The Story of Our Children and Young People is a biennial resource sharing data and stories about the wellbeing of children and young people across the Northern Territory. It provides an evidence base to guide policy, planning and community action, supporting everyone — from governments to local leaders — to better understand where children are doing well and where more focus is needed.
The Story tracks over 100 wellbeing measures, using The Nest framework’s six domains to organise the data and guide local conversations and action for better outcomes.
Want to put The Nest into action?
Are you ready to make child and youth wellbeing a core part of your work?
ARACY can help you use The Nest framework to guide planning, strengthen partnerships, and measure what matters most for children and young people.
Whether you’re part of a community organisation, school, local council, government agency or business, we’d love to hear from you.
Contact us today to find out how we can support you to bring The Nest to life in your organisation.
Call for EOIs - Thriving Queensland Kids Partnership (TQKP) Intergenerational Stewardship Table
Are you ready to help shape a future where every young Queenslander can thrive?
TQKP invite Expressions of Interest from aligned and passionate leaders across Queensland to join TQKP’s Intergenerational Stewardship Table, launching in September 2025.
As a Steward, you’ll co-lead systems change alongside children and young people, commit to shared learning and collaboration, and contribute to a bold movement for generational wellbeing.
How to apply
TQKP especially encourage applications from First Nations people, emerging leaders (aged 24–44), regional and rural Queenslanders, caregivers, and those from across sectors including government, corporate, NFPs, and academia.
What do you think of this week's newsletter?