CHILDREN’S charity Royal Far West, in partnership with the Mid North Coast Local Health District, with support from the Corella Fund, Mary Alice Foundation and Ronald McDonald House Charities, will be delivering free child health checks for children aged 3-5 through the Healthy Kids Bus Stop program, which is coming to Nana Glen Tuesday 1 – Wednesday 2 June, and Ulong Thursday 3 June and in the morning of Friday 4 June 2021.

The Healthy Kids Bus Stop brings together child and family health nurses, audiometry, dietetics, oral health, speech pathology and occupational therapy screening services to give children a comprehensive school-readiness check.

Assessments include a child health check, hearing screening, dental check, fine and gross motor skill development screening, language and speech development check, and a food nutrition check, all at the one location in either a morning or afternoon appointment.

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Identifying children’s developmental issues before they start school is critical to their life trajectory, and this award-winning screening program was developed to help identify children who will benefit from some form of early intervention prior to starting school.

Children requiring further assessment will be referred to appropriate local services, and those with complex needs may also be referred to Royal Far West’s Paediatric Developmental Program.

The screenings will be held in the community halls in both Nana Glen and Ulong.

The program is a collaborative exercise to benefit young children within the community at no cost to their parents/carers, and includes local preschools, schools, councils and community service organisations.

Royal Far West’s Community Programs Manager John Reid said this is the first time the Bus Stop is visiting Nana Glen and Ulong but has a long partnership history with the Local Health District, delivering in many other locations.

“The Bus Stops are a great initiative, offering free health checks in local towns in a friendly, inclusive program.

“Each health station assesses an important area of a child’s current health and wellbeing, and gives parents the opportunity to address any issues.

“There have been many instances where issues have been picked up that parents had not identified – most of us are not experts in these areas and it is a great opportunity to have these checks done in the one location on the same day,” he said.

Children must be registered to attend the Bus Stop, and must be accompanied by an adult. Registrations can be done at http://www.royalfarwest.org.au/programs/healthy-kids-bus-stop/, or by calling Royal Far West’s Outreach Team on 02 8966 8557 for more information.