This document describes the principles of a human rights approach and practices that ensure the human rights of children and families are recognised, actively promoted and protected. 

ECI services are fundamentally relational – they involve establishing and maintaining trusted relationships between families and practitioners. This document describes the relationship-based principles and supporting practices.  

This document describes the strengths-based principle and supporting practices to promote family capability, confidence and self-reliance, acknowledging that children and families are experts in their own lives. 

The environment in which children and families live has a significant impact on outcomes. This document describes the principles and supporting practices needed to ensure supports and services are tailored to the individual needs of children and families, and that families are well connected to broader service systems. 

This document describes the key principle and supporting practices to ensure the right of children to learn, contribute, participate and have a say in matters that impact them. 

This document describes the key principle and supporting practices to ensure that practitioners know the importance of understanding the family context, recognise the family as experts on their child, and can identify existing family strengths, skills and resources. 

Cultural safety is critical to ensuring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and their families experience safe, positive environments. This document describes the key principle of cultural safety and supporting practices required for children and families to express their culture, views and needs. 

This practice guidance describes the key principle and supporting practices required for respectful interactions and relationships that affirm the language, identity and strengths of children and their families irrespective of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation and socio-economic status. 

Participation means attending and being fully, meaningfully and actively involved in all the activities and situations of childhood. To achieve the benefits of participation for children, genuine inclusion and meaningful participation extend to the whole family, including parents, carers and siblings. This practice guidance describes the principle and practices that aim to optimise participation of children and families in everyday settings of life. 

Everyday settings are the places where children live, learn and play. This practice guidance describes the key principle and supporting practices to build the capability of families and other service providers to strengthen children’s participation, learning and development in everyday settings. 

Teamwork is essential to forming strong, trusted relationships and collaborative partnerships between families and practitioners and professionals. This practice guidance describes the key principles and supporting practices required for effective and best practice ECI teamwork. 

Supporting children with developmental concerns, delay or disability and their parents, carers and families requires a community-wide approach. This practice guidance describes the key principle and practices to support communities to better respond to their interconnected needs. 

This practice guidance describes the key principle and supporting practices to involve children and families in decision-making and goal setting and makes sure that services and supports are designed to achieve desired outcomes. 

This practice guidance describes what we mean by evidence informed and the key principles and supporting practices required to bring together the rights and perspectives of children and their families with the best available research evidence and professional expertise.