Crisis and Emergency Contexts

Crises and emergencies include situations involving climatic disasters like bushfires, floods, and droughts, as well as family and domestic violence and displacement. In cases of single-parent households, the challenge to recover from the effects of the disaster is compounded by the fact that there is only one person earning money and handling housing loss and insurance claims. In blended families, a crisis can mean the displacement of two separate families, because the child moves around between the two households.

The theory of resilience and risk and the chronosystem level of Bronfenbrenner's (1979) Ecological Model provide an understanding of the crisis event as a major environmental disruption that influences the family by engaging with its existing risks and protective factors. Grace et al. (2022) claim that resilience is not a characteristic; rather, it can be developed by early childhood environments using positive relationships, reliable routines, and feeling safe. UNICEF Australia (2024) found that Australian children affected by climate crises have to pay high mental, educational, and economic costs, and disruptions to early childhood education opportunities have become a national concern.

The situation is expanding in terms of scope. Bushfires, floods, cyclones, and extremely hot weather events are becoming increasingly disruptive for ECEC services and family life throughout Australia (UNICEF Australia, 2024). Family violence also persists as a common problem throughout the country, as children have now been identified as being the victims of family violence themselves, rather than simply witnessing such violence, in the current policy framework of Australia (DSS, 2022). Both crises impact families that are economically or socially disadvantaged, including numerous single-parent families. The proportion of childhood exposure to family violence is large: 13% of Australians witnessed violence against a parent by a partner in their childhood (up until the age of 15), with the figure being significantly higher among women (16%) than among men (11%) (ABS, 2023). Since these experiences are part of the respondents' childhood, this means that the generational dimension of family violence experienced by today's early childhood educators is substantial.

Children's exposure to disasters and displacement during early childhood has been linked to increased anxiety, sleep disturbance, regression of development and interference with early learning due to service closure or relocation (UNICEF Australia, 2024). Early childhood exposure to family violence has also been identified as highly correlated with trauma reactions, attachment difficulties and risks to mental wellbeing into the future, where children are specifically identified under the National Plan as requiring a targeted response rather than being regarded as mere witnesses to violence against a parent (DSS, 2022). For single-parent families dealing with crises, this lowers the ability to maintain stable routines, while in blended families, a crisis impacting one of the households will impact both. ECEC services working within crises need to plan for emergencies and continuity, as well as trauma-informed re-engagement after disasters and confidential support of children and families experiencing family violence.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction Framework directs Australia's whole-of-society response to disaster management, yet UNICEF Australia (2024) finds that the unique needs of children are overlooked in contemporary disaster planning and funding. In terms of practical application, the Helping Hands disaster resilience program, designed for early childhood educators, prepares services for preparation, response, and recovery from an emergency situation (Australian Disaster Resilience Knowledge Hub, n.d.). Regarding family violence, the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022–2032 represents the overall 10-year plan in Australia, expanding its scope to include children in their own right as victims (DSS, 2022), supplemented by action taken within the framework of First Nations through Our Ways – Strong Ways – Our Voices 2026–2036. In the case of Victoria, the Disaster Recovery funding provides for the establishment of a grant program in the interest of aiding the recovery of early childhood services after bushfires and thus influencing service budgeting towards emergency preparedness. These frameworks shape ECEC practice through requirements to incorporate family violence awareness in staff training and establish quick referral procedures for emergency cases, rather than conducting general emergency drills.

Grace et al. (2022) define resilience as an aspect that environments can deliberately create; this is the central objective of the five strategies below. The five evidence-based strategies to help children and families during times of crisis and emergencies include:

These agencies work alongside ECEC facilities through emergency preparation programs, resources for trauma recovery, and confidential referrals for families experiencing violence.

These resources help services prepare before a crisis and re-engage children sensitively afterwards.

These materials assist children in coming to terms with frightening situations and develop the vocabulary of resilience required by educators.