Crisis and Emergency Contexts

05.1Understanding the Context

Crisis and emergency situations provide examples such as bushfires, floods, climate-induced displacement, family violence or unexpected loss of home and/or community. The length of these occurrences and how prominent they are are both subject to change. The ecological theory illustrates how the disaster affects housing, work, services and relationships all at the same time, and family stress theory provides a model of demands, resources, and meaning as a way of explaining adaptation. The Australian study has found that severe recovery times are one of the factors, as well as social connection post-bushfire (Gibbs et al., 2021). Teague et al. (2024) identified gaps in emergency responses for infants and young children following the bushfires in 2019 to 2020 through research with caregivers. But family violence is also a problem: 40 per cent of participants in the Australian Child Maltreatment Study (AIHW, 2026a) reported they had experienced domestic violence when they were children.

05.2Impact on Children and Families

Youth can experience changes in sleep patterns, separation anxiety, or role-playing with regard to disaster, regression, or exaggerated reactions to sirens, rain and smoke. Evacuation and displacement break for medications, routine, breaks for friendships, and breaks from learning. Loss, insurance, housing, and distress may be the issues that caregivers are addressing. Family member abuse may pose further safety and confidentiality issues, such as potentially harmful contact or the use of technology. Early childhood services can help put predictable relationships back on track and play, avoiding forcing children to retell events. Plans should include evacuation, reunification, medication, accessibility/disability, and current contact information. Recovery assistance should not end once the public has withdrawn their interest. Educators must observe authorized-contact arrangements and refrain from giving out location information or attendance in the case of violence-related displacement.

Unequal risk needs to be considered in both preparedness and recovery. Families who are disabled, have limited English, have insecure housing, are low-income, or have experienced past violence have less access to transport and less ability to store supplies/relocate. One generic plan may thus seem fair, although it leaves some children without safety. Services should approach families to enquire about evacuation, families' preferred mode of communication and medication, and safe contacts in private and make arrangements to refresh these arrangements termly. Children can have input with pictures, role play and selection of comfort items, but adults must make the final decisions concerning safety. After the disaster, teachers should take gradual adjustment in recovery into consideration. Even if a child seems fine in the beginning, a response to the smoke may be observed when smoke is re-introduced, when rain showers are heavier, or when media coverage returns. Educators can minimize exposure, talk simply, and identify the need for families to reconnect with support in practice. In situations of family violence, routine ways of communicating can pose risks. Careful access controls are to be implemented for messages, photographs, attendance information, emergency contacts, etc. Staff should have clearly defined escalation protocols and not make decisions "on the fly". Early childhood services coordinating and working closely with emergency agencies, health services and local cultural organisations is beneficial to community recovery. Drills, de-briefing of actual events with family feedback should be included in the review. Not perfection in a scary situation, safer action, restored relationships and continued access to learning. Inclusive Planning boosts community safety.

05.3Social Policy and Australian Responses

The National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032 is based on Prevention and Co-ordinated Response (Department of Social Services, 2022). Services must be prepared for local hazards as part of NSW emergency arrangements and respond to emergency-management directions. Incident and emergency planning, and protection from harm are part of the National Quality Standard (ACECQA, n.d.). In 2024, 56 per cent of the victims of sexual assault, whose victimization was recorded, were under 18 years of age, and at least 2 in 5 police-recorded sexual assaults were of a family and domestic violence-related victimization in reporting jurisdictions in the same year (AIHW, 2026b). Rehearsed evacuation plans, confidential records, and family safe communication/referral processes influence practice. Drills should be used to develop competence without causing fear in children or traumatization.

05.4Strategies for Practice

1. Child-centered preparedness: Practice hazards without graphic detail using play, social stories and simple maps (Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience [AIDR], 2024). Encourage children to talk about who safe adults are and comforting objects.
2. Re-establish relational routines: Restore familiar greetings, meals, rest and play soon after disruption (AIFS, 2024b). Maintain flexible expectations and predictable anchors.
3. Meaning-making through play: Provide blocks, small world, art materials and stories to allow children to make meaning through indirect communication (Emerging Minds, 2024b). Go with the flow and refrain from pathologizing all disaster themes as child-driven ideas.
4. Psychological first aid: Reassure, calm, connect, provide practical assistance, then monitor ongoing distress (Phoenix Australia, 2023). Refer when reactions impact participation in day-to-day activities.
5. Family violence safety practice: Have private communication, provision of accurate authorized contact details and safe referral processes (AIHW, 2026a). Don't contact alleged perpetrators to mediate or confirm a disclosure.

05.5Community and Professional Partnerships

05.6Resources for Educators and Children