Together We Grow

A community-wide initiative designed to turn everyday moments and activities into opportunities to support children’s brain development. 

State Library of Queensland and Queensland Brain Institute at The University of Queensland, with the support of Queensland Kids Partnership, are working together to promote quality everyday interactions between adults and children.   

Supported by The Ian Potter Foundation and The John Villiers Trust, Together We Grow leverages the trusted reach of libraries to equip families and communities with the tools and confidence to strengthen children’s early childhood development.

Building on the success of First 5 Forever, which has supported families across Queensland for more than a decade, Together We Grow extends this work through local government partnerships and a scalable, evidence-informed model focused on everyday brain-building interactions.  

Building strong foundations through everyday interactions 

For more than a decade, State Library's leading early literacy program, First 5 Forever, has helped families across Queensland understand the importance of talking, reading, singing and playing with young children to support healthy development.   Through State Library's statewide network of public libraries and Indigenous Knowledge Centres, the program has successfully embedded early literacy messages in communities across Queensland.  

Together We Grow combines Queensland Brain Institute’s world-leading neuroscience research and the expertise of the Queensland Kids Partnership  to expand this work beyond library programs, bringing families, local councils and community partners together to create environments where children and families are supported wherever they live, learn and connect.

Every interaction counts  

From infancy, interactions are critical to lifelong learning, wellbeing and success. Research shows that sustained back-and-forth interactions between adults and children build strong neural connections in the brain. 

Together We Grow will be guided by proven early childhood development strategies, such as Harvard University’s ‘Serve and Return’ model, and help communities:   

• understand how sensitive, responsive and enriching interactions support children’s brain development  
• increase parent, carer and community knowledge and skills to turn everyday moments—talking, reading, singing and playing—into high-quality interactions  
• enhance interactions with children through community-embedded opportunities for conversations, imaginative play and engaging storytelling. 

A trusted statewide platform 

State Library partners with all 78 local government authorities across Queensland, supporting 325 public libraries and Indigenous Knowledge Centres.  

Libraries will be important drivers of the project, building on the strong relationships and expertise developed through First 5 Forever. As trusted community hubs, libraries and Indigenous Knowledge Centres will help bring together local partners, support family engagement and contribute to local delivery. 

Local councils will also play a critical role in Together We Grow by helping identify opportunities across community spaces, services and networks to support families and young children.

An advisory group of expert partners will help connect the project to a broader ecosystem of early childhood policy, resources and advocacy. 

A collaborative, scalable model 

With philanthropic leadership from The Ian Potter Foundation and strong government alignment, this initiative creates a coordinated approach to improving early language outcomes across the state and Australia. The John Villiers Trust is supporting the project in central west Queensland. 

We are seeking additional philanthropic investment and partnerships to expand the reach and impact of this initiative for children and families.  

With the support of visionary partners and philanthropists, Together We Grow will strengthen communities, empower families and help ensure more children grow up in environments that allow them to thrive.  

Collaborators