The Hive has been operating in Mount Druitt since 2016 as a backbone to bring together residents, services, business and Government. Over the years we have listened to hundreds of families, worked with local residents, connected and collaborated with dozens of partner organisations, schools, services and governments, and developed an understanding of what is needed in Mt Druitt to ensure children start school well.
The Insight Paper Series seeks to share our learnings with the sectors passionate about making a long term and sustainable difference.
Strengthening Early Learning Quality Where It Matters Most
This paper highlights our decade of quality investment work with early childhood education and care centres in Mt Druitt. This work has contributed to a lift of quality standards from 43% of services rated “meeting” or “exceeding” national quality standards in 2017, to 90% by 2026.
The Check Ups Before School (CUBS) Paper addresses the importance of early developmental checks for children before starting school
Check Ups Before School Insights Paper
The Early Intervention Paper offers solutions for an intervention system that makes a difference for Mt Druitt’s children and families
Early Intervention Insights Paper
The Employment Outcomes Paper identifies the barriers many Mt Druitt residents experience in trying to access employment and provides a holistic approach to ensure they have strengthened opportunities to live well
Western Sydney University’s 2026 evaluation of The Hive’s Early Childhood Educators Network.
The CUBS evaluation report summarises the research taken in developing the CUBS program, and highlights the impacts it has had on children and families in Mount Druitt.
As a part of transport advocacy, The Collective in 2770 partnered with University of Sydney to evaluate public transport in 2770.
In 2020, Clear Horizon undertook a qualitative evaluation of the collective work of the Together in Willmot collaboration. The evaluation report covers activities since it began in 2016 to April 2020. In focus is the effectiveness, impact, sustainability, and lessons of the initiative.
This webinar discusses The Hive’s trial of a Synthetic Control Model (SCM) to evaluate the impact of our early years work. This webinar discusses the challenges of evaluating placed-based work, the benefits and limitations of SCM, evaluation outcomes, and broader learnings.
Featuring:
Catherine Marks, Principal, Ember Advisors
Laura Bird, Associate – Measurement, Evaluation, Learning and Research, Paul Ramsay Foundation
Brigid Burke, Engagement & Evaluation Coordinator, The Hive.
In December 2025, The Hive hosted a webinar, tackling the big issues: why community engagement matters, what it can look like, and where it can take us. (And whether it can actually create ‘place-based change’.)
Featuring speakers from The Hive and the Together in 2770 Collective in Mount Druitt:
Steve Pederson, Community Development Lead, The Hive – Mt Druitt
Renee Stevens, Community Capacity and Engagement Officer, The Hive – Mt Druitt
Brigid Burke, Engagement & Evaluation Coordinator, The Hive – Mt Druitt
Bec Reidy, Director, Bidwill Uniting
Parents and carers in the Mt Druitt community are resilient, strong, and love their children deeply. However, like many families in under resourced communities they face a range of barriers throughout raising their young children. The Hive has captured here the barriers that we have heard from families in Mt Druitt in trying to access services for their young children. We have also included our learnings about the steps that we believe policy makers, government and non-government organisations can implement to ensure all children can receive the support they need now and for their future.
