About the Project
About Little Tasmanian
In recent years, Tasmania has been Australia’s best-performing economy. People from across the country and around the world are visiting the state, for its natural beauty, the cleanest air in the world, and its artistic and artisanal pleasures.
Yet there is something holding Tasmania back, and its consequences go deeper than GDP statistics. The state has the lowest literacy levels in the country. Almost half of Tasmanians struggle to read and write.
In our interviews with Tasmanians, they were unanimous about this number one anxiety. Specifically, early childhood literacy. It's a problem here that so many smart, passionate people have tried to address... the consequences are economic, social, and cultural.
The dominant theme of the positive stories was about people overcoming great odds, in an isolated and often misunderstood place, to do extraordinary things. At Brand Tasmania we thought: let's bring that story, those stories, into the homes of new parents. We wanted to be sure every Tasmanian understands the “you can do it too” aspect of this place and its culture. We wanted to start early.
The result is Little Tasmanian: a program that aims to bring the Tasmanian story into the lives of Tasmanians in their early weeks.
At their first appointment with the Child Health and Parenting Service (CHaPS), every Tasmanian baby will receive a Tasmanian library bag with a white cotton onesie, an inspiring board book called Little Tasmanian, a voucher for a library card, and beautifully designed magnets showing information on the importance of the first 1,000 days – of growing up Tasmanian.
The message is simple: someone just like you did it, and you can do it too.
About the illustrator
Shiloh Longbottom is a Tasmanian illustrator and designer. She works using Procreate, design software created by a clever team of Hobart-based people.
When Shiloh began working on Little Tasmanian, it was just a children’s book. She has since created a whole world around it.
It Takes a Tasmanian Village: Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy
Little Tasmanian is a key component of the Tasmanian Government’s Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy, It Takes a Tasmanian Village, which has a key focus on the first 1,000 days. Wellbeing is crucial for a young person, and it takes a whole community to build the six domains of child and youth wellbeing: being loved and safe, being healthy, participating, having material basics, learning, and having a positive sense of culture and identity.
It Takes a Tasmanian Village: Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy.
Key ingredients of wellbeing
Being loved, safe and valued
Things I need
Being healthy
Learning
Participating
Culture and Identity
Child Health and Parenting Service
The Child Health and Parenting Service (CHaPS) provides free child health and development assessments for all children aged 0-5 years. CHaPS is a service unique to Tasmania, providing personalised support and connection with health and wellbeing services from the very beginning.
Assessments are recommended every two weeks from 2 week to 8 week, and then again at 6 months, 12 months, 2 years and 4 years.
Child health nurses can provide advice, support, and referrals on a range of important topics, such as breast feeding and nutrition, sleep and settling, play and safety, oral health, parent wellbeing, and immunisation.
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Who will receive the library bag?
The library bag is provided to parents and carers of new babies born from 1 January 2023. The bag is given to families at the first CHaPS visit, which is the 2-week assessment and often a home visit. Eligible families who do not receive the bag at 2 weeks can receive it at a later visit.
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Are Little Tasmanian items available anywhere else?
The Little Tasmanian onesie, the library bag, and the board book are available for purchase in the Tasmanian store. The board book is also available to borrow from Libraries Tasmania, and at booksellers and retailers across Tasmania.
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Where were Little Tasmanian items produced?
Sourcing and producing Little Tasmanian merchandise, we did our best to balance several important criteria, including quality, durability, cost, environmental impact, supply chain ethics, and production location. All items were sourced through a Tasmanian owned business, with all illustrations by Shiloh Longbottom, a Tasmanian illustrator. The magnet, voucher, and onesie were all printed in Tasmania.
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I have feedback / suggestions
Suggestions, feedback, and ideas are welcome! Please send them to welcome@brandtasmania.com.au.