20 June 2026
NSW Government confirms funding for The Shepherd Centre’s NSW paediatric cochlear implant support
The Shepherd Centre has welcomed landmark funding from the NSW Government to support the ongoing delivery of specialist services through the NSW Paediatric Cochlear Implant Program.
“The Minns Labor Government is ensuring children with hearing loss and their families continue to receive the ongoing specialised support they need, contributing $20.4 million to The Shepherd Centre and NextSense NSW Paediatric Cochlear Implant Program as part of the 2026/27 State Budget, delivered in partnership with NSW Health through Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network and John Hunter Children’s Hospital.”
The funding will help ensure children with cochlear implants and their families across NSW can continue to access the expert, team-based support they need before and after surgery.
For The Shepherd Centre, this is a pivotal moment. It recognises that cochlear implantation is not just a surgical procedure. It is the beginning of a long-term journey that requires ongoing specialist care, therapy and family support to help children develop listening and spoken language skills.
The announcement follows advocacy from The Shepherd Centre, families, clinicians, sector partners and supporters who have worked to highlight the need for sustainable funding for paediatric cochlear implant support in NSW.
The funding announcement was reported by ABC News in a story featuring twin boys Artie and Jack Porter, who were born with profound hearing loss and recently received bilateral cochlear implants.
Their story is believed to be an Australian first: identical twin boys with the same genetic cause of deafness, both receiving cochlear implants in both ears on the same day, before having their implants activated together.
The story followed the Porter family’s journey, including interviews with the following alongside the family.
– Dr Rithvik Reddy, the ENT surgeon who performed the boys’ surgery,
– Dr Aleisha Davis, Chief Executive Officer of The Shepherd Centre, and
– Professor Payal Mukherjee as an independent subject matter expert.
Dr Aleisha Davis said the funding announcement was an important and landmark investment in children and families.
“This funding provides certainty for families and recognises the critical role of specialist support before and after cochlear implant surgery,” Dr Davis said.
“Cochlear implants can provide access to sound, but children also need ongoing therapy and family-centred support to learn how to listen, communicate and develop spoken language.
“For families receiving a hearing loss diagnosis, this funding helps ensure specialist care is available when they need it most.
“We are deeply grateful to the NSW Government, Minister for Health Ryan Park, the NSW Department of Health, and everyone who has supported this work.
“We are also incredibly thankful to the Porter family for sharing their story and helping raise awareness of the lifelong impact that early intervention and specialist support can have.
“A special thank you to our dedicated, expert team members that support and guide children and families every day.”
Emily, Jack and Artie’s mum has shared this heartfelt message: “The support we’ve received from The Shepherd Centre has meant so much to our family. From the very beginning, they helped us understand what was ahead and made an overwhelming time feel more manageable. Having specialist care around Artie and Jack, and being connected with other families who understand, has made us feel less alone. We feel very lucky to have that support around us.”
The Shepherd Centre has supported children with hearing loss and their families for more than 50 years. This funding will help ensure children with cochlear implants in NSW can continue to receive specialist support for many years to come.
Watch the ABC News story here. Read the ABC news story here.
Ministerial media release: NSW health budget: support for children with hearing loss
The Shepherd Centre will share more information about the funding announcement and what it means for families in the coming days.
Why philanthropy remains essential
The $20.4 million investment over four years will support the NSW Paediatric Cochlear Implant Program delivered by The Shepherd Centre and NextSense, in partnership with NSW Health. This funding is shared across the program and providers, and represents a landmark step forward, but it does not remove the need for ongoing philanthropic support.
For more than 20 years, The Shepherd Centre has helped fund critical pre- and post-surgery cochlear implant support through philanthropy, fundraising and the generosity of our community. This commitment from the NSW Government helps create a more sustainable and equitable way forward for NSW children and families who rely on this vital program.
For The Shepherd Centre, this funding helps make essential service delivery more sustainable by helping to address a long-standing gap in how this care has been funded. It does not represent a surplus. Government and other funding sources still do not cover the full cost of delivering all specialist services to children and families.
Philanthropy remains critical.
Charitable support will continue to play a vital role in helping cover remaining gaps in service funding. It will also allow us to invest more deeply in the areas that even further advance care: innovation and research, service refinement, better resources for families, outreach programs, expanded access and continuous improvement of our models of support, strengthening outcomes for children and families in NSW and beyond.
This is what philanthropy should be able to do: not simply fill gaps in essential healthcare, but help advance it.
This announcement is momentous for The Shepherd Centre and, together with continued philanthropic support, gives us the opportunity to build on this investment and continue leading the way in specialist care for children with hearing loss and their families.
