Our Services
Thrive Feeding Clinic™ provides evidence‑based assessment and therapy for infants, children, adolescents, and adults. Our multidisciplinary team supports a wide range of feeding and swallowing needs, from early feeding challenges to complex dysphagia.
Whether you’re concerned about feeding skills, sensory needs, mealtime stress, swallowing safety or feeding changes following illness or injury — we’re here to help.
Paediatric Feeding
Assessment • Therapy • Sensory • Oral‑motor • Mealtime support
Selective or restrictive eating, sensory feeding challenges and mealtime stress.
We support infants, children and teens with complex feeding needs through multidisciplinary assessment and gentle, low‑pressure therapy.
Swallowing & Dysphagia
Assessment • Safety • Mealtime plans • Carer training
Coughing, choking, wet voice or difficulty swallowing food, fluids or medications.
We assess swallowing difficulties across the lifespan and provide therapy and mealtime strategies to support safety, comfort and confidence at mealtimes.
Breastfeeding & Infant Feeding
Lactation • Bottle feeding • Tongue tie • Solids introduction
Breastfeeding pain, bottle refusal, tongue tie concerns and slow weight gain.
We support families with evidence‑based help for breastfeeding, bottle feeding and early feeding development.
Professional Services
We work closely with GPs, support workers, educators and other allied‑health clinicians to ensure every person receives coordinated, high‑quality feeding and mealtime support. Our professional services are designed to make collaboration easy, clear and clinically robust.
GP Referrals
Clear referral pathways for infants, children, teens and adults with feeding, swallowing or mealtime concerns.
Support Worker Training
Practical, hands‑on training to help support workers feel confident assisting with mealtimes, feeding plans and sensory‑aware approaches.
Educator Training
Workshops and in‑service training for early childhood educators, teachers and school staff.
Allied‑Health Collaboration
We collaborate with speech pathologists, OTs, dietitians, psychologists and paediatricians to provide integrated care.
Support across the lifespan
Multidisciplinary support around feeding
Feeding and swallowing challenges are rarely caused by one factor alone. They are shaped by sensory processing, oral‑motor skills, swallowing safety, emotional wellbeing, medical history, developmental stage and family routines. At THRIVE, feeding therapy is led by Speech Pathologists, with coordinated support from Occupational Therapists, Behaviour Support Practitioners and Psychologists, and collaborative input from external healthcare providers when needed — including psychiatrists and neurologists within our broader Mind‑Care and EduCare network.
Speech-Language Pathology
Our Speech Pathologists lead feeding and swallowing assessment and therapy across the lifespan. They support:
Speech Pathologists are the primary clinicians responsible for feeding therapy and dysphagia assessment and therapy at THRIVE.
Occupational Therapy
Occupational Therapists support feeding by addressing the sensory‑motor foundations that influence mealtime success. They may assist with:
OTs do not provide feeding therapy independently, but play a vital role in supporting the sensory and postural components that make feeding safer and more successful.
Behaviour Support
Behaviour Support Practitioners help when behavioural or emotional factors are affecting mealtimes. They may assist with:
BSPs do not provide feeding therapy, but their input can strengthen the strategies recommended by your feeding team and help create mealtime environments where those strategies can work effectively.
Psychology
Psychologists may support feeding therapy by addressing the emotional and behavioural factors that influence mealtimes. Their focus is on understanding how anxiety, past experiences, family dynamics and regulation needs shape a person’s relationship with food and feeding. They may assist with:
NDIS support
As part of the EduCare™ group, THRIVE Feeding Clinic is able to support self‑managed, plan‑managed and NDIA‑managed NDIS participants.
We provide:
Not sure where to start?
We can help you find the right service for your needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
We support infants, children, adolescents, adults, and older adults. Feeding and swallowing needs change across the lifespan, and our approach adapts to each stage.
A feeding or swallowing assessment explores what is happening during mealtimes, how feeding skills are developing, and whether any medical, developmental, sensory, or oral‑motor factors may be contributing to difficulties. It includes discussion, observation, and evidence‑based clinical reasoning to guide next steps.
Yes. Most feeding assessments include both Speech Pathology and Occupational Therapy.
Families often seek support when feeding feels stressful, effortful, or uncertain, or when mealtime routines are becoming difficult to manage. If you have concerns about safety, comfort, skill development, or mealtime confidence, an assessment can help clarify what’s happening.
Yes. We collaborate with GPs, paediatricians, lactation consultants, dietitians, OTs, and other clinicians to support coordinated, consistent care.
No. You can contact us directly to arrange an appointment. Referrals from GPs, paediatricians, or other health professionals are welcome but not required.
You’ll receive clear information about the findings, along with practical strategies and recommendations tailored to your goals and routines. If further support or collaboration with other health professionals is helpful, we will discuss this with you.
We are based in Newcastle, NSW, and support families across the Hunter region and Central Coast, including Lake Macquarie, Maitland, and Port Stephens.
Limited telehealth appointments may be available for consultations, parent coaching and review sessions where clinically appropriate. Most feeding and swallowing services are delivered in person.
Yes — we support self‑managed, plan‑managed and NDIA‑managed participants through EduCare’s NDIS registration. We do not provide school‑based services, SIL/SDA services or support coordination.
Yes. We support families with early feeding development, including challenges related to coordination, endurance, transitions to solids, and mealtime routines. We work alongside medical teams and other professionals involved in your infant’s care.
Yes — including neurological conditions, disability‑related dysphagia and age‑related swallowing changes.