Children in Hindmarsh, Northern Grampians, Yarriambiack and Buloke shires performed below the state average in five key development areas of physical health and well-being, social competence, emotional maturity, language and cognitive skills, and communication skills and general knowledge.

Mayors and school principals from the four shires have attributed the Australian Early Development Index findings to issues at home and low socio-economic backgrounds.

Those interviewed by the Mail-Times yesterday agreed the results were not a reflection of the level of education provided in Wimmera-Mallee schools.

Hindmarsh Shire recorded the worst results in the region with 29.4 per cent of children classified as `developmentally vulnerable' in one or more of the five assessment categories. The state average was 20 per cent.

Mayor Michael Gawith said he was concerned the statistics could damage the shire's reputation as a top education provider, despite posting VCE results among the top 10 per cent in the state.

Cr Gawith said a large number of single-parent families and low-income households in the municipality could contribute to childhood development problems, particularly in areas of health and education.

"What happens at home flows into schools," he said.

"As a council we will assist the schools to achieve better results in any way we can, even if it means lobbying for government support. Our residents are our top concern."

Nhill College assistant principal Ken Smith said the region's children might have underperformed in the social competence category because of financial restrictions.

"Farming families have had it tough and are less involved in social events than they used to be, so children are not getting as many opportunities to participate in social and sporting activities."

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For more details see Monday's Mail-Times.