91 percent of services meet or exceed the National Quality Standard for the second quarter
91% of children’s education and care services are rated Meeting National Quality Standard (NQS) or above, according to the latest NQF Snapshot released today by the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA).
“For the second quarter in a row, 91% of education and care services are rated Meeting NQS or above. This is a great result and a continuation of the steady improvement in quality ratings that has taken place since the National Quality Framework was introduced – from 56% Meeting NQS and above in 2013 to 91% today,” noted ACECQA CEO Gabrielle Sinclair. “These quality improvements benefit children and families. The teachers, educators, service staff and approved providers who have worked hard to achieve these results should be very proud.”
The report presents data about services operating under Australia’s National Quality Framework (NQF). It provides an overview of the children’s education and care sector and describes the steady growth in the number of approved services from 15,000 in 2015 to almost 18,000 in 2025, and the consistent trend in continuous quality improvement. Raw data is available to download. The report is also supplemented by an interactive Online Snapshot with additional data on staffing waivers and other topics.
NQF-regulated children’s education and care services include long day care, outside school hours care and family day care services, as well as most preschools and kindergartens. ACECQA is the independent national authority that assists governments in administering the NQF for children’s education and care. Our functions include:
- keeping national information on the assessment, rating and regulation of services
- publishing the ratings of services through quarterly NQF Snapshots
- promoting continuous quality improvement by services through the development and publication of the Guide to the NQF, research reports and sector resources
- supporting parents and carers to understand quality in services through a family focussed website, StartingBlocks.gov.au.