National Quality Framework

​​​​​The NQF commenced in Queensland on 1 January 2012 and applies to most education and care services including long day care centres, outside school hours care, family day care and kindergartens.

The NQF includes:

• the National Law—the NQF operates under a nationally applied law system comprising the Education and Care Services National Law and the Education and Care Services National Regulations
• the National Regulations—the Education and Care Services National Regulations support the National Law by providing detail on a range of operational requirements for education and care services
• the National Quality Standard (NQS) comprising 7 quality areas that form the basis of ratings and assessment
• 2 national approved learning frameworks outlining practices that support and promote children's learning from birth to 12 years old and their transition to school.
  

A number of learning guidelines have been developed that support and build on the approved learning frameworks in Queensland, including:

• the Queensland Kindergarten Learning Guideline—for Queensland Government-approved kindergarten program providers
• Foundations for success—a practical guideline to extend and enrich learning for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in the kindergarten year.

National authority

The Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) is the National Authority overseeing the NQF in education and care services in Australia and an essential resource for early childhood education and care sector updates, guidance and support.

Regulatory authorities

Each state and territory has a regulatory authority which implements functions under the NQF. The Regulatory Authority in Queensland carries out the following functions:

• licensing—assessment of applications relating to provider and service approvals, amendments and waivers and notifications relating to changes to providers and services, transfers of service approvals
• investigating—serious incidents and complaints alleging breaches of the law
• assessing and rating the quality of services
• monitoring and enforcing compliance with the legislation.

Resources

• The ACECQA website and Guide to the National Quality Framework are essential resources for the NQF.
• ACECQA's National Decision Tree can assist Approved Providers in deciding whether a notification is required and the timeframe in which that notification should be made.​​

Related links

Learn more about unregulated Queensland education and care services and those regulated under the ECS Act​.