National Quality Framework
3. After an Assessment and Rating Visit
Fact Sheet | October 2012
Updated March 2014
Assessment and rating: fact sheets for education and care services
The following series of fact sheets have been developed by the Department of Education and Early
Childhood Development to provide information for education and care services regarding:
1.
Assessment and Rating Process
2.
Assessment and Rating Visit
3.
After the Assessment and Rating Visit
This fact sheet describes what happens following an assessment and rating visit, and explores issues services
may wish to consider once an assessment and rating visit has been completed. Fact sheets for Victorian
education and care services are available from
www.education.vic.gov.au/childhood/providers/regulation/Pages/vcsfactsheets.aspx
How is the rating decided?
Following the assessment and rating visit, education and care services are assessed and rated against the
National Quality Standard.
The National Quality Standard is divided into seven quality areas. The seven quality areas are informed by
best practice and the way in which high-quality education and care is delivered. The seven quality areas are:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Educational program and practice
Children’s health and safety
Physical environment
Staffing arrangements
Relationships with children
Collaborative partnerships with families and communities
Leadership and service management
The National Quality Standard is further divided into 18 standards and 58 elements. Education and care services
are assessed and rated against each of these standards and elements.
Following an assessment visit, services receive an assessment report, a rating against each of the seven quality
areas and an overall rating. The ratings awarded by the Regulatory Authority are:

Exceeding National Quality Standard

Meeting National Quality Standard

Working Towards National Quality Standard

Significant Improvement Required
Services must meet the National Quality Standard for all 58 elements in order to receive a rating of Meeting
National Quality Standard. As a result, services may take time to achieve this rating. Education and care services
performing well across a number of quality areas may receive a rating of Working Towards National Quality
Standard. The highest rating to be given by a Regulatory Authority, Exceeding National Quality Standard, may be
earned by a small number of services.
1
If the Regulatory Authority identifies that a service is operating in a way that places the safety, health and
wellbeing of children at risk, the service will receive a rating of Significant Improvement Required. The Regulatory
Authority will work with the service to resolve the relevant issues immediately.
Achieving a rating of Exceeding National Quality Standard
An overall rating of Exceeding National Quality Standard will be achieved by an education and care service if:



the education and care service has an Exceeding National Quality Standard rating for all quality
areas stated in the National Quality Standard; or
the education and care service has: An Exceeding National Quality Standard rating for 4 or more
quality areas stated in the National Quality Standard and at least 2 are among the following
quality areas:
o Educational program and practice
o Relationships with children
o Collaborative partnerships with families and communities
o Leadership and service management, and
a Meeting National Quality Standard rating for each other quality area stated in the National
Quality Standard (regulation 62(3)).
An Exceeding National Quality Standard rating may only be given for the educational program and practice
quality area of the National Quality Standard for an education and care service that educates and cares for
children who are in the year that is 2 years before grade 1 of school if the service either provides a preschool
program or has a documented arrangement with an approved provider of another education and care service to
provide a preschool program and informs parents of this arrangement (regulation 62(2)).
Excellent rating
Services that achieve an overall rating of Exceeding National Quality Standard may apply to ACECQA to be
considered for an overall rating of Excellent. The criteria for the Excellent rating are:



the service exemplifies and promotes exceptional education and care that improves outcomes for
children and families
the service demonstrates leadership that contributes to the development of a community, a local
area, or the wider education and care sector
the service demonstrates commitment to sustained excellent practice through continuous
improvement and comprehensive forward planning.
Further information about the Excellent rating is available on the ACECQA website www.acecqa.gov.au.
Receiving the assessment and rating report
Proposed assessment report and opportunity to discuss the outcomes of the assessment and rating visit
The approved provider will have the opportunity to provide comment, discuss the assessment report and seek
further clarification if necessary. Approved providers will be given the opportunity to make minor adjustments to
the service operation within specified areas and timeframes to address concerns identified at the time of the visit.
If these adjustments are made, the service rating may change.
Final report
If the approved provider has provided feedback the Regulatory Authority will send the final report and final notice
of rating to them around five weeks after receiving the assessment report. If the approved provider does not
have any feedback, the assessment report is considered to be final at this time and the final notice of rating will
be forwarded to the approved provider along with a letter confirming that the process is complete.
The assessment report and ratings represents a point in time assessment of the performance of the education
and care service against the National Quality Standard. The assessment and rating process represents an
2
opportunity for education and care services to receive feedback about their performance against the National
Quality Standard.
Appeals process
Following the assessment and rating visit, the provider will receive a report from the Regulatory Authority
including the service’s rating. The provider will have 14 days after receiving the final report and notice of rating
(or, if no feedback has been received, the report and rating is considered to be final) to ask for a review of the
rating by the Regulatory Authority (the Department). If the approved provider still wishes to review the rating,
they may apply to ACECQA for a second review.
Applications for the reviews of ratings by the Department and by ACECQA should be made using the
application forms available at the ACECQA website www.acecqa.gov.au.
Publication of results
The rating for each quality area and the overall rating for each service are published on the ACECQA
website www.acecqa.gov.au and the MyChild website www.mychild.gov.au. For services not yet assessed
the rating is Provisional Rating – Not Yet Assessed.
The register of approved education and care services published on the ACECQA website also includes the rating
for each quality area and the overall rating for each service. Transferred services will retain the existing rating
until the next scheduled assessment and rating visit is completed.
Displaying ratings information at the service
On completion of the assessment process the service will receive the final notice of rating outlining the current
rating level for each quality area and overall rating. This notice must be displayed so that it is clearly visible from
the main entrance of the service premises (including the principal office of a family day care service) (section
172).
Communicating with parents and families
The overall service rating and rating for each quality area are likely to be of interest to families and the
community. Education and care services should give careful consideration to communicating with families about
the ratings received by the service, and about the areas where the service is performing strongly and those areas
prioritised for continuous improvement.
Discussing the outcomes for each quality area may assist in this process, by drawing attention to areas where
the service is performing strongly and areas for continuous improvement. Open communication about both areas
of strength and areas identified for continuous improvement, and how the service intends to address these, is
likely to be valued by parents.
Quality Area 6 of the National Quality Standard recognises the importance of education and care services
developing respectful, supportive relationships with families and providing families with opportunities to be
involved in the service and contribute to service decisions. Consideration should be given to consulting parents
and families in developing and reviewing quality improvement plans at all stages, including after an assessment
and rating visit.
Continuous improvement
The National Quality Framework promotes continuous improvement in the quality of education and care provided
by services. Each service is required to develop a quality improvement plan that is reviewed at least annually and
that identifies specific improvements for the service. Assessment and rating reports provide services with a focus
for continuous improvement and should inform the ongoing development of quality improvement plans.
3
It is a good idea to be as inclusive as possible in the ongoing development of the quality improvement plan.
Educators, staff members, families and children can all make a valuable contribution to the quality improvement
plan and define the priorities for continuous improvement in the service.
The quality improvement plan is not assessed as part of the assessment and rating process.
Professional Support Program
The Professional Support Program is an initiative of the Australian Government, and is funded to provide a
responsive and nationally coordinated approach to supporting the professional development needs of the child
care sector. Under this program, state and territory based Professional Support Coordinators (PSC’s) plan and
deliver professional support to eligible services.
Gowrie Victoria is the PSC for Victoria. Further information is available at www.gowrievictoria.org.au.
Resources and useful links
There are many resources available to help you focus on specific standards and elements of the National Quality
Standard. Meeting the requirements of the National Quality Standard requires services to make decisions about
practice appropriate to their unique philosophy and context, as part of an ongoing process of critical reflection
and continuous improvement. The Department has published useful links for each quality area at
www.education.vic.gov.au/childhood/providers/regulation/Pages/natqualstandardlinks.aspx
When will my next assessment and rating visit be conducted?
The rating received will determine when the next assessment and rating visit will be due.

Excellent: Generally every three years

Exceeding National Quality Standard: Generally every three years

Meeting National Quality Standard: Generally every two years

Working Towards National Quality Standard: Generally every one to two years

Significant Improvement Required: The service is operating in a way that places the safety, health and
wellbeing of children at risk and the Regulatory Authority regulator is working with the service to ensure that
these issues are addressed immediately.
An approved provider may also apply for the reassessment and re-rating of a service, or for any aspect or
element of a service that can be rated against the National Quality Standard or the national regulations. An
application for reassessment and re-rating can generally only be made once in every 2 year period, unless
the Regulatory Authority agrees otherwise. An application fee applies.
Further information
The Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) is the national, independent
statutory authority governing the National Quality Framework.
Phone: 1300 422 327
Email enquiries@acecqa.gov.au
Web: www.acecqa.gov.au
The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development is the Regulatory Authority in Victoria.
Phone: 1300 307 415
Email: licensed.childrens.services@edumail.vic.gov.au
Web: www.education.vic.gov.au/childhood/providers/regulation
4