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Key takeaways
- A Quality Improvement Plan, or QIP, records how an approved childcare service assesses its current practice and identifies priorities for improvement.
- Parents considering enrolment can ask to inspect a service’s current QIP. It doesn’t need to be publicly available on the centre’s website.
- Seeing areas for improvement isn’t automatically a negative sign. Continuous improvement is an expected part of quality childcare, including for services already rated Meeting or Exceeding NQS.
- The National Quality Standard contains seven quality areas covering children’s learning, safety, environment, staffing, relationships, family partnerships and leadership.
- A QIP should help parents understand what the service is trying to improve, why the priority is important and what is being done about it.
Most parents choose a childcare service based on what they can see. But the ACECQA quality improvement plan that parents can request is a superior tool. It’s a document that’s quite revealing, and one you may not have thought to ask for. Under the guidance of the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA), a service creates its own ACECQA Quality Improvement Plan (QIP). This plan is like a personal progress record, showing how the service checks its practices and what it aims to improve next. According to the National Quality Framework (NQF), every approved childcare service needs to keep an up-to-date QIP and share it with families if they ask. This guide helps you recognise a strong, dynamic QIP from a more basic, generic one.
Table of contents
• What is a QIP in childcare?
• The seven NQS quality areas explained for parents
• What a strong Quality Improvement Plan actually looks like
• Areas for improvement are not automatically red flags
• How to read a QIP in five minutes before a childcare tour
• QIP vs ACECQA quality rating: what is the difference?
• How to ask a childcare centre for its QIP
• Frequently asked questions
What is a QIP in childcare?
A QIP is a self-created growth plan for a childcare service to help it improve and thrive. Under the National Quality Framework, approved providers need a QIP for each service. It reviews programs to meet regulations and the National Quality Standard (NQS), highlights areas for improvement, and shares the philosophy of the service. Ultimately, it’s about providing the best for children.
Parents new to the framework often search ‘QIP childcare what is it’ and may land on regulator or educator pages written for compliance work. Thankfully, the family-facing version is simpler to read. Think of the QIP as the service’s answer to two questions. What are we doing well, and what should we improve next?
The QIP must be reviewed at least annually but is meant to evolve with practice, not just exist because of regulatory obligations. In New South Wales, a similar document called a Self-Assessment Working Document serves the same purpose.
The seven NQS quality areas explained for parents
The National Quality Standard is the national benchmark against which approved services are assessed and rated. It currently contains seven quality areas. The table below briefly explains the NQS quality areas.
| Quality area | What it means for families | Example of a strong practice |
| 1. Educational program and practice | Is learning planned around children’s development, interests and experiences? | Educators can explain how observations of children have changed or extended the learning program. |
| 2. Children’s health and safety | How does the service protect children’s health, wellbeing and safety? | Supervision and child safety procedures are consistently understood by the team. |
| 3. Physical environment | Are indoor and outdoor spaces safe and suitable for meaningful learning and play? | Spaces and resources are adapted so children with different needs can participate. |
| 4. Staffing arrangements | Does the service have qualified educators organised in a way that supports stable care and learning? | The centre can clarify how it ensures continuity despite staffing changes or leave. |
| 5. Relationships with children | Are children treated respectfully and as individuals? | Educators respond to children’s cues and support them to feel secure and included. |
| 6. Collaborative partnerships with families and communities | Does the service listen to families and use their knowledge when making decisions about children? | Family feedback can be linked to a real change in practice. |
| 7. Governance and leadership | Is the centre well managed and committed to continuous improvement? | Leaders can explain a current improvement priority, what prompted it and what has changed so far. |
A good QIP should show reflection against each of these areas. It’s important to note, though, that not every element will be an active improvement priority at the same time.
What a strong Quality Improvement Plan actually looks like
The most useful skill when learning how to evaluate the quality of childcare is distinguishing a polished-looking QIP from one that shows real reflection. Five signals point to meaningful thinking.
- Specific priorities. The centre names what it wants to improve rather than repeating generic phrases about maintaining excellence.
- A clear reason. Each priority can be connected to reflection, feedback, evidence or an identified need.
- Practical action. The document is clear about what educators or leaders intend to do differently.
- Evidence of progress. There is some sign the centre returns to the goal and records what has happened.
- Family and educator input. The plan reflects more than a management-only view of quality.
ACECQA describes quality improvement as a cycle of self-assessment, reflection, and new goals, involving families, children, and educators. Look for thinking and movement rather than perfection.
Areas for improvement are not automatically red flags
Finding areas for improvement in a QIP isn’t a warning. It’s its purpose. ACECQA states that services rated ‘Meeting’ or ‘Exceeding’ should still document additional opportunities for improvement.
What matters is how the service responds to what it identifies. A good QIP names priorities, explains why, sets intended changes, and revisits them. A weaker QIP lists concerns without linking these to planned actions. Not all NQS standards or elements need to have active priorities. Services can prioritise the areas most relevant to their practice.
How to read a QIP in five minutes before a childcare tour
If you’re strapped for time, you can scan through a QIP as follows:
1. Read the service philosophy. Does it tell you about what the centre values?
2. Find the current improvement priorities. What’s the centre actively working on?
3. Look for the action. What’s supposed to happen differently?
4. Check for progress. Has anything already changed or been reviewed?
5. Choose one question. Take the most relevant priority into your childcare tour.
For example, ‘I noticed improving family communication is one of your current QIP priorities. What’s changed so far?’ Such a question turns the document into a relevant conversation tool. For broader tour preparation, our guide on how to choose a childcare centre covers pivotal questions in more detail.
NQS vs QIP quality rating: what is the difference?
The childcare quality assessment used in Australia is run by state and territory regulatory authorities. Each service is assessed against the seven NQS quality areas and receives a rating for each area as well as an overall rating.
A QIP is different. It’s the service’s own ongoing self-assessment and improvement-planning document, though regulators also draw on it during assessment. A short distinction to keep in mind:
• Rating: how the service was assessed by the regulator.
• QIP: what the service is reflecting on and improving.
How to ask a childcare centre for its QIP
Approved providers must make the current QIP available on request to families whose child is enrolled and to families considering enrolment. Simple wording works well.
‘Could I please see your current Quality Improvement Plan? I would like to understand the centre’s current quality priorities before enrolling.’
For a New South Wales centre, staff may refer to the service’s Self-Assessment Working Document, which is the equivalent document. Where possible, request the QIP before your tour so you can bring one relevant question to the visit.
Concluding Thoughts
Rather than looking for a childcare service that claims to be perfect, it’s better to find one that can explain its practice, listen to families and demonstrate how it continues to improve. You’re welcome to visit your nearest Story House centre and ask about current quality priorities. We look forward to meeting you soon.
Frequently asked questions
What is a Quality Improvement Plan in childcare?
A QIP is a childcare service’s documented self-assessment and improvement plan, as overseen by the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA). It’s a requirement by the National Quality Framework. It assesses current practice against the NQS and regulations, identifies areas for improvement and includes the service philosophy.
Can parents ask to see a childcare centre’s QIP?
Yes. ACECQA states that the current QIP must be available on request to parents whose child is enrolled and parents who are seeking to enrol their children.. It doesn’t need to be published online.
What are the seven NQF quality areas?
The seven quality areas are:
- Educational program and practice
- Children’s health and safety
- Physical environment
- Staffing arrangements
- Relationships with children
- Collaborative partnerships with families and communities
- Governance and leadership
Is it bad if a childcare QIP lists areas for improvement?
No. Identifying areas for improvement is one of the central purposes of a QIP, and even services rated ‘Meeting’ or ‘Exceeding’ are expected to continue looking for opportunities to improve. When assessing a centre’s QIP, look for a clear and credible plan for addressing each priority.
Is a QIP the same as an NQS quality rating?
No. The quality rating is the outcome of an external assessment against the NQS, while the QIP documents the service’s own ongoing self-assessment and improvement planning. The QIP can also inform the regulatory assessment process.
