Acecqa – The Australian Children's Education & Care Quality Authority

Promote your rating

Promoting your service rating helps families to have a greater understanding of the National Quality Framework.

Displaying the 3 logos: Working towards, meeting and Exceeding the National Quality Framework

 

Logos are available for services to use in promoting their overall quality rating to families.  

If your service has achieved an overall rating of Working Towards, Meeting or Exceeding the National Quality Standard (NQS) you can request the NQS rating logo on the national registers.        

Use or display of the logos is voluntary. The logos do not replace the ratings certificate that all assessed and rated services must display.

The logos were developed by ACECQA and the Australian, state and territory governments to improve awareness of the NQS.   

How to request your logo

  1. Visit National Registers and find your service
  2. Click More details
  3. Click Request Logo
  4. Fill in your details and read the Terms and Conditions of use
  5. ACECQA will securely send the logo files and accompanying brand guidelines to the service's email registered in the NQA IT System.
  6. To update your service's email address, log into the NQA IT System, click on your service and scroll to the Name and Contact Details section. Click edit and update necessary details.

A ratings chart is also available on the national registers to help services visually represent their rating in each of the 7 quality areas. You can access the ratings chart by following steps 1 to 2 above.

Quality ratings on the national registers will update approximately 2 weeks after your service receives its final assessment and rating report. This is to allow for the 14 day period in which a review of the quality ratings can be requested. The correct logo will be made available at this time.

It is an offence under the National Regulations to give a false or misleading statement about your NQS rating (regulation 72). If you have any questions about the usage of the NQS rating logos, please contact us.

Share information with families

Helping families understand more about the National Quality Standard (NQS) can support families to better understand your service’s strengths, and goals for improvement.

The NQS:

  • is informed by research about best practice 
  • is designed to encourage ongoing quality improvement
  • includes assessment and rating of services in seven key areas, including the education program, health and safety, physical environment, staffing, relationships with children, families and communities, and the management of the service.

For families this means greater individual care for children, and better support for children’s learning and development. Most services will receive one of the three middle ratings below.

Significant Improvement RequiredWorking Towards National Quality StandardMeeting National Quality StandardExceeding National Quality StandardExcellent
Service does not meet one of the seven quality areas or a section of the legislation and there is a significant risk to the safety, health and wellbeing of children. The regulatory authority will take immediate action.

Service provides a safe education and care program, but there are one or more areas identified for improvement.

 

rated working towards the National Quality Standard

Service meets the National Quality Standard. Service provides quality education and care in all seven quality areas.

rated meeting the national quality standard logo

Service goes beyond the requirements of the National Quality Standard in at least four of the seven quality areas.

rated exceeding the National Quality Standard

Service promotes exceptional education and care, demonstrates sector leadership, and is committed to continually improving. This rating can only be awarded by ACECQA. Services rated Exceeding National Quality Standard in all seven Quality Areas may choose to apply for this rating.

rated excellent by ACECQA

To find out more about the NQS and how you can share information with families visit StartingBlocks.gov.au, our family focused website.

Telling the media

Contacting your local newspaper is one way of promoting your service’s quality ratings. 

We have prepared a simple media release template and some tips to help you reach the media. 

  • Download the media release template and fill in the ‘blanks’ with information about your service. The information you receive in your assessment and rating report may be areas to highlight in the release.
  • Take a look at the example media release to get an idea of how you can use the templates.
  • Use plain language and avoid using technical jargon.
  • Find an interesting angle about your service – this could be a particular initiative or program your service has which is different to other services i.e. a collaborative relationship with a local organisation or an activity program that encourages learning and development.
  • Your media release doesn’t have to be too fancy – you can just put it in a plain document with the words ‘Media Release’ at the top or you might want to put it on your service’s letterhead like in our example release.

How to find and contact local media 

If you are not sure what media outlets are in your local area there are a number of websites which can assist, including: 

Yellow Pages - allows you to search for TV stations, radio stations and newspapers in any region 

Local Directories - allows you to search for TV stations, radio stations and newspapers in any region 

Newspapers - provides a comprehensive list newspapers across Australia

Australian Live Radio - provides a comprehensive list of radio stations across Australia that have an Internet radio website.

Contacting local media 

Call the number provided and ask for an email address to send media releases to. Email your media release ensuring a contact number is provided for journalists and a photo is supplied if you have one. 

Providing a photo to the media

  • Ensure the photo is high resolution.
  • Include a caption that provides detail of what the picture is and who is in it. For example, Director of Sydney Family Day Care Ms Kate Smith talks with 3-year-old Joe Blogs about his painting.
  • Include the photographer’s name if they need to be credited. 

If the photo is of a child, make sure the child’s parent has provided consent for the photo to be published. 

Arrange a media event or photo opportunity

First, decide whether you want/have capacity to provide a photo opportunity or a media event. 

Photo opportunity

- If you can facilitate a photo opportunity, it is a good idea to include a note in the media release. For example, Media note: A photo opportunity can be organised. 

-  Once a journalist calls they will arrange a time to take the photo. Remember to get permission from the children’s parents.

Media event

- If you would like to arrange a media event, contact your local media first to let them know that you are holding an event and media is invited. 

- It is a good idea to have a nominated spokesperson and a presentation, and to provide advice regarding photography (whether the journalist needs to bring a photographer with them or photos will be provided).

Keep in mind:

- Parking for media and/or guests if required, weather provisions, and appropriate supervision for children. 

- A journalist will most likely want an interview, so ensure that the nominated spokesperson is fully informed about the service and the NQF. 

- Photos will need to be supplied or taken by a photographer provided by the media.