When I became a very young director in the late 80s I was thrilled. I had had a bumpy start to my career and I was looking for a really great experience that would tie me to a sector that I was sure was exciting, challenging and would offer me an interesting future.

I was lucky.

My experience turned out to be a fantastic one. I was director of a small community based neighbourhood children's centre that had mature, qualified staff (yes-we even had a nurse!) who had a diverse range of interests and talents. Operational subsidy and Commonwealth employment programs meant we had over regulation staff numbers and time to plan. Our waiting list was long and I would often have parents crying in my (broom cupboard sized) office asking for a place at the centre. With only five baby places, the chances were slim.

There were frustrations and the (slimline) regulations were not always adhered to. There were often challenges and disagreements, messy and disorganised environments, patchy educational programs and practice and, as a pretty fresh director, I often didn't have the resources to draw on to justify what I knew to be significantly better approaches to delivering a program.

Fast forward to 2013 and I walk into a service (albeit as a visitor) and see a different world.

30 years of experience helps me break down what I see. A passionate highly qualified director leads this centre…and she certainly does! The children are engaged with the staff and in the experiences provided in a beautiful, child focussed, well organised environment. The educational program here is planned in partnership with the children and families and an educational leader guides and directs the program- mentoring others.

In the morning when I had arrived the educators were setting up for the day. There was a discussion on extending experiences for some children - the planning was considered and well informed. 23 out of 24 of the children currently in kindergarten at the local school had a preschool education at this centre. It will be interesting, and I am sure affirming, to watch their progress.

The community and families are considered in all decision making and the service links families to local services and supports. Staff are involved in professional development and some are studying for higher qualifications.

I could go on, but you get the picture. This is a service that has embraced the National Quality Framework (NQF) and lives the Standards and the Early Years Learning Framework in their daily and ongoing practice.

Everywhere I go I can see the National Quality Framework making a difference. If I could name my top five best ever outcomes from the Framework it would be

1. Better ratios of staff to children and better qualified staff;
2. More engaged and connected staff, children and families;
3. Children showing greater cognitive skills, resilience and understanding of relationships;
4. Greater professional pride, desire to study more and career paths for those working in the sector; and
5. A community that is more aware about the importance of early education.

If I could link my 'off the top of my head thinking' with research how would these line up?

Early Childhood Australia has just produced a very concise summary of the research: Evidence Brief on Staff to Child Ratios and Educator Qualification Requirements of the National Quality Framework.

This brief, scoping international research, not only supports my top five benefits but also the interweaving of those themes around ratios, relationships, qualifications, children's development, and professional stability and career development. Quite literally, each is dependent upon the other and is an integral component in the delivery of quality services that take care of children, families, staff and the community.

Is this a surprise? Well it shouldn't be. The National Quality Framework was developed by the most knowledgeable of experts with reference to world renowned research on children's development, psychosocial well-being, families, communities and yes… economics.

Without a doubt the National Quality Framework is a road map for excellent, nationally consistent services. We are a world leader in this game - Australia was the first country to link funding to a system of accreditation (Quality Improvement and Accreditation System). We have the know-how and we are not afraid to use it.

It is perhaps, however the implementation of the new system that needs a little more time and work? Any change delivers challenges and this one is no different. We are realistically looking at three-five years before the system is embedded in the sector and this will require great efforts on behalf of the professionals within the sector, the state/ territory and Commonwealth bureaucracies, peak organisation, lobby groups, politicians and indeed the media.

Going back to my method of the top five that I think will make this work and make the implementation of the NQF most effective-in no particular order;

1. Communication - Sound approaches to the communication of consistent and accurate messages and information on the system and processes;
2. Professional learning - Excellent professional development and learning for the sector that encourages a continuum from untrained to higher qualifications;
3. Alignment and agreement - on the goal of the well-being of children and all round support for the system by all sector representatives, bureaucracy, politicians;
4. Increased funding - to ensure the sector is paid, resourced and supported to achieve the goals of implementation; and
5. Strategic overview and plan - with established operational plans, milestones, implementation review methods and rational thinking.

Interestingly, my top five are backed up by research about how to make any policy changes of this type matter. Implementation of Programme and Policy Initiatives- Making implementation matter produced by the National Audit Office for the Commonwealth Department of Premier and Cabinet in 2006 offers advice to senior government officers to consider resources, skills, milestones, and an overarching plan that brings it all together. It affirms the importance of issues such as getting the communication right when implementing programs such as the NQF.

Without a doubt some of the best practice implementation theory is taken care of, in this instance, through programs of professional development and communication strategies but there are others that fall short.

The alignment and agreement by all parties involved in the implementation falls well short of what could be considered satisfactory. In the first instance we all agree on the importance of the National Quality Framework and children's well-being but then 'too hard', 'too much work', 'too high a cost', 'too challenging' comes into the equation and suddenly we all fall apart.

Personally? I think children, families, staff and communities are worth it. With innovative thinking and approaches, a commitment to the cause and social justice principles and… with patience, we will definitely get there. We will see a system of integrity and quality, implemented well. I know this thinking is shared by many of my colleagues and most of the sector. Life and implementation of such a ground breaking reform would be easier if we all agreed.

In the words of a quote of unknown provenance:

"I'm not saying it's going to be easy, I'm telling you it's going to be worth it."

Community Child Care Co-operative NSW