NQF: Child to carer ratios explained

National Quality Framework
Child to carer ratios explained

The National Quality Framework, which came into being on January 1 this year, aims to address the overall standard of child care in Australia over a number of years through several areas which include the number of carers per child and standardising preschool education provided through child care services.

Existing child care providers will commence from mid-2012 to ascertain compliance. Some ratios have come into effect from January 2012 although some are works in progress and providers have to comply by January 2016.

Under the new National Quality Standard educators will have fewer children to care for. There has been a lot of media attention about this recently as some of the changes came into effect in January this year and have forced many child care services to raise their prices due to the costs of hiring more staff to comply with the new regulations.
There are various categories for child care ratios across different age groups and types of care, so here is a brief guide to understanding what your child care provider should be working to:

Long Day Care and Preschool

Children from birth to 24 months = 1 educator to 4 children. This should be in place now.
Children over 24 months and less than 36 months of age = 1 educator to 5 children¹ - To be implemented by 1 January 2016
Children 36 months or over (not including children over preschool age) = 1 educator to 11 children² by 1 January 2016
Mixed ages = Must meet the minimum number of educators per age group at all times. This should be in place now.

Family Day Care

Mixed age groups - 1 educator to 7 children with a maximum of four children who are preschool age or under – to be implemented by 1 January 2014

Outside School Hours Care

The National Quality Standard and ratings system will also apply to Outside School Hours Care, but at this stage no changes to educator to child ratios or the qualifications of educators are proposed.

Some states differ. Please read the full CareforKids.com.au article here for all the details and also more information on the qualifications required by child care providers under the new National Quality Framework.

Further information about the educator to child ratios or qualification requirements that might apply in a particular jurisdiction before the requirements of the National Quality Standard take effect can be found on the State and Territory Regulatory Authority websites.

Further Reading
Child Care National Quality Framework and National Quality Standards
Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority