Quality Area 7 of the National Quality Framework focuses on governance and leadership, supporting the effective management of services and continuous improvement in quality outcomes for children.
A key part of good governance is ensuring policies and procedures are current, understood by staff, and reflected in everyday practice.
With recent child safety reforms now in place, services are reminded of the need to review their policies and procedures to ensure they reflect the updated requirements. In particular, this includes recent changes relating to:
- the promotion of a culture of child safety and wellbeing; and
- the safe use of digital technologies and online environments, including new device requirements.
Having the right policies in place is only one part of effective governance. Educators and other staff also need to understand their responsibilities and how policies apply to their work.
Approved providers should consider whether their policies and procedures for induction, child protection and child safety training, ongoing professional learning and information sharing are supporting staff to fulfil their roles effectively. When requirements change, consider what information staff need and how it will be communicated, and whether any additional training is required.
Regularly reviewing policies, communicating changes and supporting staff to put requirements into practice can strengthen a service’s culture of child safety, accountability, and continuous improvement.
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