NQF Snapshot Q2 2026: 92% of rated services meet the national standard

ACECQA’s latest figures show a modest improvement from a year ago, while the national share of services rated Meeting the National Quality Standard (NQS) or higher remained at 92% over the past quarter.

On 1 July 2026, Australia had 18,197 approved services under the National Quality Framework. Of the 17,131 services with a quality rating, 15,805 were rated Meeting NQS or higher. That is 92% of rated services, compared with 92% in Q1 2026 and 91% in Q2 2025. The number of rated services increased by 88 during the quarter and by 414 over the year. 

The number of services rated Working Towards NQS fell from 1,491 in Q2 2025 to 1,354 in Q1 2026 and 1,317 in Q2 2026. Over the same period, the number rated Meeting NQS rose from 11,775 to 12,412 and then 12,587.

Exceeding NQS ratings moved in the other direction: 3,414 in Q2 2025, 3,242 in Q1 2026 and 3,193 in Q2 2026.

The year-on-year decline in Working Towards ratings also appears in three quality areas. In Quality Area 7, Governance and leadership, the count fell from 994 in Q2 2025 to 853 in Q2 2026. Quality Area 2, Children’s health and safety, fell from 891 to 839, while Quality Area 1, Educational program and practice, fell from 981 to 743. Each count was also lower than in Q1 2026. 

These figures count services rated Working Towards in each quality area. They are not counts of individual standards or elements assessed as Not Met, and a service can appear in more than one area. The Snapshot does not establish what caused the changes.

Preschool and kindergarten services continued to have the highest proportion rated Exceeding NQS, although that share moved from 52% in Q2 2025 to 50% in Q1 2026 and 49% in Q2 2026. The corresponding Q2 2026 figures were 16% for long day care, 6% for family day care and 5% for outside school hours care.

Family day care’s share rated Working Towards NQS fell from 23% a year earlier to 19% last quarter and 18% in Q2 2026. Service types have different operating models, so these comparisons describe their rating distributions rather than explain the results of individual services. 

State and territory regulators made more than 6,000 service visits from April to June 2026. More than 1,000 were for assessment and rating; more than 5,000 were for other purposes, which can include compliance monitoring, investigating complaints and responding to incidents. 

ACECQA also reports that 69% of services previously rated Working Towards NQS received a higher overall rating when reassessed. That measure covers reassessments in the Snapshot dataset; it is not a Q2-only improvement rate. 

For providers and leaders, the three Snapshots offer a useful benchmark: more services hold a rating than a year ago, the share rated Meeting NQS or higher is one percentage point higher, and Working Towards counts have fallen in several quality areas. 

Access the full Q2 2026 Snapshot here.