It’s time to stop pretending ownership determines quality in early childhood education

For years, Australia’s early childhood education and care conversation has been trapped in an overly simple narrative: not-for-profit equals good, private equals risky.

It is tidy. It is easy to repeat. It is politically convenient.

But it is also incomplete and increasingly unhelpful for a sector facing workforce shortages, affordability pressures, rising demand and significant reform.

If Australia is serious about building a high-quality, accessible early learning system, we need to move beyond labels and have a more mature conversation about what actually drives quality.

Because ownership, on its own, does not determine outcomes.

Practice does.

Leadership does.

Culture does.

Capability does.

Relationships do.

Australia’s early childhood sector is entering a defining period.

Demand for places is rising, workforce pressures remain intense, operating costs continue to climb, and governments are pursuing reforms designed to improve access, affordability and outcomes for children.

At the same time, public debate about the sector has become increasingly focused on ownership structures, often at the expense of a deeper conversation about what children, families and educators actually experience each day.

This moment calls for more than simplified narratives.

It calls for a clearer understanding that excellence can exist across different models, and that underperformance can too.

The sector has spent too long debating structure while sometimes overlooking substance.

System-level data is important. It helps governments, regulators and the sector identify patterns, risks and inequities.

But data is also blunt.

It cannot always capture the texture of everyday practice. It cannot easily measure whether educators feel supported, whether leadership is visible, whether families feel known, or whether decisions are made quickly when children need something to change.

When ownership type becomes a shortcut for judging quality, complexity gets flattened.

And early childhood education is anything but simple.

What many small private providers are quietly doing well

Across Australia, many small private providers are delivering high-quality, intentional and community-connected practice.

Not because they are private.

Not despite being private.

But because in many cases their structure allows decisions to be made close to the floor, where quality actually lives.

That often creates real advantages.

Decisions can happen quickly

When owners and leaders are present, problems can be solved in real time.

If a room needs extra support, an educator needs mentoring, a family requires flexibility, or an environment needs improvement, action can happen quickly rather than moving through layers of approval.

Programs can reflect local need

Many smaller providers tailor their offering to their communities.

That may include language immersion, nature-based learning, physical literacy programs, culturally responsive practice, intergenerational partnerships or stronger transitions to school.

They are often agile enough to adapt without waiting for a central office model to catch up.

Relationships become part of the operating model

In many smaller services, families know who owns or leads the business.

Leaders know children by name.

Educators are visible, heard and supported.

This does not guarantee quality, but it can strengthen accountability and trust.

Educators feel led, not just managed

Many educators say what matters most is not ownership structure, but whether leadership is present, fair, supportive and professionally credible.

That can be found in private, not-for-profit and public settings alike.

The uncomfortable truth: no model owns excellence

Most people in the sector already know this.

There are exceptional not-for-profit providers.

There are exceptional private providers.

There are underperforming examples in every category.

Large organisations can bring scale, systems and investment.

They can also become distant, process-heavy and slow to respond.

Small organisations can be relational, agile and locally attuned.

They can also struggle if leadership capability is weak.

Ownership is not the measure.

Execution is.

What quality really looks like

Quality in early childhood education is not a logo, tax status or governance label.

It is visible in daily behaviours:

• children being safe, known and nurtured
• educators who are stable, valued and developed
• leadership that understands pedagogy and operations
• families who feel respected and engaged
• environments that invite learning and wellbeing
• accountability that is lived, not laminated
• continuous improvement that goes beyond compliance

None of these outcomes belong exclusively to one ownership model.

Why dismissing small private providers is risky

Australia is expanding early learning access while navigating workforce shortages, viability pressure and rising operating costs.

No single model can meet national demand alone.

Small private providers are already part of the delivery system. They operate in growth corridors, regional communities and suburbs where demand is growing quickly. They create jobs, build services and often respond faster to local needs than larger systems can.

To dismiss their contribution because it does not align with a preferred narrative is not only unfair.

It is strategically shortsighted.

The conversation we should be having

Instead of asking whether a service is private or not-for-profit, we should be asking:

• Are children thriving here?
• Are educators supported here?
• Is leadership capable and present here?
• Are families respected here?
• Is quality improving here?
• Is accountability real here?

Those are the questions that matter.

A more honest path forward

If we want a sector where quality is consistent, equitable and expected, we need to stop judging services by ownership model alone.

What shapes outcomes is what happens inside the service each day: the leadership, the culture, the capability, the relationships and the intentionality behind practice.

It is time to move the conversation away from labels and towards what truly matters, quality experiences for children, strong support for educators, meaningful partnerships with families and accountable leadership.

Small private providers are not perfect. No part of this sector is. But many are delivering thoughtful, community-connected and high-quality practice that deserves recognition.

If Australia is serious about building a world-class early learning system, it must reward excellence wherever it is found, challenge underperformance wherever it exists, and focus less on who owns services and more on how they are led.