Standard 6.1 (Supportive relationships with families): Respectful relationships with families are developed and maintained and families are supported in their parenting role. It has 3 elements:
For each element below: what it means in practice, what an assessor looks for, the common gaps, and a model short answer for “briefly explain” questions in certificate III and diploma assessments.
“Families are supported from enrolment to be involved in the service and contribute to service decisions.”
What it means: Partnership starts at enrolment. Families are welcomed, oriented and given real ways to be involved and to have a say in how the service runs, not just invited to events.
What an assessor looks for:
Common gaps: Orientation limited to paperwork; family feedback collected but never acted on; no visible way for families to influence decisions.
Element 6.1.1 requires families to be supported from enrolment to be involved in the service and to contribute to service decisions, for example through orientation, feedback on the philosophy and input into the QIP.
“The expertise, culture, values and beliefs of families are respected and families share in decision-making about their child’s learning and wellbeing.”
What it means: Families are treated as the experts on their own child. Their culture, values and beliefs shape how educators care for and teach the child, and families help make decisions about their child’s learning and wellbeing.
What an assessor looks for:
Common gaps: Family input collected at enrolment then forgotten; cultural practices noted but not reflected in care; decisions made about children without consulting families.
Element 6.1.2 requires the service to respect each family’s expertise, culture, values and beliefs, and to involve families in decisions about their child’s learning and wellbeing.
“Current information is available to families about the service and relevant community services and resources to support parenting and family wellbeing.”
What it means: Families can find up-to-date information about the service and are linked to community services and parenting resources that suit their needs.
What an assessor looks for:
Common gaps: Out-of-date noticeboards; referral information that is generic or missing; information only in English when families need other languages.
Element 6.1.3 requires current information to be available to families about the service and about community services and resources that support parenting and family wellbeing.
See the whole quality area in Quality Area 6: Partnerships with families and communities, or all 40 elements on one page.
Standard 6.1 (Supportive relationships with families): respectful relationships with families are developed and maintained and families are supported in their parenting role. Its elements are 6.1.1 Engagement with the service, 6.1.2 Parent views are respected, and 6.1.3 Families are supported.
Families are supported from enrolment to be involved in the service and contribute to service decisions.
The expertise, culture, values and beliefs of families are respected and families share in decision-making about their child's learning and wellbeing.
Current information is available to families about the service and relevant community services and resources to support parenting and family wellbeing.
WIDEN Law answers National Quality Framework questions with inline citations to the National Law, the Regulations and the NQS, so you can check the source provision yourself.
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