The Quality Improvement Principles (QIPs) have been developed to support and enable professionals to improve the quality of early years provision.
The six principles
- Embedding values and principles in practice
- Making a difference for all children and ensuring their voices are listened to
- Promoting equality and inclusive practice
- Developing strong leadership and an effective and supported workforce
- Promoting effective partnership working
- Supporting wellbeing for all
Each of the principles is presented as follows:
- An overview of the principle and what it covers
- Reflect, review, respond - six questions to prompt practitioners to think about their current practice and make changes where appropriate
- The principles and the use of reflect, review, respond can be applied to different contexts and cohorts of children, and this can lead to a continuous cycle of improvement over time
- Each principle is illustrated with case studies.
Case studies
Access to high quality early education and childcare is key to ensuring that children’s learning, development and wellbeing are supported during their pre-school years.
The Quality Improvement Principles provide a strong framework for good practice within settings, with a focus on a whole setting approach, and on including parents.
As we know, every setting is different, and being guided by the Quality Improvement Principles is not about ticking a box or ensuring compliance but an opportunity for settings to use their creativity and innovation to develop and embed good practice.
A number of different settings have kindly provided case studies to accompany the principles, and we are very grateful for their help. A few have been edited for reasons of space, but these examples, which come directly from settings, really bring the principles to life and give practical illustrations of what they look like in everyday practice. Some of them illustrate more than one principle, and they appear in both places. We hope you find them helpful and inspiring.
Every effort has been made to ensure that these case studies are accurate; if you spot anything that’s wrong, please tell us!
If you have a case study you would like to share, please contact us at [email protected]
The Reflective Toolkit
The toolkit can be used by individuals to reflect on their own practice or can be used collaboratively as a team.
Each principle starts with an overview and is followed by 6 questions themed to the principle with separate columns for you to Reflect, Review, and Respond. The questions will prompt you to think about your current practice and make changes where appropriate. The Respond column can then be transferred to the action plan at the end of the document.
You may want to consider the principles one at a time in a separate time period (it doesn’t matter what order you do them in) this could be over a week, month or half term, allowing time to reflect on current practice. They could be used as a staff meeting agenda item or during a team development session. The principles and the use of reflect, review, respond can be applied in different contexts and to different cohorts of children, and this can lead to a continuous cycle of improvement over time.
Each principle is illustrated by one or more case studies which can be accessed by the online links underneath each table.
Principle 1: Embedding values and principles in practice
Quality Improvement Principles
- Start with clear values and principles that provide a focus for your work with children and underpin your practice.
- Everyone should understand the values being promoted within your setting and recognise where they have come from and why they are important.
- Clear processes should be in place to support new members of staff and families to understand the values and principles of the setting.
- When developing or updating your setting's values and principles, all members of staff and families should be included in the process.
Reflect, Review, Respond
- What are your current values and principles?
- What are they based on and have all voices been included in their development?
- How do the values and principles underpin your work?
- How do you share these with everyone who needs to know, including children, staff, parents and other stakeholders?
- How are your values and principles reflected in your daily practice?
- Are your values and principles in line with current legal guidance and practice?
Principle 2: Making a difference for all children and ensuring their voices are listened to
Quality Improvement Principles
- Recognising and including the voices and reflections of young children is at the heart of quality early years practice.
- Children have a right to have their voice heard and to know that their views are important. Listening to young children brings many benefits to both children and those who work and care for them.
Reflect, Review, Respond
- How do you promote the ethos of the unique child as being central to your practice and ensure appropriate provision and support is given to each child?
- How do you get to know the children in your care and how does this inform your practice?
- How do you listen to and include the voices of children in daily practice?
- How do you support and share children’s progress and achievements?
- How do you recognise and value the impact your practice has on each child’s development and well-being, and also that of their family?
- How do you use the listening approach to positively influence the early home learning environment?
Case study 2: Honey's Childcare
Case study 3: Kim (childminder)
Case study 4: Everton Nursery School
Principle 3: Promoting equality and inclusive practice
Quality Improvement Principles
- Every child is a unique individual. It is vital to recognise and promote equality and to embrace the richness that diversity brings.
- A focus on developing inclusive attitudes and understanding is essential. This requires addressing a broad range of issues, including supporting inclusive practices for vulnerable children and those with special educational needs, and developing positive and inclusive attitudes between the children, practitioners, families and the wider community.
Reflect, Review, Respond
- How do you challenge stereotypes and low expectations?
- How do you listen to the voices of all the children in the setting and ensure their views are prioritised?
- How do you challenge individual beliefs constructively and sensitively to encourage an open attitude to feedback and a willingness to instigate change? How can you support this change?
- How do you become more aware of the inclusion issues that affect the children and families you work with and what you can do to reduce these issues in your setting?
- How do you create a sense of belonging for all?
- How do you use your local community knowledge and resources to support the children and families you work with?
Case study 1: Knowsley Local Authority Early Years Service
Principle 4: Developing strong leadership and an effective and supported workforce
Quality Improvement Principles
- Effective leadership and management is key to enabling settings to continuously improve. Those in a leadership role need to have the right knowledge, skills and experience to do this. There are many different types of leaders, including setting or room leaders, an individuals who lead and develop their own practice.
- Those who lead have a central role in continuous quality improvement – they work with the setting staff to agree priorities, allocate resources, manage change and build a powerful shared vision that motivates others.
- Effective recruitment and continuous professional development that builds the skills and motivation of the workforce has a real impact on the quality of practice experienced by children, and on the ability of the setting to strive for continuous quality improvement. In addition to increasing their knowledge, staff also need support, practical help and appreciation of their contribution from management in order to do their job well.
Reflect, Review, Respond
- How do you inspire and motivate yourself and others?
- What makes an effective leader and what opportunities are there for career development?
- How are key leaders supported to promote and embed quality improvement processes?
- How do you ensure that effective training and development plans strengthen each practitioner’s practice over time?
- How do your systems and processes ensure ongoing compliance with legislation?
- What opportunities are there for supportive supervision and appraisal, including peer support?
Principle 5: Promoting effective partnership working
Quality Improvement Principles
Working in partnership is central to promoting the best outcomes for all children. This includes working with parents, and where required, a wide range of professionals and services. Examples of working in effective partnerships could include:
- where it has been identified that a child requires additional support;
- to promote the welfare of children through effective safeguarding practices;
- to support transition;
- the two-year progress check; or
- supporting the development of the early home learning environment.
Reflect, Review, Respond
- How do you promote strong and effective partnerships with parents?
- How do you network with other settings and professionals in your community?
- What difference do these make to children’s outcomes?
- How do you promote effective information sharing?
- How do you promote mutual respect between the different sectors, partners and parents?
- How do you find out what local services are available and how to signpost and refer?
Case study 1: Barnsley Local Authority Family Hub Nursery
Principle 6: Supporting wellbeing for all
Quality Improvement Principles
- Wellbeing underpins high quality provision and continuous quality improvement.
- Whilst it brings great rewards, working with young children and families can be demanding and challenging.
- Staff who are well trained and who feel supported and listened to, will be better able to nurture and encourage the children and families in their care.
- In addition, children who are supported and listened to are more likely to learn and thrive.
Reflect, Review, Respond
- What does wellbeing mean to you?
- What strategies and approaches are in place to support the wellbeing of staff where you work?
- How do you monitor staff turnover, sickness levels and staff satisfaction? How do you use this information sensitively and intelligently to inform and develop your strategies and approaches, providing extra support to staff when required?
- What strategies and approaches are in place to support children’s wellbeing?
- Do you know what local and national resources are available to support the physical and mental wellbeing of adults and children, and how to access them? How do you keep up to date with new ideas and information?
- How do you celebrate success in the setting – of both staff and children?
Case study 1: The Wonder Years
Case study 2: Tracie's Treasures