Author Identifier (ORCID)
Abstract
Quality, Leadership and Governance are central pillars in the role early learning settings play in children’s growth, development and wellbeing. By meeting regulatory requirements and quality standards through stringent business procedures and continuous improvement practices, services can provide high-quality food environments for all children – shaping their thoughts, feelings, and practices around food and eating.
This Quality, Leadership and Governance (QLG) module aims to:
- Provide critical context for how the Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) food environment is intertwined with National Law and Regulations.
- Support services to meet regulatory requirements, through specific resources and guidance.
- Provide practical guidance regarding food safety regulatory requirements, including the intersect between two separate regulatory bodies.
- Support services to enact quality improvement processes related to their food environment, through targeted, mapped reflection questions.
Keywords
early childhood education, practical strategies, food safety, food environment
Document Type
Other
Date of Publication
2026
Contributor's Note
This Quality, Leadership and Governance (QLG) module was developed through a strong, collaborative co-design process. For the purposes of citation and attribution, members of the Best Practice Guide Project Team, the Quality, Leadership and Governance Working Group,, together with those acknowledged under Workshop Development and Facilitation, Meetings Chair, and Additional Consultation, are collectively recognised as the Quality, Leadership and Governance Consortium. Contributions across the Consortium varied according to individual expertise and involvement and included Conceptualisation, Writing: original draft, and Writing: review and editing, as applicable to each contributor’s role.
Authors are listed in alphabetical order by surname.
Type of File
Publisher
Edith Cowan University
School
School of Medical and Health Sciences
Version
1
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Copyright
© Edith Cowan University 2026
Content Type
Full object
First Page
1
Last Page
50
Recommended Citation
Quality, Leadership and Governance Consortium. (2026). The best practice guide for early childhood education and care food environment: Module 6: Quality, leadership and governance (Version 1.0). Edith Cowan University, Perth, Western Australia. https://doi.org/10.25958/xda5-bz74