Little Scholars Burleigh Waters Childcare Centre Earns Exceeding National Quality Standard Rating

GOLD COAST, QLD — 12 October 2026 — Little Scholars Burleigh Waters, a childcare centre at 143 Christine Avenue on the Gold Coast, has achieved an overall Exceeding National Quality Standard (NQS) rating following an August 2026 assessment by the Queensland Department of Education.

The September 2026 result marks an improvement from the campus’s previous Meeting rating in October 2019. Little Scholars Burleigh Waters was rated Exceeding in six of the seven quality areas: educational program and practice, physical environment, staffing arrangements, relationships with children, collaborative partnerships with families and communities, and governance and leadership. Children’s health and safety was rated Meeting.

The rating is recorded on the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) national register under service approval number SE-00000005. Exceeding is the second-highest rating under Australia’s National Quality Framework, below the separately awarded Excellent rating. The campus also shared the result through its Google Business Profile announcement.

During the two-day assessment, educators demonstrated how children’s emotional development, family feedback and community engagement inform daily practice. Assessors observed children using the Colour Monster resource to identify emotions, a Food for Thought session that helped turn parent feedback into a termly excursions newsletter, and an educator incorporating Yugambeh language into bush and park excursions.

The assessment also highlighted the campus’s ongoing collaboration with ReadyKids occupational therapists. Initially introduced to support one child’s transition to school, the partnership has grown into weekly involvement across the campus’s learning studios.

“Meeting the standard means you’re doing what you’re required to do,” said Jae Fraser, founder of Little Scholars School of Early Learning. “Exceeding means an assessor watched the campus for two days and couldn’t find a moment where the team dropped the standard because they thought no one was looking. That’s the whole difference, and it’s the only one that matters to a parent.”

“Six of seven quality areas Exceeding is not a two-day performance,” said Jen Haydock, Little Scholars’ Quality Practice Manager. “The assessor kept asking educators why they were doing something, not just what they were doing, and at Burleigh Waters the answer was always there. Conversational Reading, the Food for Thought sessions, rostered performance reviews. None of that gets built in the lead-up to a visit. It’s just how the campus runs.”

Little Scholars Burleigh Waters provides long day care, nursery care from six weeks, toddler programs and a government-approved kindergarten program taught by a qualified early childhood teacher. The family-owned early learning provider serves families from Burleigh Waters, Miami, Merrimac, Varsity Lakes and surrounding Gold Coast suburbs.

Located beside Burleigh Waters Library at 143 Christine Avenue, Burleigh Waters QLD 4220, the campus offers on-site parking and operates Monday to Friday, 6:30 am to 6:30 pm.

Families can view the centre’s details and parent reviews on its Google Business Profile, find the campus on Google Maps, or follow driving directions from Varsity Lakes Station.

For enquiries about childcare, nursery or kindergarten places, visit the Little Scholars Burleigh Waters campus website, call 07 5535 3288 or email burleighwaters@mylittlescholars.com.au.