Dubai – November 14, 2025: Dubai’s Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) today launched the Quality Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education in Dubai – a comprehensive new guide that outlines the core components of expected standards of quality across early childhood settings in Dubai.
The framework was launched at a special event attended by more than 400 early childhood leaders, educators, and managers from early childhood centres and schools in Dubai. The event took place ahead of World Children’s Day, as part of Dubai’s efforts to ensure that every child has the right to learn, play, and thrive in safe and inspiring early childhood settings that nurture a love of lifelong learning.
Developed in consultation with early childhood experts, educators, and leaders, the framework sets out a clear and shared understanding of quality in ECCE settings, from nurseries and preschools to early years departments in schools. It provides a pathway for quality assurance that encourages reflection and professional growth for the early childhood sector in Dubai.
Aligned with Dubai’s Education 33 Strategy and the Dubai Social Agenda, the framework reflects the emirate’s ambition to build a world-class education system that begins with the very first years of a child’s life. It integrates international standards with the city’s local context, cultural values, and aspirations for every child.
At the heart of the framework is the concept of the Dubai Child: “A global child living a local life – an active, capable, curious, happy, and inquiring learner, growing in identity, language, and culture, and contributing to the rich tapestry of the UAE as a whole.”
Her Excellency Aisha Miran, Director General of KHDA, said: “The foundation of every great education system begins in the early years. This new quality framework ensures that all children in Dubai have access to learning environments that nurture curiosity, wellbeing, and a lifelong love of learning. By setting shared expectations and high standards of quality from the start, we are supporting the goals of the E33 strategy providing every learner in Dubai with a world-class, future-ready education, in line with the emirate’s broader social development agenda. Every child deserves to begin their learning journey in a place that inspires confidence, inclusion, and joy.”
The Quality Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education comprises five key domains that together form the foundation for quality:
- Learning and curriculum – focusing on teaching, care, and the development of children’s learner identities.
- Partnership – highlighting collaboration and authentic engagement with families, communities, and professionals.
- Learning environment – ensuring that spaces, resources, and digital tools promote inclusion, creativity, and wellbeing.
- Health, safeguarding, and wellbeing – establishing systems that protect and promote the health, safety, and wellbeing of every child.
- System leadership – fostering strong educational leadership, management, and a culture of continuous improvement across all settings.
The framework is designed to be used by early childhood centres, schools, and educators to reflect on their own practices, evaluate their provision, and plan for ongoing development. It includes expected standards, elements, and descriptors. Together, these components describe and illustrate what quality practice looks like in Dubai.
Fatma Belrehif, CEO of the Quality Assurance and Compliance Agency said: “The launch of the Quality Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education marks the first step in establishing a robust and transparent quality assurance system for early childhood education in Dubai. It provides a clear, evidence-based structure that will guide all settings and give parents confidence that their children are receiving the highest standards of care and education from the very beginning of their learning journey.
More than 400 participants, including early childhood leaders, teachers, and education professionals, attended the launch event, which featured interactive sessions exploring key themes from the framework and its application in different settings.
The Quality Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education has been developed as part of KHDA’s ongoing commitment to improving quality across the education system. It is both a reflective and practical tool that supports early childhood educators and leaders to plan, assess, and continuously enhance their practice.
The framework builds coherence across Dubai’s diverse ECCE landscape while ensuring that provision remains culturally grounded, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of all children and families.
Schools and early childhood centres can access the framework on the KHDA website.