Ensuring ongoing quality experiences for children, parents and staff should be at the heart of all out of school care services and embedded in all aspects of the service from delivery to administration. Services are awarded quality grades (on a scale of 1 – 6) by the Care Inspectorate inspectors; the quality grades are as a follow:

1. unsatisfactory
2. weak
3. satisfactory
4. good
5. very good
6. excellent

Services are graded under the following categories: care and support; environment; staffing; management and leadership. Sometimes services are not inspected for all categories. The quality grades are publically published alongside the Care Inspectorate report which also shows any recommendations, requirements or complaints information.

OSC services can also undertake SOSCN's own quality improvement framework Achieving Quality Scotland (AQS)- this is an optional and additional quality mark. AQS covers 10 quality areas:

• Quality Improvement Area 1: Overarching commitment to quality, the UNCRC, GIRFEC and the Playwork Principles
• Quality Improvement Area 2: Equality and Inclusion
• Quality Improvement Area 3: Partnership and Collaboration
• Quality Improvement Area 4: Play and Care Practice, and Principles
• Quality Improvement Area 5: Premises, Resources and Community
• Quality Improvement Area 6: Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC)
• Quality Improvement Area 7: Health and Wellbeing
• Quality Improvement Area 8: Leadership, Management, Planning and Administration
• Quality Improvement Area 9: Staffing and Volunteers
• Quality Improvement Area 10: Holidays and all day care (where offered)

Services must provide evidence showing how they meet the standards in each of the areas. High performing services are also able go for additional star awards.