Children's minister Beverley Hughes said the Government would like the network to take over quality assurance from Investors in Children.
But Sue Owen, director of the NCB's early childhood unit, emphasised that while the quality improvement network would build on the principles of Investors in Children, it was 'not a direct replacement'.
Individual settings cannot join the network at this stage. Local authorities and national organisations will attend regional meetings for peer support, benchmarking and to share resources and expertise.
The NCB is holding a series of events with local authorities on a set of good-practice principles prior to a national conference in Leeds on 15 May.
A steering group is also writing a guide to quality improvement and developing standardised training for mentors.
Ms Owen said, 'The value of formal processes is that they offer staff teams and individuals a way of systematically improving their practice over time, and offer local authorities a way of monitoring and supporting high standards for children and families in their area.'
Dr Tony Bertram from the Centre for Research into Early Childhood whose early learning programme is represented on the network, said settings 'need both support and challenge to address quality improvement as a priority'.
For details contact network co-ordinator Heather Ransom on 0207 843 6078 or e-mail hransom@ncb.org.uk.
