Warrawong Professional Learning Grants

Additional information to support completion of an application

When completing an application for Warrawong grants please consider the following content in each section.

*Please note, we do not fund First Aid or Food Safety training which is mandatory for all services. Also check that the Professional Learning you seek is not freely available through Government funding. e.g. Child Safe, Victorian School Readiness funding.

1. Brief summary of the professional learning activity.

• First, consider what professional learning needs you are aiming to meet, (what, how, where, who, when). E.g. – “A professional development workshop on meeting the needs of children with language delay and their families will be delivered at our service. The Funding will cover the training facilitator fees and casual relief backfill for 4 educators for 2 hours.”

2. The aims and objectives of the professional learning.

• Identify the issue you want to address and what you want the activity to achieve. E.g. – “We currently have 10 children (out of 60) aged 2 to 4 years with significant language delay. Aim 1 – Help our educators to better understand language development. Aim 2 – Identify strategies for supporting language development. Aim 3 – Up-skill educators to better support children with language delay and their families.”

3. Brief Description of what the professional learning will involve and how the aims and objectives will be met.

• What are you/others going to do?

Provide information about the professional learning activity. E.g. – “Planning and/or attendance at a workshop, conference, seminar, or participation in a professional learning activity related to working with children birth to eight.” or “A series of workshops that will increase skills and professional knowledge related to XXX.”

Ensure you identify how the aims and objectives will be met. E.g. – “A facilitator from XXX will conduct a 3-hour workshop at our service with 4 educators who have expressed interest in taking on the role of language coordinators for the different age groups at our service. The workshop will address: Language development; Language delay; Strategies for supporting language development for the different types of delay; Strategies for working with parents – how to address language issues with parents; games and resources – to provide to parents; how to adopt a family-centred approach.”

Other?

4. List the benefits of the professional learning.

• What are the potential benefits to your service such as staff, children, parents? E.g. – “Increased knowledge and improved pedagogy and practice around XXXX” or “increased skills to support children and families’; or “Families will be better able to support their children’s XXXX”.

5. Training Programs/Providers/Accredited/Organisations or Individuals

• Provide name of organisation and person delivering program
• Provide the website of the training provider / conference /etc

6. Where the professional learning will occur/be undertaken

• Venue

7. Date and duration

• Complete details
• *Note – funding is not provided for a professional learning activity date that is prior to funding dissemination

8. Criteria of Disadvantage - to staff, service or organisation. (Please indicate the most relevant areas of disadvantage that apply. You must explain why).

Examples:

• Geographic: - where you are in Victoria which may be a disadvantage in accessing professional learning. May be about distance and expense.
• Physical: - disability, illness or injury of a staff member.
• Personal: - family disadvantage for staff member (main carer). Children with additional needs and/or disability. E.g. - “We have a significant proportion of children with language delay (as well as children with other developmental difficulties). The professional development program will enable us to better support the current children with language delay and their families as well and children and families entering the service in years to come”.
• Economic: - disadvantaged service - high unemployment, single income families. E.g. “The families in our service are predominantly on limited incomes and our fundraising opportunities are therefore limited.”
• Social: - lack of contact with other services, isolated, ESL/CALD, ATSIC, drought, floods, bushfire.
  You can gain information from the Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage (IRSD) for your local area.

9. Budget. It is important to provide a detailed budget.

• Make sure you itemise and break down the expenses associated with the proposed Professional Learning, such as: fees per person/group, replacement of staff including number and cost of staff (e.g. Backfill to attend activity: Relief staff (Educator Level 2) for 4 staff for 3 hours @ $38.93 per hour = $467.16) cost of travel (transport hire, reimbursement etc), costs of catering, accommodation costs per person. A single dollar amount is not sufficient.
• If you are receiving financial assistance from any other sources, indicate in the Item column, the full cost, and the proportion that you are requesting from Warrawong in relation to this grant application.
• Include specific information about rates for members and non-members per person (e.g. for a conference or external training event) where applicable.