OMEP Australia Project Grants

Projects eligible for funding within Australia include:

• Projects involving children aged from birth to five in early childhood education and care programs or settings
• Innovative projects that contribute to young children’s education, care and well-being.
• Projects that promote Education for Sustainable Development or the Sustainable Development Goals
• Development and publication of innovative resources and educational materials.
• Research in early childhood education, care and/or development, education for sustainable development.

The Grants will not fund:

• Projects involving children in school settings with the exception of kindergarten and preschools located on school premises.
• Building projects and maintenance.
• On-going employment of staff.

Application is open to all OMEP Australia members (except the National President). 

To apply for a Project Grant, we invite you to complete the online Application Form below.

Please be sure to attend to the following Essential Criteria:

• Applications must be received by the due date, 12 December 2025, and be complete.
• Applicants must be a current member of OMEP Australia.
• Applicants must confirm that, if successful they are willing to:
  • Have their name published on OMEP Australia communications;
  • Complete halfway and end of project reports (templates provided);
  • Prepare a short report for the OMEP Australia website; and
  • Present the project as close as possible to completion at an OMEP General Meeting or an OMEP Australia forum.

Please submit your completed Project Grants Application by the closing date above.

An email will be sent to you confirming receipt of your application with 5 working days. 

If you have any questions about the Project Grant selection process please contact Kym Simoncini, OMEP Australia National President: [email protected]

This project will create a safe, culturally responsive indoor–outdoor gross-motor environment for infants and toddlers attending the Goonanawoom Creche in Woorreranginy Community, in the remote East Kimberley. The creche, established by and for the Gija community and operating without government subsidy, supports some of the most developmentally vulnerable children in Australia, with local AEDC data showing very high rates of vulnerability across multiple developmental domains.

By providing soft-fall mats, modular climbing and balance structures, push–pull resources, and climate-suitable natural loose-parts materials, the project will give children daily access to safe movement experiences that build strength, coordination, balance, and spatial awareness. These experiences directly target the AEDC Physical Health and Wellbeing domain and are designed to support self-regulation, confidence in movement, and positive engagement in group play. The project will be implemented in 2026 through a staged process of co-design with families and staff, equipment purchase and installation, and an ongoing daily movement program monitored against developmental milestones.

For Gija children in this remote community, consistent access to high-quality gross motor opportunities is essential to health, school readiness, and long-term well-being. This initiative complements existing healthy eating and oral language programs at the creche, strengthening a holistic foundation for children’s learning and participation in school and beyond. 

For over fifty years, It Takes a Village Australia (ITAV) has been a respected voice for quality early childhood and school-age education and care across Victoria and beyond. Through advocacy, training, and sector leadership, ITAV empowers educators, services, and communities to deliver and sustain high-quality, not-for-profit education and care confidently.

In 2026, ITAV will launch the Educational Leader Network Project, an initiative designed to strengthen leadership capability and professional confidence among Educational Leaders across the community-managed early childhood sector. Recognising the critical role of Educational Leaders in driving quality improvement under the National Quality Standard, this project will create a dedicated professional network for collaboration, reflection, and shared learning.

Across six sessions held throughout 2026, alternating between online and face-to-face formats, 20 Educational Leaders will come together to connect, share ideas, explore evidence-informed practice, and build leadership capacity. The program will feature workshops, guest speakers, and reflective discussions to foster a vibrant community of practice committed to continuous improvement.

By equipping leaders with enhanced skills and professional support, the project will improve outcomes for more than 2,400 young children and 600 educators in participating services. Stronger Educational Leadership supports richer learning environments, more confident educators, and ultimately, better educational, developmental, and well-being outcomes for every child.

This project focuses on understanding and strengthening the professional confidence and self-efficacy of early childhood teachers working in rural, regional, and remote communities across Australia. By investigating how these teachers experience and sustain their professional identity, access support, and navigate local challenges, the project aims to inform strategies that enhance the quality of education and care for children from birth to five, regardless of where they live.

Through a national survey, the research will gather detailed insights into teachers’ access to professional learning, collegial networks, and resources, as well as the contextual factors that shape their day-to-day practice. The study will examine how isolation, workload, and community expectations intersect with protective factors, including strong leadership, collaboration, and locally responsive pedagogy. This evidence will help identify the supports that enable teachers to feel confident, capable, and professionally fulfilled in geographically diverse settings.

The findings will inform future initiatives, policy directions, and professional learning programs to better support the rural early childhood workforce and address longstanding equity gaps between metropolitan and non-metropolitan communities. By centring the voices and experiences of rural, regional, and remote teachers, the project seeks to inform targeted, context-sensitive solutions that strengthen quality across the sector. Ultimately, the research will contribute to more stable, confident teaching teams and richer learning environments for young children, helping to ensure that every child has access to high-quality early learning, no matter their postcode.

Vicki Christopher is one of the successful applicants of an OMEP Australia Project Grant. As a PhD student, Vicki applied for the grant to support the purchase of body mounted cameras. Vicki’s PhD research investigates children’s experiences of a bush kindergarten.

This project aims to uncover the yet unheard voices of children to discover what they think from their perspectives and to share how children experience and talk about their everyday interactions in and with nature as ECEC settings. Illuminating children’s voices is necessary to enhancing equity, quality, and sustainability from the early years and beyond. Drawing on innovative age-appropriate play-based methods, Vicki’s research adds the missing piece of the puzzle to date – the unheard voices of children.

Using body mounted cameras for audio and video recording, art reflections and conversations with children, her research honours children’s voices to learn from them and gain an authentic understanding of their experiences, in ways that are meaningful to them.

Thanks to the OMEP Australia project grant, funds supported the purchase of body mounted cameras, allowed for a non-obtrusive means of capturing children’s experiences. This ensured that the data was collected ethically, and respectfully, ensuring that children’s agency and voice are respected, as well as honouring the natural environment in which children enter without bringing ‘stuff’ into the nature space.