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, 29 November 2024, 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. You will be advised of the outcome of your application by 13 December 2024.

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

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.