- Grants of up to $25,000 to support the regional early childhood education and care workforce
- Grants fund incentives such as subsidised accommodation, relocation costs and further training
- Part of Cook Government’s commitment to attract and retain childcare educators in our regions
Regional Local Government Authorities (LGAs) are invited to apply for grant funding to attract and retain regional early childcare educators and carers to regional Western Australia.
The Attraction and Retention Packages for Regional Child Care Workers Program provides grants of up to $25,000 per annum to regional LGAs to fund initiatives that support the early childhood education and care workforce.
The State Government committed $1,000,000 over four years in 2021 to support the attraction and retention of early childhood education and care workers in regional areas.
Two rounds of funding have now been delivered, with a total of $530,869 distributed to regional LGAs to support the provision of early childhood education and care.
Initiatives delivered under Round 2 funding include support for accommodation and relocation subsidies for educators, professional development for existing staff and contributing to course costs for new trainees.
A review of the Grant Program in the lead up to Round 3 gave LGAs the opportunity to provide feedback on the initiative. Some changes were made to the Grant Program, including a greater focus on supporting family day care.
Round 3 of the Grant Program will open on Monday, 22 January 2024 and close on Friday, 1 March 2024.
A webinar to support potential applicants will be held on Monday, 29 January 2024 at 11am.
