2024 - Future of Education Student Equity Fund

FUTURE OF EDUCATION EQUITY FUND - 2024

REMINDER: Equity Fund applications close on 29 November 2024.

We aim to complete processing and payment of applications within four weeks of the date the completed application was submitted. Applications received after the closing date will NOT be processed.

The ACT Government's Future of Education Equity Fund provides yearly one-off payments to low-income Canberra families with students from preschool to year 12, and independent students. The Equity Fund helps cover costs associated with schooling.

The following payments are available to those who meet the eligibility criteria:

• $400 for preschool students
• $500 for primary school students
• $750 for high-school and college students

NOTE: There is no limit on the number of students for whom each parent or carer can apply, providing they meet all conditions. Independent students can apply on their own behalf.

ELIGIBILITY

Applicants must:

1. Reside in the ACT
2. Have parental responsibility for a dependent student(s) in grades P-12; or be an independent student
3. Be financially responsible for the student(s)
4. Demonstrate low-income status through:

• a current means-tested Centrelink Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card, which must list the student(s) as dependants; or
• alternative forms of evidence proving low-income status or equivalent financial stress.

Students must be:

1. Enrolled full-time in a public or non-government school in the ACT in years P-12. For the purposes of the Equity Fund, a preschool is defined as a preschool that is attached to an ACT school and led by a principal. When applying online, only eligible preschools will appear in an Application Form.
2. Enrolled in an approved form of education other than a school and of an equivalent age to a student in years K-12 (e.g., attending the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT), registered for home-schooling or Flexible Education in the ACT).
3. Residing with the parent/carer in the ACT, or in special government care that is paid for by the applicant, or be independent.

NOTE: Please ensure that the student's school has up-to-date residential and enrolment information or, in the case of home schooling, that they are registered with relevant government authorities.

A parent/carer must identify whether they have sole or shared parental responsibility for the residential and financial care of the student. Parents/carers with shared parental responsibility must have the consent of the other parent/carer to apply for and receive payment of funding for use to benefit the student/s.

An independent student can apply on their own behalf. 

Financial information - evidence of low-income status

Parents/carers or independent students must provide evidence of low-income status. Low-income status can be demonstrated by providing either:

• a copy of a CURRENT Centrelink Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card; or
• alternative form/s of evidence proving low-income status or equivalent financial stress.

If a Centrelink card is provided that expires before the processing period, an updated copy must be sent as soon as the new card is received to ensure receipt of the payment. It is also essential that the card is signed, and that it lists as dependants the student(s) being claimed for.

Applicants with Health Care Cards endorsed ‘FO’ ‘CD’ ‘MO’ & ‘DSP Blind’ do not meet the evidence requirements for this Fund.

NOTE: Please submit a copy of both sides of your Centrelink Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card. Please note Medicare cards are not acceptable evidence of low-income status.

If your address differs from that on your Centrelink card (or has not been otherwise provided), proof of residential address must be attached to your application (e.g. a copy of a current driver’s licence, electricity account or other account from a government body).

Before you begin:

Welcome to the ACT Education Directorate's Future of Education Equity Fund online grant application service, powered by SmartyGrants. You may begin anywhere in this application form. Please ensure you save as you go.

For all queries, please contact the Equity Fund Administrator on (02) 6207 1818 during business hours or email EquityFund@act.gov.au and quote your submission number.

Navigating (moving through) the application form

On every screen (page of the form) you will find a Form Navigation contents box. This links directly to every page of the application. Click the link to progress to the page you want.

You can also click 'next page' or 'previous page' on the top or bottom of each page to move forward or backward through the application.

Saving your draft application

If you wish to leave a partially completed application, press 'save and close' and log out. When you log back in and click on the 'My Submissions' link at the top of the screen. You will find a list of any applications you have started or submitted. You can reopen your draft application and start where you left off.

Application completion checklist

To assist you with completing all required sections of the form, an Application Completion Checklist is available to download as a Microsoft Word document. This checklist has been developed to assist you to complete your Equity Fund application.

Submitting your application

You will find a Review and Submit button at the bottom of the Navigation Panel. Please review your application before submitting as no further editing is possible once submitted.

After reviewing your application you can submit it by clicking on 'Submit' at the top or bottom of the screen or on the navigation panel. You will not be able to submit your application until all compulsory questions are completed.

A confirmation email will be sent to your email address once the application is submitted. If you do not receive the email, please presume that your application is not submitted. Please check your Junk or Spam Folders.

Attachments and supporting documents

You will need to upload/submit attachments to support your application. You will need to have the documents saved on your computer, or on a storage device.

Please allow enough time for each file to upload before trying to attach another file. Files can be up to 25MB each; however, we do recommend trying to keep files to a maximum of 5MB – the larger the file, the longer the upload time.