Victorian councils have an important role to play in the Walk to School program. By partnering with VicHealth for the Walk to School funding in 2019, your council can help get more Victorian children active.

All Victorian councils can partner and will be supported providing they must have satisfactorily acquitted any previous funding received from VicHealth.

In 2019 we’d love every council in the state to get involved, so we’ve made it even easier for you to participate and demonstrate your council’s commitment to getting more Victorian children active.

Changes from last year’s Walk to School program include:

• No lengthy application process! To be part of Walk to School 2019, all we need is some details about your council and a completed project plan.
• More money! We’ve increased the amount of funding we’re providing to participating councils from $10,000 in 2018 to $15,000 in 2019, to help you build on your existing support networks with schools, and help cover any additional costs you may have.
• Walk to School information resources are easier to order.You can place orders forpromotional materials (calendars, stickers etc) directly through our mailhouse. You will need to download and print some materials yourself.

Less data collection for councils.  Councils no longer need to submit full participation data from all their local schools for VicHealth.  We’ll only ask you to record how many local schools participated in the program.  However, we still encourage you to promote the use of the classroom calendar to encourage involvement and help schools celebrate participation as it’s proven to be an effective way to encourage kids to walk, ride and scoot to school.

The Walk to School LGA Partnership 2019 provides funding of $15,000* for you to deliver activities which meet the following requirements:

Requirement 1: Promote Walk to School by encouraging primary schools to participate

Requirement 2: Improve your support network with schools in your council area

Requirement 3: Deliver and support local engagement activities with participating schools throughout October

*Excluding GST.

We’re looking for enthusiastic councils who are ready to get their local community active.

When completing your project plans we encourage you to explain how:

• your chosen activities are well-suited to your local context and community
• you’ll cater for all students by ensuring activities are fair, accessible and inclusive
• you will improve activities and increase participation, based on previous year’s learnings (returning councils only).

• Reasonable costs to reimburse staff or engage contractors delivering agreed activities
• New initiatives in line with our funding requirements or initiatives with clearly identified outcomes that build on and add value to existing council work
• Incentives or prizes for competitions where relevant to local context, value for money and equitable approach are demonstrated
• Design publication or production costs for local Walk to School materials and collateral where clear VicHealth and Walk to School branding are included
• Advertising or media costs for Walk to School promotions
• Infrastructure improvements that clearly support active travel by primary school children
• Resources or tools that can be owned/managed by council and shared among local schools to support ongoing active travel
• Reasonable and necessary costs to facilitate approved events, such as healthy catering, facility hire and administrative costs
• Costs associated with the delivery of an education workshop or supporting schools in your council area.

What do I need to read before partnering on the program?

Please ensure you’ve read and understood the following:

• Funding Guidelines
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Terms and Conditions
• Project Plan
• VicHealth Privacy Statement
• VicHealth Website Terms of Use

What do I need to do before partnering on the program?

Councils will need to follow this application checklist:

• Read the guidelines carefully and thoroughly
• Check all key dates, processes and requirements
• Have your council’s ABN and bank account details on hand
• Download and complete your Walk to School Project Plan
• Complete and submit your online application.

Check out the Frequently Asked Questions.

Otherwise please contact us at walktoschool@vichealth.vic.gov.au.