Frequently Asked Questions for Walk to School LGA Grant

What is Walk to School?  
Every October, Walk to School encourages Victorian primary school students and their families to walk, ride or scoot to and from school as often as possible.

Walk to School also supports primary schools, local councils and communities to make active travel easy, safe and accessible.

What are the benefits of Walk to School?
The Walk to School program focuses on positive health outcomes. It’s based on extensive research and evidence indicating that increased physical activity in Victorian children can provide real health benefits.

Walking, riding or scooting to and from school can help children to achieve the recommended 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity each day, and adopt physical activity habits for life. It can also help to reduce traffic congestion, parking difficulties and the associated environmental impacts, and connect with each other, friends and neighbours, while developing road safety skills and independence. 

Is Walk to School Australia-wide? 
No, Walk to School is a Victorian program for primary school children only. 

Why a whole month, while other active travel initiatives focus on a single day?
VicHealth aims to build healthy habits that will support active lifestyles for children as they grow up. Research shows that longer-term initiatives have positive outcomes on children’s physical activity levels.

Promoting a month of active travel activity, rather than a single day, also provides students, families, schools and communities with more opportunities to engage with the Walk to School program, develop networks and connections, and embed walking into their everyday routines.

Isn't walking to school risky for kids?
We definitely encourage parents and carers to walk, ride or scoot to and from school with their younger children – and gradually, when ready, build up to letting them do this with friends and on their own as they get older. We understand that every situation is different and carers should make a decision based on what they feel is appropriate for their child.

Common concerns about safety– such as perceptions of stranger danger, traffic concerns and neighbourhood crime – often lessen when carers go with their child from a young age, and can teach them about safe active travel, which allows the carer to gain confidence in their children’s safety sense. 

Walking, riding or scooting to school together is a great way for the whole family to spend time together and increase physical activity levels. Recent research indicates that for older children, there are many benefits to gradually travelling more independently – including helping children develop motor skills and increase coping skills, self-esteem and social skills – and we’d encourage parents to consider these benefits when making decisions about their child’s journey to school.

Am I eligible to apply? 
All Victorian councils are eligible to apply and must have satisfactorily acquitted any previous funding received from VicHealth.

What do I need to read before applying?
Please ensure you’ve read and understood the following:

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

What do I need to do before applying?
Councils will need to:

• Have your council’s ABN and bank account details on hand
• Register your details on the Funding Application System
• Complete the online Eligibility and Compliance check
• Download and complete your Walk to School Project Plan

How do I submit?

Councils are required to submit a request and Project Plan online in accordance with timelines and processes outlined Terms and Conditions.

Councils can apply online at: www.vichealth.vic.gov.au/walktoschool

When should I submit information to partner?

The VicHealth Walk to School LGA Partnership 2019 will open on 13 March 2019 at www.vichealth.vic.gov.au/walktoschool and will close on 5 April 2019.

What is on offer?
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. 

What is VicHealth looking for?
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).

Can the funding be used to deliver existing active travel projects?
This funding is designed to support new initiatives, or deliver clearly identified outcomes that complement and add value to existing council work. This funding is not designed to be used to fund existing council work.

When does the funding need to be spent?
Ideally all Walk to School funding would be spent before and during the Walk to School campaign, and accounted for in the final evaluation report submitted to VicHealth by December 2019. However, some activities relating to longer term active transport initiatives may not be complete in this time. In this case we encourage the council to contact VicHealth to discuss the activities planned, and the implications for reporting. 

Can a council submit more than one grant for 2019?
No.  Councils can only apply for the funding once in any calendar year.

Can I have an extension to submit an application?
No.  Under no circumstances will extensions be granted.  We advise you to submit your application well before the due date in case of any technical or other difficulties. 

I've forgotten my password – what do I do?
If you already have an account, we cannot retrieve your password but you can request a new password. On the User Login page click ‘Forgot your password. Click here’. A new password will be sent to the email address that you used to register. If you prefer, you can request a new password by contacting the VicHealth IT Helpdesk via [email protected]

I’m getting an error message when I try to submit my request.
You may not have completed all of the mandatory fields. The problem entries will be highlighted with a red arrow. If no errors are shown, yet you still cannot submit, please contact the VicHealth IT Helpdesk via [email protected]

I can’t find my draft request. Where is it?
If it’s not under the ‘Show In Progress Applications’ section on the Online Submissions portal screen it has not been saved. You need to select the ‘Save & Finish Later’ button at the bottom of the application form pages otherwise your work will be lost when you click out of the page.

I keep having to complete the Eligibility and Compliance Check to get to the request form – what should I do?
The Eligibility and Compliance Check needs to be completed before you begin a new request. If you have started a request and selected ‘Save & Finish Later’ you can retrieve a saved a draft copy from the Online Submissions portal screen ‘Show In Progress Applications’. This will allow you to complete a previously saved request  without having to complete the Compliance Check.

My email address has changed. Can it be changed in the Grant Management System?
To change your registration email address, you will need to log in with the original email address and password you registered with, and then locate the ‘Change Email/Password’ link at the top of the page. If you have any further issues please contact the VicHealth Helpdesk via [email protected]

I keep getting the error message ‘Your browser is not configured to support cookies. In order to access this online application form, you must adjust your browser settings to allow cookies’.
This error message has been observed by users who are using the browser Google Chrome.  Unfortunately the online submissions portal and Active Club Grant application form do not fully support the use of Google Chrome. Please try using Mozilla Firefox or Internet Explorer to complete and submit your application form. If you are using Firefox or IE and this error still occurs, please ensure you have cookies turned on. If you have any further issues please contact the VicHealth Helpdesk via [email protected]