Before deciding whether to proceed with application planning, you should read and understand the Program Guidelines 
(370.0 KB) and other relevant information available on this website. Prospective applicants should also seek the advice of the relevant state or territory liaison officer.
The Local Schools Working Together Pilot Program (the Program) will provide providing funding over the next three years for approximately 25 projects displaying innovative collaborations between schools and other partners to address shared infrastructure and other needs not met by existing facilities.
An essential element of any application for funding is the requirement to application is to develop a project for a shared facility that will be managed under a shared partnership arrangement. You will need to have identified the prospective partners and formed a consortium to develop a shared facility. It is envisaged that both government and non-government schools working in partnerships could be the recipients of funding under the Program. Other partners with which schools could engage include local government authorities, businesses and community organisations.
A Lead Partner must be identified and nominated. It is the Lead Partner that will accept responsibility for the application and, if successful, enter into a Funding Agreement with the Commonwealth. The Lead Partner must accept responsibility for a number of outcomes and actions detailed in the Guidelines. You should familiarise yourself with these before submitting the application. Submission of the application will require you to accept formally these responsibilities.
The Application Form can be accessed on this website. You should download a copy of the form to your computer before entering information into the form. Instructions are provided on the form. The completed application must be sent by email to the Department at the address shown below and on the form. Please note the completed application will require several attachments and may become a large data file. You should ensure the final application is in a form that will be capable of being sent to the Department as a single document (including attachments). This will ensure the Department receives all the attachments and minimises the risk of documents becoming separated in transit.
The Application Form contains a checklist of items to be included in the application. Please ensure that you include this information in your application as failure to include it may result in the application not being assessed.
Applications may be submitted for projects that are already in the planning stage and have progressed beyond the initial concept stage. Equally, the Government welcomes suggestions for projects for new projects that may have not been considered in the past and that will potentially provide new and innovative ways to deliver infrastructure in schools and communities.
Your application will proceed through a series of assessment procedures and, if recommended for funding, will be required to be further developed. Details of the assessment procedure and advice on the assessment outcome are contained in the Program Guidelines.
Applications for Round One open on 1 September and will close at midnight on 21 October 2008. Your application should be e-mailed to localschoolsworkingtogether@deewr.gov.au. You will receive an automated response to your email.