NATIONAL SCHOOL CHAPLAINCY PROGRAM

To assist our schools in providing greater pastoral care and supporting the spiritual wellbeing of their students, I have announced a new initiative, the Australian Government’s National School Chaplaincy Program.

School chaplains are already making valuable contributions to the personal, spiritual and emotional wellbeing of many school communities nationally, and the Government will now invest up to $30 million annually for three years to make these services available to all schools.

Each local school community will decide if they want to participate in this voluntary program. The choice of chaplaincy services, including religious affiliation and denomination, is entirely a decision for the school community. Schools that already have chaplains will also be able to apply for support.

The program guidelines will be released in December and schools will be able to submit applications for funding by the end of March 2007. Further details may be obtained from the Department of Education, Science and Training website www.dest.gov.au/school/chaplains.