Frequently asked questions.

Our simple step-by-step guide will help you navigate the application process. Go to Step 1 to get started and review our Grant Application Guidelines and Grant Application Process.  

You’re welcome to contact the Grants team to talk through any queries. We can be contacted on 6456 5551 or email grants@pchf.org.au. 

The main grant applicant must be a Child and Adolescent Health Service (CAHS), Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service CAMHS, or Child and Adolescent Community Health Service CACHS employee but co-applicants can be from other parties involved in your project.

Applicants will be contacted within 48 hours of a Grants Sub Committee (GSC) meeting and within five business days of a PCHF Board meeting. The GSC meets six times a year, upcoming dates can be found here. (add link to GSC dates) 

The review and approval processes are covered in Steps 5 and 6 of our helpful step-by-step guide.

There’s no specified limit. However, the amount awarded will depend on our funding capacity and justification for the use of funds for your project. 

The Foundation funds five key impact areas. Awarded grants, must focus on one of the following:  

• Ground-breaking research projects and researchers that will transform the future of child health by pioneering new ways of preventing, treating and managing life-threatening and life-limiting childhood disease. 
• World-class expertise to ensure WA children have access to the best medical care possible, closer to home. 
• Innovative education and training programs enabling staff to attend training programs, study new practices and learn from international professionals through seminars and conferences, helping transform WA healthcare for children. 
• Advanced equipment and technology that significantly improves diagnosis and treatment outcomes, shortens waiting periods for families, and allows for a better standard of paediatric care. 
• Positive patient and family experiences to create positive memories for sick children and their families at the hospital, for example music, play and art therapies.

Funds generated via our fundraising efforts must complement, rather than substitute, government funding for Perth Children’s Hospital and broader health service. This is a requirement of the Australian Charities and Not-for Profits Commission (ACNC) for health promotion charities such as the Foundation.

We’re unable to fund: 

• Items or projects that are core to the operation of Perth Children’s Hospital, Child and Adolescent Health Service (CAHS) and/or Child and Adolescent Community Health Services (CACHS) or Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and are the responsibility of Government in order to provide a quality health service for the State.
• Routine replacement of equipment, 
• Projects that are not being led by a CAHS employee,  
• Personal academic studies such as diplomas, undergraduate and higher degrees, 
• Services that will not be delivered at or by Perth Children’s Hospital, CAHS, Child and Adolescent Community Health Services (CACHS) or Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).  

In addition to your project fitting within one of our five impact areas, particular consideration is given to projects that demonstrate: 

• Community need, such as critical paediatric health needs or service gaps, 
• Solutions that effectively address the critical needs/problems in paediatric health and show capacity to deliver planned outcomes in a sustainable way, 
• Significant anticipated impact to the healthcare of children and youth, such as impact on policy, clinical practice, and experiences of children, youth and families in the healthcare system,  
• Innovation and significant advances in the relevant field, 
• A budget that clearly outlines all expenses associated with the project, and 
• The funding requested does not include items considered core to the operations of PCH or CAHS that the Foundation or community would reasonably expect the government to fund. 

In the first instance, your application will be reviewed by a PCHF Grants Manager. During this stage, if we need to discuss your application, we’ll contact you. Once reviewed and approved by the executive team, your application will be presented at the upcoming Grants Sub Committee (GSC). Depending on the value of funding applied for, the GSC can make a final decision or make a recommendation to the Board. Please refer to Step 5 of the Step-by-Step guide for the review process. 

There are no opening or closing dates, we accept applications all year round.

Yes, you can contact us at any time to get advice, feedback and recommendations.  

Email us at grants@pchf.org.au or call 6456 5551. You can download and save your draft application as a PDF and email it to us for feedback or you can give us access to your application in SmartyGrants, our online grants platform, before you submit it. 

There’s no specified limit, however all projects must have a start and an end date, as our grants don’t run indefinitely.

Let us know as soon as possible if you are leaving the project. If possible, assign someone else to take over the main applicant responsibilities and inform us of who that will be. If no one else can take over, please contact us as soon as possible. Email us at grants@pchf.org.au or call 6456 5551.

Contact us as soon as possible to discuss the situation. If appropriate, we’ll support you to submit an extension request. 

Contact us to discuss the situation. If appropriate, we’ll support you to submit a budget variation request. 

Yes, as long as you fulfil the criteria for each grant.

Yes, as long as you fulfil the criteria for the new grant. 

You’ll be asked to submit one progress report every six months and one final acquittal report a month after your project’s end date. For equipment grants, no progress reports are necessary, but a final acquittal report is required one month after the equipment has been installed and is in use for its intended purpose. 

Please ensure that invoices and supporting information contain all relevant information and that invoices reflect the budget items in the application budget. For further information please see our PCHF Grant Payment Guidelines. 

If circumstances arise which affect the budget, please contact the PCHF Grants team as soon as possible to discuss. 

We may ask you to support our fundraising, social media or marketing opportunities. We’re mindful of patient privacy and other issues that may impact these opportunities and will work with you to make arrangements that suit both parties. 

We’re here to raise funds for your project and will need your support to create fundraising proposals for potential donors, as well as impact reports to showcase the meaningful difference donor support is making to the lives of WA’s sick children.  

Our donors are looking to do something positive for the community. This is where we rely on our grant recipients to help show the incredible impact and benefits of donor support. 

Contact us to discuss the situation. If appropriate, we’ll support you to submit a variation request.

You can have a look at the application form before you start by accessing our Smarty Grants online portal and choosing the round you are considering submitting an application for. Clicking on the round’s link will take you to the application form.  You have the following options: Start a submission, Preview the form or Download preview form.

If you have submitted an application and your project has started, then you will be able to see access the progress report by logging in at https://pchf.smartygrants.com.au/applicant and then clicking the ‘My Submissions’ link at the top of page.

Here you will see your grant listed as ‘submission XXXXX’ and any associated reports which are waiting for you to complete. Here you can access the report, start working on it or download a pdf of the report. You are also welcome to contact the grants team who will be happy to send a pdf version of the report to you.

If you have submitted an application and your project has started, then you will be able to see access the acquittal report by logging in at https://pchf.smartygrants.com.au/applicant and then clicking the ‘My Submissions’ link at the top of page.

Here you will see your grant listed as ‘submission XXXXX’ and any associated reports which are waiting for you to complete. Here you can access the report, start working on it or you can download a pdf of the report. You are also welcome to contact the grants team who will be happy to send a pdf version of the report to you.