This program provides one-time grant payments of $25,000 to NSW councils to employ a planning cadet and fund their tuition fees for a certificate, diploma, bachelor’s or master’s degree in planning at an Australian university.
Key information
- Status: Closed
- Grant amount: $1,850,000
- Application opened: 15 May 2023
- Application closed: 9 June 2023, 5:00 pm
Program objective
The objectives of this program are to:
- address the planning skills shortage in NSW and fill vacancies in council planning teams
- incentivise and support councils to employ and develop new planners
- grow more planners in regional areas where the planning skills shortage is most severe
- help planning graduates without any experience overcome difficulties securing entry-level planning jobs.
The expected outcomes of this program are:
- an increase in the total number of cadet planners employed at NSW councils
- an increase in enrolment in eligible planning courses at NSW universities
- an increase in the pipeline of planners in NSW overall
- contribution of the program to alleviating council capacity issues and planning skills shortages in the long term.
The grant of $25,000 will provide councils with enough funding for either:
- 100% of the cost of an undergraduate certificate, graduate certificate, or diploma
- 75% of the median cost of a bachelor’s degree
- 50% of the median cost of a master’s degree.
If tuition fees exceed the $25,000 grant, councils can choose to subsidise the remaining tuition fees or require the cadet to pay the remaining fees themselves.
This program is funded and administered by Department of Planning and Environment.
Eligibility
Who can apply
All NSW councils are eligible to participate in this program, provided that councils have at least 1 senior staff member with the relevant skills and capacity to train a planning cadet.
Councils can use program funding to upskill existing council staff who are interested in undertaking studies to support their transition into a planning role.
Who can’t apply
- ineligible NSW councils (those that do not have at least 1 senior staff member with the relevant skills and capacity to train a planning cadet)
- individuals or groups of individuals
- unincorporated organisations
- for-profit commercial organisations.
Councils cannot use program funding to pay tuition fees for existing planning cadets. The program requires councils to onboard additional planning cadets.
What can’t you apply for
- Costs that are not directly associated with the implementation or delivery of the project.
- Costs that are not university tuition fees, including travel, accommodation, books and resources.
- Operating expenses such as rent, insurance, electricity, water, rates or funding towards the running of other programs within the organisation.
- Existing projects or programs.
Example projects
- Council subsidises the university tuition costs of an an undergraduate certificate, graduate certificate, diploma, bachelor’s degree, or master’s degree for a new planning cadet they employ.
- Council subsidises the university tuition costs of an existing employee, not already employed in a planning role, who is interested in undertaking studies in planning to support their transition into a planning role.
Most recent recipients
What was approved
Approved for Albury City Council
Council will use funding to subsidise the university tuition costs of a new planning cadet Council employs, or will use funding to upskill existing non-planner staff members who are interested undertaking planning studies at university to support their transition into a planning role.
$25,000 was approved by
Grants committeeDate approved
June 2023Location of the recipient
Albury CityAbout the grant
Applications approved
74
Applications received
74
Strong Start Cadetship Program
Agency funding this grant
Department of Planning and EnvironmentProgram term
Participating councils are required to provide an acquittal report to the department by 30 June 2024, and by 30 June of each following year until the planning cadet has completed their studies.What was approved
Approved for Armidale Regional Council
Council will use funding to subsidise the university tuition costs of a new planning cadet Council employs, or will use funding to upskill existing non-planner staff members who are interested undertaking planning studies at university to support their transition into a planning role.
$25,000 was approved by
Grants committeeDate approved
June 2023Location of the recipient
Armidale RegionalAbout the grant
Applications approved
74
Applications received
74
Strong Start Cadetship Program
Agency funding this grant
Department of Planning and EnvironmentProgram term
Participating councils are required to provide an acquittal report to the department by 30 June 2024, and by 30 June of each following year until the planning cadet has completed their studies.What was approved
Approved for Ballina Shire Council
Council will use funding to subsidise the university tuition costs of a new planning cadet Council employs, or will use funding to upskill existing non-planner staff members who are interested undertaking planning studies at university to support their transition into a planning role.
$25,000 was approved by
Grants committeeDate approved
June 2023Location of the recipient
BallinaAbout the grant
Applications approved
74
Applications received
74
Strong Start Cadetship Program
Agency funding this grant
Department of Planning and EnvironmentProgram term
Participating councils are required to provide an acquittal report to the department by 30 June 2024, and by 30 June of each following year until the planning cadet has completed their studies.What was approved
Approved for Bathurst Regional Council
Council will use funding to subsidise the university tuition costs of a new planning cadet Council employs, or will use funding to upskill existing non-planner staff members who are interested undertaking planning studies at university to support their transition into a planning role.
$25,000 was approved by
Grants committeeDate approved
June 2023Location of the recipient
Bathurst RegionalAbout the grant
Applications approved
74
Applications received
74
Strong Start Cadetship Program
Agency funding this grant
Department of Planning and EnvironmentProgram term
Participating councils are required to provide an acquittal report to the department by 30 June 2024, and by 30 June of each following year until the planning cadet has completed their studies.What was approved
Approved for Bayside Council
Council will use funding to subsidise the university tuition costs of a new planning cadet Council employs, or will use funding to upskill existing non-planner staff members who are interested undertaking planning studies at university to support their transition into a planning role.
$25,000 was approved by
Grants committeeDate approved
June 2023Location of the recipient
BaysideAbout the grant
Applications approved
74
Applications received
74
Strong Start Cadetship Program
Agency funding this grant
Department of Planning and EnvironmentProgram term
Participating councils are required to provide an acquittal report to the department by 30 June 2024, and by 30 June of each following year until the planning cadet has completed their studies.What your application needs to include
Councils will be required to provide the following information for each application they submit:
- council name
- contact information (name, role, email, phone) of key council contact
- confirmation that council has at least one senior staff member with the relevant skills and capacity to train a planning cadet (yes/no)
- number of:
- FTE planning roles currently funded
- FTE planning roles currently vacant
- planning cadet roles currently funded
- planning cadet roles currently vacant
- Strong Start Cadetship Program funding agreement, signed by council staff with appropriate delegation at director level or above (the funding agreement can be found at the end of the program guidelines)
- official council invoice to the NSW Department of Planning and Environment for $25,000, with the subject noted as “Strong Start Cadetship Program”.
Optional: Ask planning cadets to sign up to the Strong Start mailing list from the department.
During the application period, councils can submit applications on the NSW Planning Portal.
Prepare your application with this checklist
Prior to your application, you will need to collate the following essential support material
- Strong Start Cadetship Program funding agreement, signed by council staff with appropriate delegation at director level or above (the funding agreement can be found at the end of the program guidelines).
- Official council invoice to the NSW Department of Planning and Environment for $25,000, with the subject noted as “Strong Start Cadetship Program”.
Address the eligibility criteria
All NSW councils are eligible to participate in this program, provided they have at least 1 senior staff member with the relevant skills and capacity to train a planning cadet.
For clarification, the following notes regarding program eligibility have been provided:
- Councils cannot use program funding to pay tuition fees for existing planning cadets. The program requires councils to onboard additional planning cadets.
- Councils can use program funding to upskill existing council staff who are interested in undertaking studies to support their transition into a planning role.
- There is no limit to the number of applications that a council may submit for the program (i.e. councils may apply for multiple $25,000 grants for multiple planning cadets).
- If councils submit multiple applications, they must submit a separate funding agreement and invoice for each application.
- Councils must commit to employing the planning cadet for at least the duration of the cadet’s study.
- If there is remaining grant funding after a council has paid for a planning cadet’s tuition, councils may use the remaining grant funding to pay for the tuition of an additional planning cadet. Any remaining grant funding that is not put towards tuition fees must be returned to the department.
- If a council is unsuccessful in onboarding a planning cadet by 30 June 2024, it must return the grant funding to the department.
- Annual acquittal will be required by councils to ensure that funding is spent in accordance with the terms and conditions of the program, as stipulated in the funding agreements that councils must sign.
- Program funding must be expended on a planning cadet’s tuition fees for one of the following planning courses at a NSW university. The department may otherwise approve (at its discretion) a planning course at an Australian university not listed in the program guidelines to be an eligible planning course for the purposes of the program. In that instance, council and the department would agree to amend or vary the funding agreement, as applicable, to reflect that the cadet is studying in a planning course other than those listed in the program guidelines.
Address the assessment criteria
Applications will be evaluated against the following criteria:
- Planning staff vacancy rate
Given that this program has been designed in response to the emerging planning skills shortage, councils with the highest vacancy rates in their planning teams will be prioritised for this program. - Existing planning cadets
Councils that do not have any existing planning cadet roles will be prioritised for this program. This aligns with the program objective to incentivise and support councils to employ and develop new planners.
Start the application
Applications for this grant are now closed.
After the application is submitted
Successful applications will be decided by: Grants committee (comprised of DPE representatives and an external probity advisor)
Following closure of the application period, the Strong Start Cadetship Program evaluation committee will meet during the week of 12 June 2023 to:
- review all applications received against the program evaluation criteria
- rank all applications in order from those that best meet the program criteria to those that least meet the program criteria
- conduct a holistic review against the program objectives to determine the final list of applications that will receive grant funding through the program.
Support and contact
Email: planningdeliveryunit@dpie.nsw.gov.au
Postal address: 4 Parramatta Square, 12 Darcy Street, Parramatta NSW 2150