This application form should be completed by Approved Providers* or a duly authorised representative of an Approved Provider and/or SP-Admin account holder* applying for funding under the Health and Development Participation (HDP) Grants Program. The grant is designed to support participation in the Health and Development Checks in Early Childhood Services (HDC) Program in 2026.
Program Guidelines for the 2026 HDP Grants Program are available here, you must read and understand these guidelines before completing your application. Only one application is required per service. Large providers applying for more than 10 ECEC services may submit one application on behalf of all services. Applications for the HDP Grants Program are open until 5:00PM 3 December 2025.
For assistance with the online application system:
Please contact the Smarty Grants Support Desk by phone on (03) 3920 6888 between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday or email service@smartygrants.com.au.
Frequently Asked Questions for the 2025 HDP Grants Program are available here. If you have any questions regarding the following, please email earlychildhooddevelopment@det.nsw.edu.au or call the Early Childhood Education Information and Enquiries team on 1800 619 113:
- How to apply for the HDP Grants Program
- Any of the eligibility criteria and what can / cannot be funded
- Whether your service is eligible
Further information:
Privacy Notice
The NSW Department of Education (the department) is committed to protecting the privacy of your personal information in accordance with the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998 (PPIP Act) and Health Records Information Privacy Act 2002 (HRIP Act).
The department collects and uses personal information to administer programs under Brighter Beginnings, including the HDP and HDC Grants Programs. Personal information will be used for application assessment, delivery, ongoing monitoring and program evaluation. The information may be shared with the NSW Ministry of Health, and contracted third-party vendors for the purposes outlined in this Notice. The department will not disclose your personal information to other third parties unless authorised by law. From time to time, the department may release publications based on information it has collected, but any personal information will be de-identified.
Any personal information you provide with this application will be held and managed by the department in accordance with the PPIP Act and HRIP Act, and subject to the privacy policies published by the Department of Education. For further information, please see the department’s Privacy Management Plan (https://education.nsw.gov.au/content/dam/main-education/about-us/rights-and-accountability/media/documents/privacy/privacy-management-plan.pdf) and the department’s Privacy Policy (https://education.nsw.gov.au/rights-and-accountability/privacy).
This information is supplied voluntarily, but failure to provide the information may impact our ability to assess your application.
You can contact the department to correct or access your personal information at any time. If you wish to do so, you may complete the Application for Amendment form (https://education.nsw.gov.au/content/dam/main-education/about-us/rights-and-accountability/media/documents/privacy/privacy-application-for-amendment-form.pdf) and send it to legal.privacy@det.nsw.edu.au.
If you have a concern or complaint about the way personal information has been collected, used or disclosed you should contact: earlychildhooddevelopment@det.nsw.edu.au. Once personal information has been provided, you may also withdraw your consent at any time, and no further personal information will be collected or used.
*Approved Provider means a person who holds a provider approval under the Children (Education and Care Services) National Law 2010 (NSW)
*A duly authorised representative of the Approved Provider and/or SP-Admin account holder is someone who has received permission from their organisation, the Approved Provider and the ECCMS SP-Admin account holder to submit this application on their behalf.
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