From 1 July 2025, the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport (CITS) replaces the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries (DLGSC).
This program partners schools, creatives, and organisations to embed creativity into students' learning and understanding across curriculum areas.
The Creative Learning program offers funding to support creative learning projects and the development of creative learning practices in schools. The program invites Western Australian schools, creatives, and organisations to partner, connect and learn about creative processes.
Creative learning encourages the use of insight, imagination, intuition, connection, questioning, immersive practice, reflection, process driven practice, design, research, fieldwork and observation.
The 3 program categories, Partnerships, Collaborations and Residencies, support activities utilising arts-based practice to engage students in their learning beyond arts curriculum areas. These activities do not replace the learning in the arts curriculum subject areas.
Projects will support access, participation and overall engagement for students (K to 12) and develop educators’ capacity to use creative pedagogy through professional learning with creative practitioners.
The funded project should be designed as a series of transformative creative learning experiences that is inclusive of multiple curriculum areas and demonstrates deep learning through creativity.
The Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport (CITS) recognises that the following five (5) program objectives are interdependent.
Enhance students’ and educators’ creative learning capabilities to increase engagement and support success across Western Australian curriculum areas and beyond.
As part of the assessment process, CITS may provide information on prioiritising funding to schools that need it most upon advice from the Department of Education.
Grants of up to $20,000 for projects involving artists-in-residence in school environments, with the activity including approximately 25 days of engagement per school, of which a minimum of 15 days must include direct engagement with students.
Open to all Western Australian-based primary and secondary government and non-government schools, including Catholic and independent schools, teaching artists and creative practitioners, groups including unincorporated bodies, individuals informally collaborating, arts and/or cultural organisations, local government authorities, not-for-profit community organisations and/or not-for-profit community service organisations.
Grants between $80,000 and $120,000 per annum to deliver 2-year creative learning programs that enhance students’ and educators’ creative learning capabilities in and through the arts.
Open to Western Australian local governments, Western Australian based not-for-profit arts and/or cultural organisations or institutions with a demonstrated history working in creative learning.
This funding cannot support core activity of Arts Organisation Investment Program (AOIP) funded recipients and Major Performing Arts companies.
Please note: this program excludes state operated arts and cultural institutions.
Grants of up to $60,000 for projects and/or programs designed to connect Western Australian arts organisations and creative practitioners with schools.
Open to Western Australian-based arts and culture organisations, teaching artists and creative practitioners, local government authorities, schools, not-for-profit community organisations and/or not-for-profit community services organisations.
If you are applying for any of these grants on behalf of Aboriginal people you must provide evidence of significant Aboriginal involvement in the conception, development of and participation in the activity.
If you are unsure which category your project is best suited to please refer to the Application Support Document or contact a project officer at creativelearning@cits.wa.gov.au or call 61 8 6552 7400.
Closing 4:00pm 25 September 2025
Funding open
Opening 2 September 2025
Closed, opening later
You must read the guidelines before submitting an application as they provide essential information.
Collaboration project at Curtin Primary School