Finance & Compliance

Finance and Compliance

Funding distribution

The Queensland Catholic Education Commission has responsibility for state-wide policy making and for action in the areas of:

funding (distribution of, negotiations concerning and accountability for the funding of Catholic schools by the Commonwealth Government and the State Government)
research and collection of statistical, financial and educational data relevant to the Commission’s prime functions.

The Commission’s Finance Committee reviews funding distribution arrangements for all programs and recommends to the Commission arrangements for each program for formal endorsement.

These arrangements take into account:

the need for transparency in the Commission’s financial operations
the need for good administrative practice, i.e. appropriate authority and adequate documentation to facilitate the making of payments
the need for a fair and equitable outcome in terms of student, school and community needs.

Full details are available in the Group Funding Guidelines 2020-2029.

Government programs available to Catholic schools that are being administered by the Commission are listed in the Government Programs section of this website.

The Queensland Catholic Education Commission has an appeals process that applies to all government funding programs where the Commission is responsible for and has endorsed arrangements for the distribution of funds. The endorsed arrangements refer to the Program Funding Arrangements approved by the Commission on an annual basis.

Government Programs

Australian Government Programs

Further information on the programs below is available on the Australian Government Department of Education and Training website, on the Schooling page.

Program	Purpose
Capital Programs
Capital Grants Program General Element	To provide and improve school capital infrastructure
Choice and Affordability Fund	The Government describes the purpose of the Fund as driving government priorities, including: Supporting parental choice and affordability Supporting schools during the transition Strengthening educational outcomes in schools Assisting schools in regional remote areas and in drought-affected areas Enhancing student wellbeing and support initiatives QCEC Choice and Affordability Fund Annual Report 2023 QCEC Choice and Affordability Fund Annual Report 2022 QCEC Choice and Affordability Fund Annual Report 2021 QCEC Choice and Affordability Fund Annual Report 2020
General Recurrent Grant	To assist schools with recurrent costs of school education
National School Chaplaincy Program	To assist schools to engage the services of a chaplain to provide additional social, emotional and spiritual support to students. For more information about the National School Chaplaincy Program visit our Student Safety and Wellbeing page.
Non-Government Reform Support Fund	Funding non-government representative bodies to support implementation of its school education reform priorities: Quality assurance, moderation and support for the continued improvement of the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD) Implementation of online delivery of the National Assessment Program Improving governance and financial management practices in non-government schools QCEC NGRSF 2023-2024 Work Plan QCEC NGRSF 2022 Work Plan QCEC NGRSF 2021 Work Plan QCEC NGRSF 2020 Work Plan QCEC NGRSF 2019 Work Plan QCEC NGRSF Revised Strategic Plan 2019-2023 QCEC NGRSF Annual Report 2022 QCEC NGRSF Annual Report 2021 QCEC NGRSF Annual Report 2020 QCEC NGRSF Annual Report 2019 QCEC NGRSF Annual Report 2018

Queensland Government Programs

Further information on Grants and Appropriations is available at the Queensland Government, Department of Education website.

Program	Purpose
Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) Sector Support Funding	Funding to support QCEC to conduct a range of activities, ensuring high participation of Queensland Catholic Primary Schools in the 2021 Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) data collection and active ongoing utilisation of the data at school and community level.
Alcohol Education Program	To promote responsible alcohol use.
Capital Assistance Scheme	To provide funding assistance to non-government schools for the provision, conversion, refurbishment and upgrade of educational facilities and boarding accommodation.
Education Support Funding	To enhance education support for students in out-of-home care.
ETRF – VET Coordination and Career Enhancement	Provision of additional support services for young people in the Senior Phase of Learning, with an emphasis on the coordination of VET programs and enhancement of career guidance and counselling.
External Infrastructure Subsidy Scheme	To provide funding assistance (up to 50% of the eligible cost) to non-government schools for infrastructure costs external to the site imposed by local authorities as a condition of a building approval.
Living Away from Home Allowance	To assist families to offset schools’ tuition fees for boarders.
Non State Schools Transport Assistance Scheme	To provide travel assistance to eligible applicants to subsidise the cost of transporting their children to non-state schools.
Queensland Kindergarten Funding – IT Infrastructure Grant	To support the provision of the following to QCEC and kindergarten services: • purchase new IT infrastructure • undertake minor electrical and communication upgrades • support Services through change management activities • develop and enhance enterprise systems
Queensland Kindergarten Funding Scheme – A Great start to Kindergarten	To support the successful transition of children into an approved kindergarten program in 2021 who are: • aged three years by June 30, 2022 • experiencing vulnerability or disadvantage, preferably eligible to receive QKFS plus • not currently attending an early childhood education and care program
Queensland Kindergarten Funding Scheme - Free Access to Kindergarten	Funding is provided to: • address enrolment issues as a result of affordability in regional community kindergartens by providing funding to off-set a child’s fees • provide financial support to vulnerable and disadvantaged children already enrolled in community kindergarten • provide further fee relief for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children across the state • provide kindergartens with the opportunity to attract new enrolments by offering no fees to new families • offset the out-of-pocket expenses for eligible kindergarten aged children
Queensland Kindergarten Funding Scheme Kindy Uplift Pilot Services	Is to enhance the capability of kindergarten services and educators to support inclusion and children’s learning and development outcomes by providing funding for programs and supports which address educational need.
Queensland Kindergarten Funding Scheme (QKFS) – Kindergarten Inclusion Support Scheme (KISS)	To support all vulnerable and/or disadvantage children, in particular children with diagnosed or suspected disability, to access and fully participate in an inclusive and quality kindergarten program, as well as successfully transition to school.
Queensland Kindergarten Funding Scheme - Recurrent Subsidies	To provide funding for kindergarten service providers for students who are at least 4 years old by 30 June.
Refugee and Asylum Seeker Early Childhood Pilot	A pilot to provide financial support to families from refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds who are experiencing financial vulnerability to participate in kindergarten.
Special Needs Organisation	To provide programs to re-engage young people who are severely disengaged from education.
State Recurrent Per Capita Grant	To assist schools with recurrent operating costs.
Students with Disability	To assist schools with recurrent operating costs associated with the programs/activities developed to meet the needs of identified special needs students.
Student Welfare Worker Program	To engage the services of a student welfare worker to provide additional social, emotional and spiritual support to students. For more information visit our Student Safety and Wellbeing page.
Textbook & Resources Allowance	To assist parents of secondary school age students to offset the cost of textbooks and other learning resources.
Vocational Education & Training (VET) in Schools	To set out operational targets and activities in addressing industry needs, skill shortages and managing the implementation of the new VETiS Funding framework.
Youth Support Coordinators Initiative	To support retention and attainment of students in years 10-12. The target group will be students at risk and disengaging from school.

Capital Programs

For information about Capital programs for Queensland Catholic schools click here.

Reporting Timetable

There are a number of data collections that occur each year, some of them are government collections, others are to fulfil requirements that meet funding accountabilities or to provide statistical data for annual reporting on Catholic schools. This facility is intended to help authorities with their planning.

Change of school details form (SchoolsHUB)

For more information please refer to memo number 2024/045

Form: Change of school details form

January - March 2024

January

Kindergarten Periodic Data Report – Semester 2, 2023

Under the service agreement, QCEC as the Central Governing Body (CGB) for Catholic kindergarten services are required to collect information from Delegated Catholic Agencies to meet a wide range of reporting requirements throughout the year. Reports covering the following funding streams are required for December 2023:

Subsidies for Kindergarten Services
Administration Funding
Inclusion Funding
Transition Funding
Great Start to Kindergarten

An email containing the Data Report template (Microsoft Excel) was sent to Delegated Catholic Agencies on 23 November.

Due date: Friday, 12 January 2024

2024 School Directory

Please complete the School Directory Form if a submission was not completed in the 2023 collection window, or if further updates are required. School Authorities are required to review the existing School Directory and complete the School Directory Form to:

– add a new school/campus
– update an existing school/campus’s details
– or confirm that the details in the existing School Directory are correct.

Please note that this year all School Authorities are requested to confirm that the details for their schools/campuses are correct even if no updates are required.

Data collection tool: School Directory Form

Due date: Monday, 22 January 2024

Kindergarten Data Report (Forecast Semester 1 2024)

Forecast kindergarten enrolment and attendance data for Semester 1, 2024 is to be submitted by Delegated Catholic Agencies via QGrants API.

Due date: Monday, 29 January 2024

February

2024 Initial Enrolments

Each Catholic School Authority is required to report on enrolments by grade at the start of the school year as of 2 February 2024. This is to allow QCEC to respond to the National Catholic Education Commission and the media on preliminary enrolments for 2024.

Data collection template: 2024 Initial Enrolments Survey

Due date: Friday, 2 February 2024

NAPLAN Student Background Data

Data collection process for the National Assessment Program – Literacy & Numeracy (NAPLAN) testing of students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. The Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority NAPLAN Portal can be accessed here.

The key dates are as follows:

29 January 2024: RI/MPJP upload and check student details
7 February 2024: Diocesan Catholic schools verify and update student details
19 February 2024: Due date for verification of all school data in QCAA Portal

Student Residential Address and Other Information Collection

The Student Residential Address and Other Information Collection is a Commonwealth Government data collection. The 2024 collection will open on Wednesday 14 February 2024, and will close on Wednesday 13 March 2024. The data collected will be used to refine the calculation of each school’s Direct Measure of Income (DMI) score. Approved authorities are legally required to complete this collection in accordance with the Australian Education Regulation.

Collection opens: Wednesday, 14 February 2024

Due date: Wednesday, 13 March 2024

New Schools/ Schools Undertaking Changes to Operation

Catholic School Authorities must complete an application for new schools or schools undertaking changes to their operation (e.g. a new level of schooling where a primary school adds secondary year levels). Details are available on the Non-State Schools Accreditation Board (NASSAB) and Department of Education and Training website.

All applications must be accompanied by the NSSAB accreditation documentation and are to be sent to QCEC Data Collections email datacollections@qcec.catholic.edu.au for submission. Separations and amalgamations can only be approved for Australian Government funding from the commencement of the following year.

Please note: the cut-off date to submit the DET forms for separations or amalgamations is 1 July 2024.

Data collection template: Approved Authority Application Form

Due date: Friday, 16 February 2024

Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) School Frame

The Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) is an Australian Government initiative. The AEDC is conducted every three years, measuring how young children have developed by the time they start their first year of full-time school. The Social Research Centre is managing the AEDC data collection on behalf of the Australian Government.

The School Frame includes information about schools in scope for the 2024 AEDC. QCEC will contact the nominated data contacts from each Diocesan Catholic School Authority that is in scope for the 2024 AEDC to finalise their School Frame.

Due date: Wednesday, 21 February 2024

Queensland Government Census

The Office of the Non-State Schools Accreditation Board conducts the State Government Census to collect information for state funding.

Census date: Friday, 23 February 2024

Due date: Friday, 1 March 2024

Applications for Capital Grants

All Capital Grant Applications are made via the Capital Programs page on the QCEC website here. See QCEC Circular 2023/128 of 12 October 2023 for further information.

Due date: 5pm on Thursday, 29 February 2024

March

Australian Early Development Census (AEDC): Pre-population

Nominated data contacts from each Diocesan Catholic School Authority that is in scope for the 2024 AEDC, is required to pre-populate a range of information in preparation for the 2024 Census.

Due date: Thursday, 28 March 2024

Choice and Affordability Fund – Accountability

Catholic School Authorities are required to complete the acquittal certificate, expenditure profile and activity report in the provided template.