Competitive grants for disability support and inclusive funding in public schools

In this paper, we investigate competitive government funding grants with a focus on inclusive funding and disability support. We endeavour to contribute to an important empirical research gap regarding competitive grants for disability funding by drawing on interviews with school principals, and policy documents from the Department of Education in the state of Victoria, Australia. Specifically, we explore school principals’ experiences in applying for competitive state-offered funding grants to bolster their allocated government resourcing, in order to facilitate the ‘reasonable adjustments’ mandated for students with a disability in line with the Disability Standards for Education (2005). This includes a range of disability supports, such as a sensory space and playground ramps, for example. There is scope to continue building on research regarding school funding for students experiencing or diagnosed with a disability in public schools in Australia. This is especially relevant as the majority of students diagnosed with a disability are educated in public schools, and public schools remain under-funded across the majority of states and territories. We argue that equity concerns can be raised regarding the grant process itself, as principals describe it as demanding, time consuming and laborious, and requiring specialised knowledge and expertise. We also suggest that these grant processes create competition for disability funding amongst public school principals in an already highly marketised school system, limited to those who can best sell, market or legitimise their need for necessary public resources.