AASW Practitioner Research Grant 2022/23

Our annual research grants

Practitioner based research provides an important contribution to the evidence and knowledge base of social work. The AASW is committed to promoting a culture of research within the profession; positioning the AASW as an important stakeholder in research and contributing to the development of the evidence base for social work practice and policy.

Research grant application form 2022-23

AASW Practitioner Research Grant 2022/23

The AASW invites applications for a competitive research grant of $10,000 from AASW member/s wishing to undertake a practitioner research project in an area of social work practice. There are two grants of $10,000 on offer this year. All areas of practitioner research are eligible. One grant will be dedicated to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social workers and/or research projects.

The AASW also invites applications for a competitive research development grant of $5,000. These funds are to support AASW member/s wishing to develop a practitioner research grant application for the 2023/24 grant round in an area of social work practice. There is one research development grant of $5,000 on offer this year. All areas of practitioner research are eligible. 

Overview

Through this grant scheme, the AASW hopes to widen the expertise of social work practitioners in conceptualising, developing and implementing practice research.

The research and research development grants are an initiative of the Australian Association of Social Workers National Research Committee. 

Research is key to the continued development of the theory, knowledge and evidence base of social work practice.  As such it is a key area of social work practice.  Social workers utilise research and create knowledge in their work in diverse settings, engaged in a range of activities including case work and case management, community work, group work, organisational development, social policy and educational roles.  The particular purpose of this grant is to encourage research by social workers (practitioners) who are outside the formal research institutions and who have limited access to research funding. 

The grant scheme encourages social work practitioners to develop and implement a research project which will make a contribution to the evidence and knowledge base of social work.  The grants are available for qualitative, quantitative, theoretical, and applied research projects or programs associated with social work practice.

Applications that involve collaboration between a university and practitioners are welcome for the research grants. In such cases, it is important to demonstrate how practitioners will benefit from their participation in the application and project.  Applications for the research development grant are expected to involve practitioners who may not have collaborative associations with a university. 

The research, project or program grant can be used to support practice research or projects including, but not limited to:

• Research projects focussed on a particular practice issue.  These will typically comprise data collection, methodological development/refinement, instrument/schedule development and data analysis.
• Pilot projects (but not an initial literature review) that will typically comprise data collection, methodological development/refinement, instrument/schedule development, and data analysis.
• Evaluation projects which may comprise outcome evaluations of social work practice.
• Evidence based practice research (translation or implementation) designed to produce, synthesise, implement and disseminate evidence in relation to social work practice.

The research development grant can be used to develop a research grant application for submission in subsequent grant rounds. 

• The research development grant will assist practitioners without a clear link to academia to assemble a research team and grant application that will enable them to comply with the ethics requirement and research design components embedded in the above criteria.  

• It is expected that the outcome from this grant will be a workable, competitive grant application for a subsequent grant round.

Objectives of the program scheme

The objectives of the program are to:

• Provide support for practice-based research

• Provide funding for progressing ideas that address emerging areas of practice and policy

• Facilitate and foster collaborative research, planning and development with a focus on supporting practitioner researchers

• Encourage the development of mentoring relationships between practitioners and academic researchers

Timelines

• First call for applications: Monday, 1 August 2022.

• Deadline for applications: Sunday, 25 September 2022 Midnight AEST. Late applications will not be accepted.

• Successful applications announced by the end of November 2022

• Research project commencement – January 2023

• Funding will be available for projects of up to 12 months duration. Additional funding will not be provided for extensions required to complete the project.

  Due to applications for the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander grant being reviewed by a culturally appropriate committee, there may be a delay in the announcement of the successful application in this category.

Eligibility

General Conditions

• Applicants must be members of the AASW (only the Principal Researcher needs be a member of the AASW)

• All applications must include all the documentation requested by the closing date. As these are competitive grants assessed by a panel including external reviewers, lack of clarity or completeness in documentation may rule an application ineligible

Specific Conditions

In addition to the general conditions, the following specific conditions apply:

• The research, project or program must commence no later than 1 January 2023.

• The successful applicant must file a 6-month progress report (emailed to AASW Professional Officer – Standards at [email protected] highlighting key milestones and tracking to budget.

• Acknowledge the AASW in all presentations and publications relating to the research, project or program.

• Grant recipients are expected to present the outcomes of their research at an appropriate conference or through publication.  Australian Social Work or Social Work Focus should be considered as a publication destination.

• One applicant should be nominated as the Principal Researcher. The Principal Researcher is responsible for the conduct of the grant and reporting to AASW. Up to four Co-Principal Researchers can also be nominated.

Greater weighting is given to applications in which the Principal Researcher or at least one of the Co-Principal Researcher/s is a practitioner employed in a non-academic position.

Funding rules

• Projects within the program can have the support of a partner organisation and this support may be financial or ‘in kind’ funding.

• Funding cannot be transferred to another institution, project, or program.

• A maximum of 50% of funds may be used for work release.

• Applicants must be continuing members of the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW).  Applicants who are Accredited Social Workers as defined by the AASW will be awarded extra weighting to their applications.

• All applications must address all of the selection criteria on the application form.

• Applications for research, projects, or programs already in receipt of funding will not be accepted

• Conference funding is limited to a maximum of 10% of the total of the grant awarded.

• Grant recipients are required to provide two reports on the project, at an agreed mid-point and a final report at the end of the project to the AASW.

Funding disbursement

The grant will be disbursed in two payments. An initial payment of $5,000 will be made on signature of the contract between the AASW and the successful organisation. A final payment for the balance of the grant will be made following review of a midway progress report to be submitted at an agreed mid-point of the research and subject to the contract agreement.

Research Grant Submission Details

The submission must include:

• A completed application form

• CV for all applicants (Including supervisor or research mentor as appropriate)

• Ethics approval confirmation

• Any other relevant attachments

Research Grant Selection Criteria

The grant is designed to provide financial support to help to meet the costs of conducting an important piece of practice research including (but not limited to): staffing, travel, library services, recording equipment, costs of an ethics application, software, or administrative support. The research must be focused on practice research, and it is the intention that the grant supports practitioners undertaking research, or research that is intimately tied to practitioner issues as the priority.

The following selection criteria apply and must be addressed explicitly in the application:

1. The significance of the practice issue and expected outcomes or contribution to social work practice.

2. Links to current social work practice knowledge, demonstrated by a succinct account of recent research into the field of inquiry and other evidence.

3. Appropriateness and feasibility of method, timeframe, scale, budget and findings/knowledge dissemination plan to the practice research issue.

4. The qualification and capacity of the research team to undertake the project. One of the Chief Investigators will be a social worker. The team will include at least one current social work practitioner and at least one member of the AASW.

Each of the four selection criteria is assessed according to the following weighting:

Criterion 1 – 20%

Criterion 2 – 20%

Criterion 3 – 40%

Criterion 4 – 20%

Research Development Grant Submission Details

The submission must include:

• A completed application form

• CV for all applicants (Including supervisor or research mentor as appropriate)

• Any other relevant attachments

Research Development Grant Selection Criteria

The grant is designed to provide financial support to help to meet the costs of developing an important submission for a piece of practice research including (but not limited to): staffing, travel, library services, recording equipment, costs of an ethics application, software, or administrative support. The research must be focused on practice research, and it is the intention that the grant supports practitioners undertaking research, or research that is intimately tied to practitioner issues as the priority.

The following selection criteria apply and must be addressed explicitly in the application:

1. The significance of the practice issue and expected outcomes or contribution to social work practice.

2. Links to current social work practice knowledge, demonstrated by a succinct account of recent research into the field of inquiry and other evidence.

3. A clear articulation of research grant elements detailed in the previous grant section with which the researchers need assistance for a full research grant application.  For example, necessary extensions to the research team to ensure access to ethics committee, assistance required to develop method, timeframe, scale, budget, and findings/knowledge dissemination plan to the practice research issue

4. The qualification and capacity of the existing research team to undertake the project. One of the Chief Investigators will be a social worker. The team will include at least one current social work practitioner and at least one member of the AASW. Note that this development grant is not purely for buying practitioner time to create a literature review but instead to produce a workable, competitive grant application for a subsequent grant round.

Each of the four selection criteria is assessed according to the following weighting:

Criterion 1 – 20%

Criterion 2 – 20%

Criterion 3 – 40%

Criterion 4 – 20%

The selection committee for both grants will comprise three members of the AASW National Research Committee. If required, additional evaluators from the National Research Committee will be invited to form part of the selection committee. All applicants will be advised following final approval from the AASW Board of the National Research Committee’s recommendations. Applicants will be advised in writing.

Due to applications for the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander grant being reviewed by a culturally appropriate committee, there may be a delay in the announcement of the successful application in this category.

If you have any queries relating to the Practitioner Research Grant, please contact:

Vanessa Paparone

Email - [email protected]

Telephone – 03 9320 1014

Applications should be forwarded by the due date to: [email protected].