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Bill and Margaret Best Travel Fund

The Overseas Travel Fund was renamed the Bill and Margaret Best Travel Fund in 1990 in memory of former Assembly Executive Secretary Rev. W.A. Best and his wife Margaret.

The purpose of the Fund is to assist church workers wanting to further develop their area of service to the Church.

The Personnel Work Group administers the Fund.

Eligibility

Church workers must have been employed in an equivalent full-time role that is recognised by the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand for at least five of the previous 10 years.

The term ‘church worker’ includes ministers, lay ministers and elders.

Training and study courses should meet the minimum duration as set out in the table below:

Location of course/conference	Minimum duration
Within New Zealand	Seven (7) days
Australia/Pacific region	Seven (7) days
North America/Asia	Fourteen (14) days
Europe	Twenty-one (21) days

Applicants must complete their course and return to New Zealand within 12 months of the course beginning.

Grants are for travel costs only. For assistance with course fees and/or materials please contact your presbytery/UDC council.

Where the course is in North America , Asia or Europe , the applicant needs to demonstrate that the equivalent course is not available in New Zealand or the Pacific region.

Applications

To request an application pack please contact Juliette Bowater on juliette(at)presbyterian.org.nz or call (04) 801-6000. Or, you can download an application form here.

Presbytery/UDC approval is required for study courses. A form is provided for presbyteries/UDCs in the application pack, or can be downloaded here.

Applicants wanting to attend a conference as an official representative of the Presbyterian Church should provide the names of at least two referees.

Applications for a grant to bring overseas visitors to New Zealand are the responsibility of the appropriate committee or work group.

Applications close 31 October each year. Applicants are notified of the outcome of their application by early December.

Applicants are encouraged to apply for their grant prior to travel. However, applications for travel undertaken in the past 12 months will be considered.

Previous Grants

Where an applicant has previously received a grant from the Fund, they must undergo a stand-down period before they are able to apply for a new grant. The stand-down period is as follows:

Location of previous travel	Stand-down period
New Zealand , Australia or the Pacific	Three (3) years
Asia	Five (5) years
Europe or North America	Eight (8) years

Study Leave Reports

At the completion of the course, applicants should forward their study leave report, along with the summary report page in the application pack, to:

Attn: Juliette Bowater
Human Resources
Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand
PO Box 9049
Wellington

Conveners of committees and/or work groups who have obtained support for overseas visitors are required to advise the Personnel Work Group that the visit is complete. This notification should be sent to:

Attn: Juliette Bowater
The Personnel Work Group
PO Box 9049
Wellington