Grant up to PLN 10,000 for Volunteer Fire Departments in Łódzkie Voivodeship: Run Children and Youth Training in Virtual Reality

Update: submissions for the 2026 call closed on 6 March 2026. The details below describe that call. If you are planning a similar children and youth training project, contact us and we will help you prepare it.

Łódzkie Voivodeship opened the 2026 call “Educational development of children and youth in the field of fire protection”. The programme supports fire protection education for children and youth and the development of practical skills in Volunteer Fire Department (OSP) units.

If your unit runs training groups for children or youth, a call like this is a concrete opportunity to fund a project that genuinely improves the quality of training. At EHS VR, we help you prepare such a project and implement VR training so that it matches the goal of the call, keeps participants engaged and can be delivered regularly at your station.

What the call offered and how much funding was available

The most important information from the 2026 announcement:

• funding: up to PLN 10,000 per offer
• own contribution: 20%
• submissions: via the witkac.pl generator
• deadline: 6 March 2026 (23:59:59)

The details and competition documents are published on the Łódzkie Voivodeship website.

What a unit gains from this funding

The biggest value of the grant is that it turns good intentions into concrete results:

• more practical sessions across the season, not a one-off effort
• a coherent training plan for children and youth that can be repeated weekly or every two weeks
• a modern educational tool that builds habits and teaches decision-making through scenarios
• a clear project outcome: trained groups, concrete topics, measurable progress

These are exactly the projects that do well in evaluation: a clear plan, concrete activities and a visible result.

Why virtual reality works in training for children and youth

Virtual reality does not replace live drills. Its strength is that it allows safe repetition of procedures and scenarios while keeping the group engaged.

In training for children and youth, this matters because:

• it is easier to keep attention and discipline during sessions
• the same situations can be practised until they are done correctly
• participants learn sequences of actions and responsibility, not just definitions
• the instructor has a ready scenario and can focus on discussing mistakes

Which topics virtual reality training can cover

In a training project for children and youth, three areas usually work best:

• fire protection: behaviour in a threat situation, simple procedures, decision-making
• first aid: the order of actions, common mistakes, reinforcing correct reactions
• safe behaviour: teamwork, responsibility, alertness and communication

These topics can be practised many times without risk and without the organisational costs of field training.

What a grant-ready project with EHS VR looks like

If you want to obtain funding and use it for virtual reality training, we guide you through the whole process of preparing the training solution.

In practice, we do it like this:

1) We match the project to the goal of the call

We do not start with the technology but with what should exist once the task is completed: how many sessions, for how many participants, which skills and what outcomes. Based on this, we select the topics and the training structure.

2) We design the training programme for children and youth

We provide a ready structure for the training cycle: session length, participant rotation, introduction and wrap-up, and a method for running debriefs after each scenario.

3) We provide materials that make the offer description easier

We prepare information you can use in the activity description: which scenarios, which competences, which results, and how the training will be delivered in the unit.

4) We implement the solution and support the instructors

We help launch the training in the unit so that it is easy to deliver, from setting up the station to organising sessions for the group.

What a unit gains with EHS VR applications

Beyond the “wow effect”, what matters are the specific training benefits:

• scenario-based training that can be repeated and used to compare progress
• quick implementation of a training programme for children and youth
• procedures that can be repeated many times, without risk and without operational pressure
• a tool that helps the instructor keep the sessions structured

In short: the grant funds the project, and you get a ready, modern way to deliver sessions that genuinely teach.

Planning a children and youth training project?

If you are a Volunteer Fire Department unit and are planning a project for children and youth, contact EHS VR. We will help you design a project that is consistent with the goal of the call, has clear outcomes and truly strengthens children and youth training in your unit.