Dear Parents,

I hope all families had a restful break and a Holy Easter.
We have come back to the beginning of term 2 and hit the ground running.
On Wednesday 24 April, all of our staff attended a Learning adjustment day with three other schools at Trinity Primary school. This day had workshops run by specialists for the schools’ staff to attend covering many different areas. It was valuable professional learning for staff to attend.

On the first day back we acknowledged ANZAC day with a school service to commemorate our fallen heroes.

Saturday 29 April was St Catherine’s Feast day which we acknowledged through learning tasks within classrooms and a special assembly. Due to the weather we had to run this through classrooms via the P.A. system.

This week our Grade four students headed off to their first school Camp. The camp was at Phillip Island Adventure Resort. The students’ behaviour was nothing short of exemplary. I am sure there are many tired children today. I would like to thank all staff who attended and for leaving their families to support this integral part of the curriculum. I would also like to thank the staff who stayed back at school and covered the extra tasks and responsibilities that remained at school.

Simon is on Long Service Leave for the first two weeks of Term Two, I would like to thank all staff for their support in Simon’s absence and in particular, Jessica Ornsby who is the Acting Deputy Principal and our dedicated Leadership team-Rebecca Cox, Victoria Donlan, Vanessa Jennings, Rian Prestwich, Kathleen O’Leary and Debbie Carpentier for assisting with Leadership support. 

Our Easter Raffle was drawn at our Holy Week Assembly on the last day of term, there were 305 prizes won by students. Thanks to the parents who volunteered their time to organise this.

Canteen
Canteen is up and running and the first day ran quite smoothly. As expected with a new company running it, there were a few minor teething issues that will be ironed out in the near future .  The Canteen operates from Tuesday to Friday every week.

Staffing
It is with pleasure that we welcome Stephanie Jansz onto the staff.  She will be replacing Victoria Donlan who will be heading off on Maternity Leave.
As previously mentioned Sarah Watson (Grade 6) has handed in her resignation for personal reasons.  We are delighted to announce that we have filled this position. We have employed Mr Anthony Preston who comes to us with a wealth of knowledge and experience. Anthony will join us from 29 May, but will have the opportunity to meet the students prior to his commencement.

Miss Hannah Carr has resigned for personal reasons and finished up on Monday. We are working hard to recruit a suitable replacement and have employed consistent CRTs to cover her grade in the interim. Rian (Year 5 & 6 Level Leader) , Rebecca Cox (Curriculum Leader) and Jess Ornsby are working closely with the Year 5 team to ensure consistency for student learning and all student wellbeing is being monitored closely. From time to time, we have some staff affected by illness or other personal matters.  Whilst this is not ideal, we do our very best to maintain as regular staff within those classrooms as we can. The learning is overseen by our Curriculum Leaders to ensure that students are receiving the same entitlement as the other grades in their level.  I ask that parents please respect the teacher’s privacy in these circumstances and understand that we are not in a position where we can inform families of why staff are away.

Special Celebrations

On Friday 12 May we are celebrating Mother's Day by inviting that special mum or person in your child/ren lives by attending their classroom in the afternoon for prayer and a visit.  Please keep an eye out for futher information in the coming week.

Traffic Congestion
The reality of all schools is there is traffic congestion at the drop off and pick up times.  In our case, being a large primary school situated on the same site as SFX, it increases the traffic.  We ask that all families please be respectful of each other, allow enough time for drop off and pick up, and follow the signs.  Predictable traffic is easier for us to manage and safer for our children.

2024 Enrolments
We are currently taking 2024 Enrolments.  If you are an existing family please get your forms in asap to guarantee you a spot.   If you know of anyone considering St Catherine’s for their child please ask them to contact the Office for a tour.

Uniform
Students are required to wear winter uniform as of Monday 8 May, the grace period will end on Friday 5 May.

Hats are not required now until the beginning of October.

Camp Dates for 2023

If you have any concerns regarding your child and camp, please contact Mr Rian Prestwich, Miss Jessica Ornsby or myself via the administration office and we will do what we can to assist you in this space.

2024 Enrolments
We are currently taking 2024 Enrolments.  If you are an existing family please get your forms in asap to guarantee you a spot.   If you know of anyone considering St Catherine’s for their child please ask them to contact the Office for a tour.

School Gate Opening Time 2023
As mentioned in the last newsletter to allow us to cater for the new EBA that Catholic teachers in the Diocese of Sale have entered into for 2023 we will be opening the school gates at 8.30am this year.  Children arriving before 8.30am must be enrolled in before school care.

Bike Shed
Due to the refurbishment of the Northern Portables the bike shed has been relocated to in between the STEM and Japanese portables.  It is temporary fencing at the moment whilst we are awaiting the installation of new fencing.

Playground
Planning for the new playground is underway.  We will hope to have this installed as soon as possible this year.  Thanks to the Parents and Friends for contributing money towards this exciting project.

COVID Advice
Please see the latest COVID advice regarding students who are unwell;

It is strongly recommended that students:

• Who test positive to COVID-19 should stay home and isolate for five (5) days;
• Should not attend school after five (5) days if still symptomatic;

• Who are symptomatic but have not tested positive should not attend school until their symptoms resolve;

• Parents, guardians or carers advise the school of the COVID-19 positive test result.

SCHOOL FEES
School Fee Statements will go out next Friday 12th May.

Families who hold an eligible Health Care Concession Card, may be eligible for CSEF (Camp, Sports and Excursion Funding).  If eligible, this would also entitle families to make an application for a fee remission, which effectively would see a significant reduction of fees to be paid for the year.  For more information, please do not hesitate to contact Margaret Lonergan in the Office.

Kind Regards

Anna Viney
Acting Principal

Thanks to the volunteers for the Easter Raffle

Congratulations to the top ten winners