Wellbeing

It has been an extremely busy end of Term 1, especially with the Lenten Dances for Years 7, 8, 9 and 10 last week. I want to thank the vast majority of students who attended for their respectful and safe conduct during the respective evenings. The feedback received has been extremely positive from the boys and the staff from the invited girls’ schools. After two years it was wonderful to see and hear the excitement in the boys as they had the opportunity to interact with the girls. I also extend my appreciation to the Year 12 students and staff members who assisted.

Year 8 completed their focus on cybersafety during Term 1 with a performance of ‘The Hurting Game’ by Brainstorm Productions on Tuesday 5 April. Following the lives of two adolescents, the play tackled issues of self-esteem, cyberbullying and responsible use of social media.

Parents/carers are reminded that students are to be wearing Winter Uniform from the commencement of Term 2. I would like to focus particularly on the cleanliness of students’ shoes. There is a clear expectation that students have clean, polished shoes. The recent student photos clearly indicated that many students need to spend some time over the holidays cleaning and applying shoe polish to their footwear. If there are any issues with your son being able to wear the uniform please contact the relevant Year Coordinator or Junior School Classroom Teacher. 

Many students will require hair cuts over the holiday period. I ask parents/carers to ensure that the grooming guidelines in the College Diary are consulted prior to their son having a haircut. Students should not have their hair shorter than a No.2 grade or have noticeable changes in length. 

The extended period of wet weather has certainly proved challenging in terms of dropping off and collecting students. As in previous years I remind parents/carers that students should not be collected of an afternoon from Merley Road, Hydebrae Street or Shortland Avenue. Similarly, in the morning parents/carers should not be dropping their son/s near the pool carpark once the Bus Bays become operational. 

Finally, as we complete the first term of utilising the TASS Parent Lounge I would like to thank those parents/carers who have been using the absence notification function and encourage parents/carers who are yet to use it to familiarise themselves with the processes. The absence entries made prior to the day really assist in efficiently collating daily absences. I acknowledge that there are still areas for improvement and we are working with our TASS consultants to ensure that the platform is working at its full capacity.

Robert Simpson

Director of Wellbeing