Principal's Views

Dear Parents, Carers and Friends of Epping Views PS,

There was a great deal of excitement across the school last week as a number of trades people descended on the school to begin the work of moving four unused portables and a toilet block. As the wooden decks were demolished students were really keen to know what is going to replace the portables. The development of creative play spaces has been a plan of the School Council for some time now. We are excited to see what the creative landscapers will design. 

Community Hub

It is with great pleasure that I announce that Lori Mingione has been appointed to the position of EVPS Community Hub Leader. Commencing next term the hub will be open daily and we will be encouraging families to drop in to participate in a number of programs including walking group, story time, crafts, art classes, afternoon tea & chat, gardening & many others.

We will have a formal launch of the Community Hub early in Term 3.

As the end of term approaches I would like to take this opportunity to thank all staff for their continued dedication and commitment. The teacher shortage in Victoria and indeed Australia has exacerbated the need to split classes when we have staff absences. Our staff welcome these split students into their class and include them in the daily program to minimise disruption to learning.

Take part in a survey to help shape the future of education in Australia

Parents and guardians are invited to take part in a survey to help inform the Review to Inform a Better and Fairer Education System. The online survey is an opportunity to help shape the future of education in Australia. It closes on Friday 23 June 2023. The survey is open to anyone who cares for a school-aged child and makes decisions about their education. Students aged under 18 years can also take part, but require consent from a parent or guardian to do so. The expert panel for the review will use the results to inform recommendations for the final report to all education ministers, by 31 October 2023. The final report will advise education ministers on what targets and reforms should be included in the next National School Reform Agreement.

The Social Research Centre is conducting the survey.

For more information on the survey, refer to parents/guardians survey on the Australian Government Department of Education website. 

Recording Student Absences

A reminder for parents that Compass should be used for all attendance reporting. You can log on to Compass and enter student absences for the day. Just log in and type the reason for the absence from school e.g. sick, appointment etc. A SMS message will be sent at 10:00 to parents who have not logged a daily absence. Please acknowledge the text straight away by logging on to Compass and approving the absence. 

Traffic & Child Safety

In my last newsletter I wrote about the concerns we have for our student safety at before and after school drop off.

We have seen:

• students crossing the road without using the crossing
• parents encouraging students to cross roads to get in to the car
• drivers double parking
• drivers parking in “Drop off Zones”
• drivers doing u-turns in narrow roads.

All of these poor driving habits are dangerous and also illegal. 

The Whittlesea Council Traffic wardens have been out and have issued multiple warnings and fines. Earlier this week we had the Traffic Engineers from the council come out to identify issues and possible resolutions. We appreciate your patience as we work to keep our students safe.

3 Way Conferences

We are looking forward to seeing all families at our 3 Way Conferences next Wednesday. Please refer to Compass to book a time. 

We will be hosting an end of term assembly on the last day of term. We invite you all to attend. The assembly will start at 9:15. A coffee van will be on site from 8:30 – so remember to bring a few gold coins. Our assembly we will be acknowledging excellent attendance and also getting into the spirit of the FIFA Women’s World Cup by allocating each class a team to represent next term. We look forward to seeing you there. 

Finally, as the term comes to an end I would like to farewell and congratulate both Colleen Harrison and Leanne Tsiplakis on their long and successful careers in education and wish them both well on their pending retirements.

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Warm regards,

Mandy O’Mara

Principal