From the Assistant Principals - Wellbeing and Learning

Arrival To/Departure From School

Parents and students are reminded that our school day commences at 8:18am at which time students should be making their way to Homeroom for an 8:20am start.  Increasingly, a number of students are being dropped off and/or walking into school after 8:20am.  This limits the important information that they receive in Homeroom and their opportunity to prepare for the school day.

We ask for parent support to observe the process for early collection of your daughter.  Please record your intention to collect your daughter in their College diary which is then signed by their Homeroom teacher or Wellbeing Leader.  This then allows our office staff to more efficiently attend the sign out process and speed up your collection of your child.  Where possible please organise appointments outside school hours to minimise the disruption to your daughter’s learning.

Contact/Correspondence with College Staff

We are most keen to receive communication from parents and carers about students as the need arises.  As you would appreciate, our teaching staff particularly are most often in class, on duty, or attending to students.  This naturally limits the response time we have for return phone calls and emails. We make every effort to respond as quickly as possible, however this may not be within the same day but our aim is to ensure it is within a 24 / 48 hour period.  As for many workplaces, we observe the ‘Right to Disconnect’ legislation that means school employees are not generally expected to respond to contact outside normal working hours. Naturally, issues of an urgent nature will always be prioritised.

Accordingly, we appreciate your patience and understanding that we are making every effort to respond to your requests in and around our important work of learning and support of students.  We value the important relationship with our parents and appreciate your contact with the College.

Thank You for Your Voice – Tell Them From Me Survey

We extend our sincere thanks to all the parents and carers who took the time to complete the Tell Them From Me survey, it has now closed.  Our students also completed their survey last week, giving us a comprehensive view of our community's voice. Your thoughtful feedback is greatly appreciated and plays an important role in shaping the future direction of our College.  Your responses offer valuable insight into the experiences, hopes, and expectations you have for your child’s education. As a Catholic learning community, we are committed to continuous growth and improvement, and your input helps us to better understand how we can serve and support our students and families. We look forward to using this feedback to strengthen our mission, enhance our practices, and remain faithful to our vision of nurturing learners in faith, hope and love.

Upcoming Lockdown Practice Drill

As part of our ongoing commitment to student and staff safety, the College will conduct a practice lockdown drill at some point before the end of term. In order to ensure the drill reflects a realistic response, it will take place during either recess or lunchtime.

While we hope such procedures are never required in a real-life situation, practising our emergency responses is an important part of ensuring our students and staff are prepared, informed, and able to respond calmly and appropriately should the need ever arise. These practice drills also support us in meeting our duty of care and compliance requirements regarding school safety procedures.

In preparation for the lockdown drill, staff will work closely with students in the lead-up to the event to explain the purpose of the practice and what students can expect. We also recognise that drills of this nature may raise concerns or trigger past experiences for some students. We encourage families to speak with their daughters beforehand should they feel additional reassurance or support may be beneficial.

To assist with communication, a Compass post will be sent to families on the morning of the lockdown practice drill to advise that the drill will be taking place that day. During the lockdown practice, office staff will not be able to field phone calls or respond to routine enquiries, and student collection during the drill will not be possible. Should parents or visitors be onsite at the time of the practice, they will also be required to follow the College’s lockdown procedures and directions from staff.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause; however, the safety and wellbeing of our students remains at the forefront of all that we do.

Looking ahead, next term the College will also conduct an offsite evacuation drill. This practice will be communicated and managed in a similar manner to the lockdown drill to ensure our community remains informed and prepared.

We thank families for their understanding and support as we continue to prioritise a safe and prepared learning environment for all students.

Ms Debbie White & Mrs Jeanette Lans

Assistant Principals - Wellbeing and Learning