School Council 

School Council met in person and online on Wednesday, 23 August.

The Principal’s report included some more details about the recent student survey. It showed students self-reported low levels of resilience. The school will use this new information in its focus for wellbeing over the rest of this year and next year.

Council approved policies for anaphylaxis, asthma, bullying prevention, and camps and excursions. Council also approved a security camera privacy notification for the first time. Windsor Primary’s new buildings include cameras that are installed outside buildings and in corridors. There are no cameras inside classrooms. New CCTV signs will be put at site entrances and the new CCTV privacy notification will be available on the school website. The cameras operate continually and the footage is stored on a secure server for 30 days. School administration has access to the footage and Victoria Police can also request access if appropriate.  

The Finance subcommittee reported the credit budget (from government funding for teacher salaries) is currently in surplus. Unfortunately, utility costs are much higher this year and have already exceeded 2022. Spending on casual teachers has also been higher than desired, but the school can manage this thanks to the surplus. The other good news is that 53% of voluntary contributions have been paid.

Council approved a tennis coaching service to provide after-school tennis lessons on the oval at Windsor Primary one afternoon a week. The school will also earn a hire fee from the program.

The Buildings and Grounds committee has created a list of potential projects around the school. The school will fast-track a fence around the gravel ‘fossicking’ area to protect children playing in that area from ball sports. Peter continues to pursue the Building Authority for action on the new play space at The Avenue end of the school. The plan is to replace the old garden beds with a new nature playground using the tree trunks that were delivered last year (and are still sitting there).  

The Community Engagement sub-committee has been working on a new school video with help from students in Grades 5 and 6. The results of the uniform survey will be publicised around the school soon and the uniform policy will be updated at next term’s meeting.

Council will be looking into providers for Out of Hours School Care next year as the contract with Camp Australia expires. If any parents have information about quality services they have used in the past, please let the school know.

The school was unsuccessful in getting a grant from Landcare. There are another 3 grants currently in the works.  

It now appears likely that the upcoming Referendum will be held on 14 October, the same day as our Opening Day. This means the school will be very busy on the day! Council will organise a working bee to prepare the grounds for all the visitors. Please keep an eye out for opportunities to help with preparations or to volunteer on the 14th of October.