Principals News

Kids Thriving

Dear young people, do not bury your talents, the gifts that God has given you! Do not be afraid to dream of great things!

Pope Francis is a big advocate of empowering youth. This quote summarises what we are trying to achieve at Holy Family through the diverse opportunities we are presenting our students. However, it is the student and only the student who will decide what they are to do with their talent. This requires such nuance, with a balance of nurture and accountability, encouragement and direct instruction. We can give the tools, but our students must find the courage within to chase their dreams. 

 

State Member Gabrielle Williams Visit

 

We thank Gabrielle Williams for visiting our school on Tuesday. Gabrielle has taken our concerns about many of our families missing the $400 school bonus payment, but we spoke openly about many of our families not being aware of the opportunities for support they have. A role I take seriously as Principal is advocating on parents behalf. We have advocated for families around more effective NDIS support recently with some good outcomes for children and families.  If you have any concerns or questions, please come and chat with me. 

 

Illness

 

We have had a number of students and staff unwell in the last two weeks. We appreciate the families who have kept children home if they are unwell. This is important to maximise attendance at school. If we stay home when we are starting to feel unwell, we recover quicker and it reduces the spread within the school. 

 

Pick Up on Pittosporum Grove

 

I have had a few parents raise concerns about Pittosporum Grove after school. It has no doubt become busier recently and people are stopping in no standing zones. I will be speaking to families who park in wrong areas, and I hope that it is taken with the manner intended, to keep children safe. 

 

There is a sense of irony, that as I was writing this paragraph on Wednesday at 4:30pm, a large smash occurred outside my office on Pittosporum Grove. Fortunately everyone was alright, however, a work van ended up on its roof. I am incredibly grateful this did not happen at 3:30pm. It also demonstrates our greatest challenge, that we can not control the public traffic using this road. However, we can provide more options. 

We will be taking two actions.  

  1. We will open the gate to the Parish Car Park with a teacher to supervise children wishing to walk across the pick up line to that gate. We will not have a staff member out at the carpark and this would need parent supervision. 
  2. We will open the side gate to Bottlebrush Drive with a teacher monitoring that gate. There is no parking on the opposite side, but you can stop on the school side. Again, I urge all parents to follow the traffic signs. 

This means there are four options for pick up, with these two options and

  • Pittosporum Grove 
  • Drive through Pick Up (Teacher supervised)

One important consideration is not trying to do U-turns on the street. There are a number of options to follow the direction of the road and still make the main road connections. This would really help keep traffic moving, but also keep everyone safe! 

What we would really love is if parents come and pick their children up from class. The Parish Car Park, or the side streets provide great opportunities for legal parking. 

 

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