From the Principal
Kingston’s Junior Mayor Event
On Thursday 8th May, students from schools across the City of Kingston came together to take part in the annual Kingston Junior Mayor event. This year’s theme was a powerful and thought-provoking one: “What does an inclusive community look like to you?”
Students shared inspiring speeches, highlighting their visions for a welcoming and inclusive future. At the conclusion of all presentations, votes were cast to elect the new Junior Mayor for 2025. Parkdale Primary School was proudly represented by a passionate and articulate team: Emily M, Sophia E, Cleo N, and Aoife D. While we didn’t take home the Junior Mayor title this year, we are pleased to announce that Emily M was selected for a position on the Junior Council, a fantastic achievement. Thank you to Mr Hubbard for his guidance and support of the team, and for providing this valuable opportunity for our students to engage in local leadership and civic participation.
District Cross Country
Congratulations to the PPS Cross Country team who competed at Karkarook Park on Tuesday. We are thrilled to announce that the PPS team placed first overall, an outstanding achievement and a testament to the hard work and determination of our students. Good luck to the 28 students progressing through to the Division Cross Country on Wednesday 28th May. Once again, our students displayed exceptional team spirit, resilience, and behaviour throughout the event. Thank you to Mr A, Mr Blacklaw, Mr Bainbridge who supported and trained the team in the lead-up to the competition.
Open Morning for 2026 Enrolments
On Monday, we welcomed prospective families for our 2026 Open Morning. Our School, House, and Vice Captains proudly led the school tours, giving parents a valuable opportunity to hear first hand about life at PPS from a student’s perspective. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with many visitors commenting on how confident, personable, and articulate our student leaders were. We are incredibly proud of the way they represented our school—showcasing the values and spirit of PPS with pride.
Illness – Unwell Students
As we enter the cooler months, we are seeing an increase in colds and flu. While we understand the importance of regular school attendance, we kindly ask that if your child is displaying symptoms or feeling unwell, please keep them at home. This helps prevent the spread of illness to other students and staff.
Gastroenteritis Reminder: If your child has experienced vomiting or diarrhoea, they must remain at home for at least 48 hours after the last episode before returning to school. This precaution helps keep our school community healthy and safe. Thank you for your understanding and support.
Annual Report
The Annual Report for 2024 is now available for the school community to view. This can be accessed on the school website. Below is a snapshot of our results for 2024 in Learning, Wellbeing and Engagement.
Learning
Parkdale Primary School remains committed to academic excellence, ensuring strong student learning outcomes for all children. A cohesive team approach to planning guarantees consistency in teaching and learning across all year levels.
NAPLAN results for Year 3 and Year 5 remain strong in both Reading and Numeracy, exceeding state and similar school averages:
Year 3 Reading: 90.4% of students in the 'strong or exceeding' category
Year 5 Reading: 93.7% of students in the 'strong or exceeding' category
Year 3 Numeracy: 96.7% of students in the 'strong or exceeding' category
Year 5 Numeracy: 91.6% of students in the 'strong or exceeding' category
Wellbeing
At Parkdale Primary School, we remained committed to providing a safe and supportive learning environment for all students.
In 2024, the Attitudes to School Survey (ATOSS) results from our Grade 4-6 cohort reflected positive outcomes. The Sense of Connectedness was reported at 81.4%, exceeding both state and similar school averages. The Management of Bullying measure was at 75.5%, aligning with state levels and slightly above similar schools.
Parental satisfaction remained high, with an overall positive endorsement of 94.6%, surpassing the state average. Additionally, staff survey results indicated a strong endorsement for school climate at 90.7%, also above the state level.
Engagement
Parkdale Primary School provides a positive and inclusive environment for teaching and learning, ensuring that all students feel valued and connected within the school community.
Our school has maintained a strong focus on regular attendance. In 2024, the average number of absence days per child was 17.3%, a figure below both the state and similar schools' averages. All year levels achieved attendance rates of 90% and above, a testament to our strong connection with students and families.
In 2024 Parkdale Primary offered numerous events throughout the year, highlights included:
Camps for children in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 , Swimming and Beach programs, Variety of sporting opportunities were provided throughout the year (Athletics, Cross country, Swimming, Aerobics, Interschool sport), Australian Mathematics Competition, Gateways challenge, Wellbeing day, variety of excursions and incursions across the school F-6, Whole school Mini Olympics Day, Bendigo Bank Grant - we were successful with a grant from Bendigo Bank which went towards the purchase and installation of 2 more water stations.
We thank school council and the community for their continued support in providing the best learning environment for the children at PPS.
Prep/Foundation Enrolments 2026
Enrolments for 2026 are now open for foundation/prep students. To our current families with a child commencing Prep in 2026, please ensure you fill out the enrolment form and return to the office by the due date, 4th July.
Aerobics
Good Luck to our Aerobics teams who are competing on Saturday in Rowville. Thank you to Miss Ulrich, Miss Watson and Mrs Mackenzie for preparing & training the students.
Kind regards
Leanne Bradney