Tips from the School Office

Keeping Aware of Information Relating to School

As a school we work hard to keep our families informed of happenings across the school. We acknowledge that receiving information in a timely and consistent manner can help to alleviate the pressures which come from managing a busy family calendar. 

The below are short administrative reminders for our school community. 

Keep Up to Date

• We use Compass as our School Portal — it is the way we communicate with families and how we accept payments & parent permissions. The Administration team are happy to help you get started with the website and app if you need assistance.
• Our newsletter is published every three weeks on a Friday afternoon.

Email

• It is essential that you have an email address for each parent registered with the school. You will receive an email from Compass to notify you of all new updates. If you are not receiving emails, please check to make sure we have it correctly recorded.

Arriving Late and Student early Collection

• Students must be accounted for every school day. If your child is not present in class and we have no explanation, then we will automatically send allfamily members an SMS at 9.30am.
• If your child is going to be away, please notify the school by entering the absence on Compass. All upcoming absences can be made within Compass, whether they be for a day or multiple days. If your child is going to be late this can also be entered within the Compass app. We ask that you please use Compass instead of calling the school on the phone or emailing the school or teacher.
• Students arriving after 8.50am must come to the office for a late pass. Please do not send your child/ren straight to the classroom.
• Please be reminded that if you need to collect your child/ren early, please contact the office when you are five to ten minutes away so we can have them at the office for collection. Please note that it is preferred to collect students before or after a recess break as they may not hear announcements during recess times.

Excursions, Incursions & Camps

• You will receive notifications of upcoming events through Compass – payment and permissions should be done electronically through Compass. 
• Parent consent in Compass is mandatory or your child cannot attend.
• All supporting documents (e.g: packing lists, schedules) are available through Compass.

Klad Sport - School Uniform Shop

Klad Sport is located at 8 Macro Court, Rowville and can be reached on 9763 0266. 

Hours of operation: 

Monday - Thursday: 8.30am-5.00pm

Friday: 8.30am - 4.30pm

You can also purchase online with details under the Uniform Shop page further into the newsletter.

Masks & COVID Test

We have masks and COVID tests at the school available for families. If you or your family requires these resources over the coming Winter season, please contact the office for collection.

Uniform & Lost Property

• We ask that all items that are brought to school are named correctly and clearly for easy identification. (Uniform, Lunch boxes, Drink bottles, School bags, etc).
• If you purchase from the Second Hand Uniform shop please rename all items purchased.
• Only bottle green is an accepted colour for shorts, pants and skirts.
• School Hats must been worn from September to May and are available for purchase at Klad Sport or the school office.
• All unnamed items are kept for the term and then cleared at the end of each term.

BPAY Payments

With the introduction of Compass Education to Upwey South Primary School we will no longer offer BPay as a method of payment. Our existing payment methods of EFT, cheque and cash at the office and QKR for all our fundraising activities will continue.

Staff Carpark

Please DO NOT use of the staff carpark as a walking thoroughfare and/or public parking space. Those permitted to use the carpark include staff, Department of Education staff and contractors and families completing a quick drop off or pick up for OSHC. 

There have been many near misses and we encourage you to minimise this risk by utilising parking on Morris Rd and Griffiths Rd.

We understand that parking is limited around the school boundary of Upwey South Primary School. Car parking is a Shire of Yarra Ranges  concern and does not involve school staff being able to make decisions on the parking around the school.

If you have any feedback about the amount of parking around the school or behaviour of other parents, please direct it to the Shire of Yarra Ranges Council.

Please be advised that we have members of our school community that require the use of the disabled parking spaces that are available. We ask the Upwey South community to please be considerate in your use of parking and do not use these disabled parking spaces unless you have the correct parking pass.

Reports

• Reports are available at the end of term 2 and term 4 through Compass. They can be downloaded as PDFs for printing and sharing.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

• Parent-Teacher Conferences occur twice a year. You can book sessions with all of your children’s teachers through Compass.

Scholastic Book Club

• Book Club a posted on Compass. All scholastic Book Club orders are to be completed online via the Loop system. Instructions are always in the catalogue.
• Do not send cash to school, the order will be delivered to school. There is also a ‘gift’ option — items will be set aside for collection by parents from the office.

Communicating with the School Administration Team

We look forward to partnering with you in 2023, and welcome your input: 

Janette Clarke (Office Manager) Janette.Clarke@education.vic.gov.au

Janet Young (Business Manager) Janet.Young@education.vic.gov.au