Dear Parents,

This week we celebrate Catholic Education Week across the Archdiocese of Melbourne. It is a special opportunity for our schools to recognise and celebrate our distinctive Catholic identity. Across the Archdiocese there are 292 Catholic schools, each celebrating their achievements and the important role they play within their parish and local communities.

In fact, approximately 118,300 – or one in five – students attend a Catholic school across greater Melbourne and surrounding areas. This highlights the strong value families place on Catholic education and the high quality of learning and formation provided in our schools.

This year’s theme recognises the significance of Saint Patrick, the patron saint of our local Church in Melbourne: Christ beside me: Walking in the footsteps of Saint Patrick. Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, our mother church, is named after the saint of Ireland and stands as a reminder that Australia’s migrants have always brought their faith with them. Saint Patrick’s legacy offers us powerful lessons of faith, courage and love.

On Friday this week, our School and House Captains will attend the Mass of St Patrick for Schools, celebrated by the Archbishop of Melbourne, the Most Reverend Peter A. Comensoli. The Mass will take place at St Patrick’s Cathedral and will be attended by around 2,000 students from Catholic schools across the Archdiocese. Following the Mass, students will gather in Treasury Gardens for a celebration concert showcasing the talents of students from Catholic schools across Melbourne.

The MACS Creative Arts Exhibition is also a highlight of Catholic Education Week. This year we are proud to have two Holy Trinity students selected to have their artwork displayed. Congratulations to Aila Cook (Year 2, 2026) and Ebony Michel (Year 6, 2025) on this wonderful achievement. Their artworks, Spotty and Crazy Kookaburra, will be proudly showcased as part of the exhibition. The exhibition is open to the public during Catholic Education Week from 15–21 March 2026 at Celtic Hall, Catholic Leadership Centre, 576 Victoria Parade, East Melbourne. Tickets can be booked via TryBooking.

Sacrament of Reconciliation

Over the past term, a number of Holy Trinity students have been preparing to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation. This is a very special milestone in their faith journey, as it is the first sacrament they receive following Baptism.

We congratulate the following students who will receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation this Wednesday evening at St Jude’s: Ryan, Luca, Wregan, Declan, Brodie, Raf, Zac, Nate, Billee, Elena, Samuel, Lillian, Jude, Oscar, Oliver and Zara.

NAPLAN

Congratulations to all of our Year 3 and Year 5 students who have completed the NAPLAN assessments over the past two weeks. We are very proud of the positive and resilient way our students approached the testing. Well done to everyone involved.

Twilight Sports

It was wonderful to come together as a community last week for our Twilight Sports event. The weather was perfect and the students thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon. It was fantastic to see families connecting with one another while students encouraged each other and participated in the spirit of friendly competition.

Congratulations to Bunurong (Yellow House) for being crowned the overall winners for 2026, to Dominic (Red House) for receiving the Spirit Award and to Xavier Y and Anna R for winning the Fran Raskas race!

Thank you to our Parents’ Association for coordinating the BBQ and to all the parents who supported the event in some way.

Prep Dinner

Last week we also celebrated our first Prep Parent Dinner, which was a wonderful opportunity for our new families to connect. It was fantastic to see so many families in attendance, enjoying a relaxed evening together while getting to know one another.

We were treated to a wonderful presentation from our School Captains, Indie and Patrick, who shared insights into life at Holy Trinity, and we finished the evening hearing from some of our current Prep students. Thank you to everyone who attended or assisted in making the evening possible. Events like these help strengthen the sense of community that makes Holy Trinity such a special place. Given its success, we hope to make this an annual event.

Harmony Day

Harmony Week celebrates the diversity that makes Australia such a vibrant and inclusive nation. At Holy Trinity, we will celebrate Harmony Day on Wednesday 18 March.

Students are encouraged to come dressed in something that represents their cultural background or in the colour orange, the official colour of Harmony Day. The day focuses on inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone.

As part of our celebrations, we encourage students to bring a gold coin donation to support Project Compassion.

In the afternoon we will also gather for a whole-school photo, forming a Harmony Heart, which will be captured by drone from above.

Child Safety - Standard #1

The Child Safe Standards consist of 11 requirements that organisations must follow to create environments that are safe for children. These standards aim to prevent, respond to and report child abuse by ensuring that policies, procedures and practices place children’s safety and wellbeing first.

As a staff, we will focus on one Child Safe Standard each month to ensure we continue to meet and strengthen these important requirements. We have recently worked through Standard #1, and further information for parents can be found later in this newsletter.

Parent/Teacher Interviews

Following discussions with the School Advisory Council, we are pleased to share an updated Parent–Teacher Interview and Reporting schedule for 2026.

To strengthen communication and better support student learning, interviews will now take place towards the end of Term 1 and Term 3, with written reports provided in Term 2 and Term 4. This approach ensures families have regular opportunities to connect with teachers, celebrate student progress and discuss next steps in learning.

Our Term 1 interview dates are:

Tuesday 24 March (3.30pm – 7.00pm)

Thursday 26 March (3.30pm – 6.00pm)

If you have not yet booked a time with your child’s teacher, please use the link provided to schedule your interview.

Hot Cross Buns

Students will be able to enjoy Hot Cross Buns at school for morning tea on Thursday 2nd April. There is also an option for parents to purchase take home packs for Easter. The deadline for ordering is 10.30pm on Sunday 29th March. See further on in the newsletter for ordering details.

Early finish on the last day of term

The final day of term, Thursday 2 April, will be an early finish, with the school day concluding at 1.00pm.

If you require supervision for your child after 1.00pm, please indicate this by completing the Google Form provided.

Save the Date - Mum’s afternoon

We will be celebrating Mother’s Day as a school community with a prayer service and

afternoon tea on Thursday 7th May @ 2.30pm. More details to follow.

Long Service Leave

I will be taking 3.5 weeks of Long Service Leave, in addition to the two weeks of school holidays, from Monday 23 March to Wednesday 29 April. During this time, my wife Nola, our children Abbie and Bodhi, and I will be travelling along the west coast of the United States. I feel very fortunate to take this time with my family, knowing the school will be in very capable hands. Andrea Dowling will be Acting Principal during this period and will be strongly supported by the Leadership Team. I look forward to seeing you all when I return in term 2, and sharing with you the many adventures we experienced during our travels.

For many, the Easter break seems so far away, however, the Easter story is at the core of our Catholic faith as a celebration of the ultimate love that God has for us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and it is important to reflect on this Easter message as a family. While enjoying the holiday break that Easter provides, we ask all families to make every effort to attend the Easter services at St Jude’s, or if you are away, at your holiday destination.

On behalf of everyone at Holy Trinity I would like to wish everyone a very safe, happy, holy and relaxing break. For those of you who are travelling, travel well and stay safe. For those of you remaining at home, enjoy the time with your children.

2027 Enrolments

Enrolments for 2027 are now open, and places are filling quickly. If you have a younger child who will turn five before 30 April 2027, please see Tania, Robyn or Rita in the office for an enrolment form.

If you know families in the community with children of this age, we would greatly appreciate you passing on our details. We always welcome the opportunity to show new families around our wonderful school.

Jokes of the Week - A St Patrick’s Day Special!

What is a huge Irish spider called?

Paddy Long Legs.

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When is an Irish potato no longer Irish?

When it’s a French fry!

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Why did St. Patrick drive all the snakes out of Ireland?

It was too far to walk

Final Thoughts ~ Harmony Day

Australia is one of the world's most successful multicultural countries and our cultural diversity is at the heart of who we are. Over half of Australians were born overseas, or have at least one parent who was born overseas. That's why it's so important that we celebrate our country's diversity through Harmony Week. Harmony Week is also about inclusiveness, respect and belonging for all Australians, from the Traditional Owners of the land to our most recent arrivals. And celebrating that no matter where you come from, we're united by the Australian values of freedom, respect, fairness, democracy and equal opportunity.

O God of unity

We thank you for the variety of cultures in this world.

Enrich our lives by ever widening circles of friendship and show us your presence in those who are most different from us.

Help us to love and care for each other just as you care and love each one of us.

You call us to live in peace and harmony within our beautiful multicultural country, and may we show true justice as we are called to recognize and respect the importance of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Cultures and societies.

As we walk together, strong in faith on this Harmony Day, let us turn to God with our hopes and prayers.

Creator Spirit, you are God who brings peace. We ask you to bless all the sick, homeless and imprisoned; the weary, the lonely and the lost. We pray for compassion, kindness, healing and protection for all those who are suffering. We especially ask you to bless war-torn countries; that peace be restored and that you guide the hearts and minds of those with power to be instruments of your peace.

Creator Spirit, you are our God who accepts. Help us to open our arms, hearts and minds to all our brothers and sisters in Australia and appreciate the many cultures, languages and backgrounds of our people. Help us to always show compassion and kindness, and grant us the strength to help carry burdens of others.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

HT Facebook Page & Instagram

Remember to follow HT on Facebook & Instagram so that you can see our students learning and be kept up to date with community announcements as they are shared.

https://www.facebook.com/HolyTrinityPS/

https://www.instagram.com/holytrinityprimaryschool/

Kind regards,

Steve Evans

Principal

Child Safe Standard #1