P&F News
Upcoming Information Sessions and Webinars for Parents and Carers
Parents and carers are the most important educators in their child’s life. As well as partnering directly with our school to support your child’s learning and wellbeing, there are a range of webinars and information sessions provided each month by reputable providers specifically for parents and carers- free of charge. To view a list of upcoming webinars and information sessions that may be of interest to you, click the link below at any time. The list will be updated weekly throughout the school term, so be sure to check the page regularly.
Another useful resource for parents and carers to access timely information on a range of topics including cyber safety, mental health, positive parenting, school survival, diversity and inclusion and healthy bodies is via School TV. Our school invested in this online platform so that our parents and carers can conveniently access reliable information from credible sources all in one place - when you need it most - not just at a specified webinar time. It includes videos, fact sheets and podcasts all delivered by leading psychologists and experts. To access our school’s SchoolTV site visit
FACE FORUMS
Over the years, St Joseph’s has benefited enormously from the generosity and enthusiasm shown by so many of our parents and friends who have worked in partnership our staff to ensure all students are nurtured to their potential.
As you may be aware, this will be the final year P&F Associations will operate in schools across the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, including at St Joseph’s. However, family engagement in schools will still remain a core focus.
In place of P&F Associations will be Family and Community Engagement Forums (FACE Forum). The decision to transition all schools to the newly developed FACE Forum model came on the back on an independent review into Catholic Schools in 2022 and was endorsed by the Trustees of the Diocese.
If you are interested in the FACE Forum Guidelines, you can view them here. The Guidelines were developed over a period of 18 months and in consultation with parents, staff and clergy across the diocese - with members of our own P&F invited to have input.
In short, many of the things parents and carers enjoy about a P&F including the ability to work in partnership with the school to create fun events and activities can still happen under the FACE Forum model. However, in the new model parents and carers are not required to put their hand up to take on executive positions such as president, vice president, treasurer and secretary - which consultation showed was a key reason many people avoided attending P&F Association meetings.
The decision on when St Joseph’s officially transitions to the FACE Forum model will be led by you, our parents and carers. We can transition to the new model at any time throughout this school year. When the time comes for St Joseph’s to transition to the FACE Forum model, the school will consult with parents and carers around how you would like it bought to life in our school community - including whether you would like to set up sub-committees, host fundraisers, what topics you might like discussed at the forum etc.
We look forward to working with you to continue to enhance our school community through the FACE Forum; your involvement and support will be invaluable.
Resources from the Council of Catholic School Parents:
