A Message from Vassie 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land, the Wurundjeri, Woi Wurrung and Boonwurrung Peoples of the Kulin Nation and pay our respect to their Elders, past, present and emerging. Aboriginal people have a deep and continuous connection to the place now called Victoria. Aboriginal people have lived in the Maribyrnong River valley for over 40,000 years.

Welcome back to term two

I would like to take this opportunity to welcome all community members back to Wembley Primary School for Term Two. I’m pleased to share that we have had a successful and smooth start to the term during our first week back. It’s always a pleasure to see and hear the wonderful sounds of students learning and playing happily, in classrooms and in the yard. 

The past fortnight we have had Hooptime Basketball occurring, year 3/4 swimming program, Welcome Wembley Club starting before school in the wellbeing end of the BER, Breakfast Club in full swing, and Ginny and River our wellbeing dogs supporting student learning and wellbeing across the school. 

ANZAC Day

Thursday 25 April is ANZAC Day. This is a public holiday, so please note that there is no school on this day.

As shared in a Sentral notification, we will be holding a commemorative assembly in honour of ANZAC DAY on Wednesday 24 April from 3:10-3:30pm, on the basketball court.

We will also hold the weekly celebratory assembly on Friday 26 April at 3:10pm. Parents and siblings are very welcome to attend both assemblies. 

2024 Junior School Councillors

I would like to acknowledge all of the students that considered applying for Junior School Council this year. Well done on reflecting on your qualities, skills, and our school needs, and drafting and reading speeches to your year level. This takes great coirage. 

Congratulations to the students that have been elected as our 2024 Junior School Councillors. 

Capital Building Works Project

Over the holiday break, great progress has been made with our capital building works project and we are tracking well to move into the new building in July 2024. 

We are now ordering furniture, and preparing to decant our year four classes, Rachel's class 5A in the centre of the BER, the specialist team, and the office, by the end of term four. 

Please note that the contractors have made provisions for another access point to the building project, via Hawkhurst Street. This will impact a small stretch of the no standing zone for the reminder of the year. After which, the fencing and parking area will be reinstated. 

The contractors have also reinstated the safety strip on the soccer pitch steps. 

Arborist works

There have been arborist works occur over the break following our most recent arborist assessment, to ensure safety of all community members as we move into the wintry months. I'm certain that students will notice some changes to the branches and limbs of our Wembley trees and plants around our schoolyard. 

We thank Grant Hobson, our grounds and maintenance manager, and Wembley parent, Josh Geyle, and his colleagues, for their oversight, support and efforts with these works. 

Baby News - Welcome Kit Rain Maki

Ryan Maki (Prep B teacher), together with his wife and son, Mel and River, welcomed their son and baby brother into the family. Welcome Kit Rain Maki! 

Ryan says that everyone is happy and healthy. Mel and Kit are doing very well and River loves his baby brother. Ryan tells me that there are many cuddles happening and lots of coffee (for he and Mel).

I’m sure everyone will join me in welcoming Kit to the Wembley family, and in wishing Ryan and his family of four all the very best in this newborn bubble, and love takes on another dimension yet again.

Wembley Waste Warriors 

We would like to celebrate the work of our Wembley Waste Warriors who were featured and acknowledged in the April ResourceSmart Schools Newsletter. We thank our wonderful community group members and teacher Sofia Courtney for their ongoing efforts to make Wembley more sustainable and environmentally aware. 

Biodiversity Detectives: Adventures in the Schoolyard Jungle!

In term 1, 2024, three Sustainability Captains, Macy, Marley and Rose along with the guidance of a parent volunteer and a representative from Education Environment Victoria (EEV), conducted a biodiversity audit at Wembley. 

Armed with an audit tool, they measured and recorded various aspects of biodiversity in the school grounds. This included documenting habitat features such as indigenous/native trees, weeds, and organic litter, as well as identifying and recording native animals present. Their efforts culminated in the calculation of the school’s biodiversity score, a valuable metric for assessing the health and diversity of the local ecosystem.

Following the audit, the captains learned how to interpret the collected data and identify patterns and trends. They then brainstormed ideas and discussed how they could improve the score, as part of the school's biodiversity action plan. These included initiatives aimed at enhancing habitat diversity, promoting native species, and minimising environmental impacts.

Through their teamwork and passion, the captains wanted to not just boost the school's biodiversity score, but also help their friends appreciate and understand nature more.

Wembley is part of Sustainability Victoria’s ResourceSmart Schools Program and hope to achieve their first star rating this year.

Wembley Parent's Association (WPA) - Easter Raffle and 2024 Calendar of events

I'd like to thank Sam Rovis, Shelley Botterill and Linh Krygger from the WPA for their efforts in organising the Easter Raffle. We raised $4676.40, which will go towards 'break out seating' in the new build valued at $19,260, pictured below, which was a tender item not included in the building project budget. 

Also thanking Lisa Filippin and Kelly Dean for their support in arranging the WPA 2024 calendar of events, and seeking input into future events. 

Staffing Update

Following Loredana Walker's promotion to Office Manager following Marg Webb's retirement, we had a vacancy for a receptionist role. Ania Kosowski, a former student and daughter of Kristen Kosowski assisted us in the transition period whilst we recruited to this role. Thank you to Ania for her friendly assistance and support. 

Melanie Logan-is our new school receptionist. Melanie has worked in administrative and management roles, and you may have seen her working at Decjuba in Williamstown, as she used to manage the store. 

Ewelina Rehmtulla-is also joining our office team in support of Loredana and Mandy Pilkington, as Mandy begins to transition to retirement, in working part time. Welcome Ewelina (pronounced ‘Evelina’). Ewelina comes with a strong skillset in financial management. 

Please come by the office to say hello to Ewelina and Melanie. 

Farewell Amalia-Amalia, one of our hard working cleaners is moving on from Wembley. It's sad to see Amalia go and I'm sure you will all join me in thanking her for her contribution and in wishing her well. 

We hope she will be able to return to Wembley again sometime in the future if the cleaning allocation changes for our school. Good news for Amalia is that she has picked up a cleaning leading hand role at one of the other schools that she works in. We’re very fortunate to have had Amalia’s care, attention to detail and support in keeping our school and workplace clean, tidy and hygienic, which has supported our health and wellbeing. 

Mick, Cindy and Geoff, our wider cleaning team, will continue to work hard to ensure that our school is clean, prioritising the health, wellbeing and safely of all communtiy members.