Welcome Back!

Welcome Back to Term 4!

I hope you all have had a relaxing and well-deserved break. I hope you've been able to recharge your batteries in readiness for a busy Term 4. I am currently enjoying my long service leave in Bali and will be back at the end of Week 1.

For our graduate staff completing their VIT inquiry projects, I hope you've managed to have a break these holidays. I look forward to reviewing your projects before your panel presentations.

We have much to look forward to in Term 4, including: Melbourne Cup long weekend (Curriculum Day for Report Writing); Values Week where we celebrate Russ Jackson Day by displaying our school values and the 8 Employability Skills; The Art & Design Show; Staff Wellbeing Week; the Year 6 and 12 Graduations; Water Play Day; finishing with our Concert in the Courtyard and the final the Achievement Assembly. The last day for students will be Wednesday, 18th December. Thursday, 19th December, is our last Curriculum Day focused on transition, with time allocated to share our students' Jackson Learner Profiles and other important plans and documents to set them up for success in 2026. This will be followed by our Staff Christmas Lunch in the Courtyard. Friday, 20th December, is an additional pupil-free day, honoured by the school council as time-in-lieu for staff who stay for the Concert in the Courtyard.

You can view the Jackson Termly on The Portal or in our whole school Xuno calendar link. Please note the termly is for planning purposes only and should not be used in place of the whole school calendar through Xuno.

Workforce & HR Update

This term, we say goodbye to Rohan and Nathan at the end of week 2. Rohan has secured an ongoing position at Parkville College. Nathan has taken an opportunity to work at Craigieburn Primary School. We thank you both for your contribution to our students and the community and wish you all the very best for the future.

We welcome back Belinda and Cody. Belinda will be delivering our Play Program for Term 4. Jess N and Sabiha will now be the class teachers in 3/4C. Bhavaani will be supporting with Teacher Referral/Vineland/DI Cover for Term 4. Cody will be supporting the VPC team.

Several ongoing and fixed-term opportunities were advertised for Teachers and ESs over the holidays to support our workforce planning for 2026. Interviews will be finalised over the next two weeks.

Thank you to all staff who participated in the recent vote for teacher and ES representatives on our consultative committee. I’m pleased to congratulate Sue R. and Jodie on their successful election. Congratulations to Lorenda and Kathy, who were elected the AEU sub-branch representatives. Briana (ES / PLT Leader) and Uzer (Teacher / PLT Leader) will continue as my elected representatives.

Buildings & Grounds

Over the holidays, we continued to have several trades each day. Thank you, Dan and Lyle, for working with this over the holidays.

Projects that were completed during Term 3 and the holidays include:

Replacement Flood Lights Outside the Hall
Hall Switchboard upgrade
Modification of the PA System in Block 1 Offices
New Smartboard in Hall Conference Room
Concreting Ramps in Block 2 and outside the Library
Roller Doors in Hall and Hall Sheds have had a Salto Lock Installed
Annual Arborist Tree Maintenance
Durasafe Speed Humps and Signs Installed in the Front Carpark
Playground Softfall, Sandpits and Garden Beds Top-Up
New Tuesday Booth Installed in the Staffroom
Carpet Repair In Block 1, Outside Staff Toilets

The following building projects will be undertaken during Term 4 and the Term 4 holidays:

Refurbishment of Rooms 1-12 (New Plastered Ceilings, Felt on Walls, New Cabinetry)
Wall Felt Installation in Rooms 15 - 20
Hall AV Upgrade (Two New LED Panels, New Sound System)
CCTV Upgrade
SALTO Door Lock Upgrades, Including a Centralised Lockdown Button
New Food Tech Fridge/Freezer
New Aquabubbler Drink Fountains
New Student Lockers in Rooms 1 - 14
Prep Playground Additions and Repairs

Please see the new playground designs from Adventure+ below:

Jackson Canteen & Tuckshop

From Week 2 of next term, Jackson School will operate a Canteen and Tuckshop every Wednesday for students. In Week 1, we will run a trial service for staff only. Fresh salad rolls, hot foods, and bakery treats will be provided by St. Alban's Hot Bread Bakery each week. The staff menu has additional bakery items and soft drinks. Please note that a $0.29 fee applies per order.

Click here to view the sample menu:

Jackson School Canteen Menu - Term 4 2025.pdf

We will use the Flexischool app for families and staff to place lunch orders from the Jackson Canteen and/or Tuck Shop. This means that you will be able to order and pay for items from our school without needing to pay cash or visit in person.

To create an account with Flexischools so that you can order and make payments for our school, you can download the Flexischools app from the Apple App Store or Google Store and follow the prompts to create an account. Account set-up and online ordering instructions are available from Flexischools here. If you already have a Flexischools account for another family member, just select the Profile icon on the app and +Add yourself as a "New Student". Following feedback from our recent SCFA finance audit, we will also use the FlexiPOS app for Year 9/10 Cafe and Friday Fiesta purchases.

The Flexischool app also offers FLX prepaid Mastercard for student use in shops and online, but not at ATMs. These also allow families to gift ongoing pocket money to students and support students in saving for future purchases. The annual fee $25, which is cheaper than competitors like Spriggy. Our Learning SIT are working with our Maths Consultants to embed the use of EFTPOS and online banking into our curriculum.

The Buzz Survey - by 17th of October 2025

As part of the Keilor-St Albans Network, we were fortunate to work with Tracey Ezard on her book Ferocious Warmth. With Jackson now being a large school, it inevitably presents challenges in onboarding new staff, establishing effective communication channels, and fostering collaborative interactions among staff. The feedback we receive from staff is a regular reminder that we are no longer the little special school we once were. As we navigate these "growing pains" together as a community, we would like to gain a deeper understanding of where our culture currently is.

We are asking staff to complete a whole school diagnostic survey about our culture. The survey only takes approximately 8-10 minutes to complete. We have allocated time in Week 1 for you to complete this survey. ‘Go to https://www.traceyezard.com/buzz-diagnostic and click on the “Click Here to Start" button. Be sure to enter your school code “JKSC” at the start of the survey, so that your opinions are included in our overall school results. Everyone will receive their own individual, anonymous reflections.

Please provide honest and constructive feedback. Your individual report is only provided to you. The school will receive an aggregate summary report; however, individual responses will be kept confidential, as your responses will be collated with feedback from other staff. At the end of the survey, you will have the opportunity to provide comments about your school. Comments will be presented word-for-word in the summary report. This needs to be completed by the 17th of October 2025. Thank you.

There is no Curriculum Day to start off Term 4. We do, however, have a short week in Values Week (Week 5) and an early finish to the school year.

School Council have endorsed the Pupil Free Days for 2026:

First Day, Term 1 (Welcome, School Operations & Classroom Prep) - At School
Second Day, Term 1 (AIP & Classroom Prep) - At School
First Day, Term 3 (AIP - Learning & Wellbeing)
Melbourne Cup Eve (Assessment & Reporting)
Last Day, Term 4 (Transitions & Christmas Lunch)

Due to the unavailability of the Lakeside Convention and Conference Centre, we will hold our first two curriculum days at Jackson School, with catering provided. This will include time in classrooms on both days, with a Curriculum Day session in the morning.

For more detailed information on other areas of School Operations, please click on the pages on the left for important updates ready to start the school year. These include:

I hope you enjoyed the rest of your weekend. I look forward to catching up with you towards the end of Week 1.

Anthony