Dear Parents, Carers and Friends of St Brigid’s,

What an amazing Wednesday we had. The children came back to school looking happy, excited and ready to enjoy the 2026 school year. Special mention to our Year 6 leaders who took our Foundation students under their wings at recess and lunch time to make them feel safe and welcomed. My heart brimmed to overflowing when I saw that. It was the real St Brigid’s community in action.

As for our brand new Foundation students, we could not have been prouder! They walked into school like they had been here forever! No tears from the students but maybe a couple from the mums and dads.

We hope you all got to see our Welcome Back to School video on Instagram and Facebook - in case you missed it - please enjoy! We have had over 3000 views since Tuesday - we have gone viral!!!!

MACS Care - Newsletter

As a MACS school we working within the guidelines of the Victorian Child Safe Standards. There are 11 minimum standards which will be explained over the coming months. Please take the time to read the Parent/Carer Newsletter from MACS Care.

Hats

Hats must be worn every day in Term 1 and Term 4. If you do not have a hat please purchase one from PSW. If your child does not have a hat they can only play under the verandah.

Medical Management

Anaphylaxis

We have a significant number of students with severe allergies. Please be mindful when packing lunches that there are students with allergies to nuts and eggs. We will be reminding students that we do not share food at school, please chat with your children at home regarding this as well.

Students with Medical Management Plans

If your child has a Medical Management Plan (Anaphylaxis, Asthma, Allergy or daily medication), you would have received forms at the end of last year. If you have not returned these please do so as soon as possible. These forms are an essential part of our processes here at school and help keep your child safe.

Medication Authority Form

No staff can administer any medication to students at St Brigid’s without a signed Medical Authority Form which must be signed by your family doctor. If your child regularly takes medication such as Claratyne or Panadol or if your doctor prescribes antibiotics for a short period of time please get the form signed so we can support your child at school. This is a directive from Melbourne Archdiocese of Melbourne for all schools.

Inform and Empower

We are thrilled to welcome the team from Inform and Empower again this year. On Wednesday, February 18, Marty and Carly will present their highly regarded Cyber Safety seminar for parents and carers. Last year’s session attracted families from all year levels and received overwhelmingly positive feedback. Students will also continue to build their cyber safety knowledge through engaging, age-appropriate online lessons delivered by Inform and Empower, led by their classroom teachers.

Click here for a short video from our Inform and Empower presenters.

Places are filling quickly, so please register today using the link provided or the QR code on the flyer.

The Calm Space

The Calm Space Is a space students use to:

calm down if they are feeling sad or distressed
identify poor choices and discuss better choices
reflect on their actions
talk to the Wellbeing leader about any worries they may have
have time out of the classroom if feeling overwhelmed.

If a student needs to use the Calm Space they can ask a teacher, who will let Mrs Thredgold know.

Begining of School Year Mass

We are celebrating our Beginning of School Mass in the hall on Friday at 9.30am. Fr Michael is coming to St Brigid’s to celebrate the Mass and it would be lovely to have our parents come and meet him.

Welcome to Fr Michael

I am excited to introduce myself as the new Parish Priest here at St Mary of theCross - Mordialloc and Aspendale. My name is Father Michael (Duck Young) Kong, and I am deeply honoured to join this wonderful community.

I was born and raised in South Korea, and in 2006, I came to Australia for language studies, and continued to study in Commerce. I entered the Melbourne Seminary in 2008, and in 2014, I was ordained as a priest for Melbourne Archdiocese.

Over the years, I have had the privilege of serving in several parishes, including Box Hill, Box Hill North, Moreland, Hampton, Pascoe Vale and Kew. Between 2021 and 2024, I studied in Institutional Social Communication at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome. Now, I am excited to begin this new chapter with you all at the parish of St Mary of the Cross community. I am truly delighted to be here, and I look forward to working alongside you to nurture and grow the seeds of God’s Word in our community.

My pastoral vision is to serve not only those who are already part of the parish and the school, but also to reachout to those who may not yet know Jesus or who are currently away from the church. I want to help bring the Gospel to all people, especially those who may find it hard to connect with the church. In addition to my pastoral work, I have been using social media under the name “PapaDonPreach” to share the message of Christ. Through these platforms, I hope to make the church more accessible and inviting, encouraging individuals to engage with our community and learn more about our faith.

I am truly looking forward to being part of this community, and I ask for your continued support and prayers. Together, we can work to spread the love and teachings of Jesus to many more people. Thank you for welcoming me so warmly, and I am excited to see what we can accomplish together. God bless.

Walking School Bus

Our walking school bus will commence next week on Monday. We will meet at the ‘Peanut Park’ at 8.15am every morning. Come and join us for a nice walk to school.

Tuckshop

Our tuckshop will not be open tomorrow (Friday). The team will be back on Friday 6th February. All orders are now via our CDF Flexi pay app. It is now the parents responsibility to cancel lunch orders if your child is absent for any reason. The orders can be cancelled up to 9.am on Friday morning. If your child is absent on Tuckshop Day orders must be cancelled, we cannot hold over orders for the following week. If orders are not cancelled by 9:00am they cannot be refunded.

Get to Know You Interviews - Foundation to Year 6

Our Get to Know You Interviews will be taking place on Wednesday 11 (2:00pm to 8:00pm) and Thursday 12 (4:00pm to 6:00pm). ALL STUDENTS WILL FINISH AT 1:3OPM ON WEDNESDAY 11 FEBRUARY. TheirCare will be available from 1:30pm. Details on how to book your interviews will be sent to families on Monday.

Welcome Picnic

We hope you can join us next week for Family Fun Afternoon - weather dependent! Students will be supervised until 3:15pm. Children requiring supervision after school hours will need to attend TheirCare.

Assembly

No Assembly tomorrow due to Mass. Our first Assembly will be Friday 20th of February at 2:15pm.

Foundation 2027 Enrolments

Enrolments for new and current families for 2027 and 2028 are now open. We require all current families to please ensure they submit a sibling application for 2027 prior to Friday 27 March 2026 to ensure a placement in our Foundation intake for 2027. Enrolment packs can be collected from the office or alternatively the enrolment application form can be found on our website here. Please do not hesitate to contact the school office should you have any queries.

Yours in partnership.

Wendy Sullivan

Principal

Community News and Events

Junior Rockers

Parkdale Auskick