Dear Parents and Caregivers,

It’s been a very exciting week for our school community after receiving a letter from the office of the Minister for Education, James Merlino informing us that we were successful in receiving a State Government Grant of $920,000. The project outlined in the application includes the construction of specialist learning areas, meeting rooms and additional toilets. The grant is an investment in the future of the children of Sacred Heart School, Tatura community and Catholic Education. This will allow us to meet the growing enrolment demands and to provide the best possible facilities for existing and future families. Thank you to our School Board, staff and the Catholic Education Office Sandhurst for supporting our grant application and the Victorian Government for providing the Non-Government School Capital funding aimed at expanding and upgrading existing schools across Victoria. I am meeting with Peter Byrne (b3 Architect) in the coming days to discuss the commencement of our exciting project. It is so exciting to think that children enrolled in Catholic Education in Tatura will enjoy the very best educational facilities available.

It’s been a great week for good news as little baby Nilbett has arrived!! Congratulations to Andrew and Ali on the arrival of Finley Andrew who came into the world last Sunday. We wish their new family of three every blessing and good wishes from all the Sacred Heart community.

It was lovely to see our school community enjoying some of the normal fun activities again last week. The Book Week Parade was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone and it was great to see all the favourite book characters arriving at school on Monday morning. Thank you, parents, for all your help. The children had a wonderful day and looked fantastic. The long weekend was also started with the hype of children and staff proudly wearing their team colours. This gave us an opportunity to support our local Lions Club as well as have some fun. All money raised on the day was donated to the Lion Children’s Cancer Research. We love seeing all the children enjoy these normal activities that are so much part of Sacred Heart and hope that there will be more to come.

It's the little things we are all appreciating this year and School Photo Day today was no exception. There was great excitement as the children finally lined up to have their 2020 photo taken. I want to acknowledge GV Photography who has been so accommodating with the continual but necessary changes. Although this has been a very difficult and frustrating time for Dale and Stuart Wright, they have continually worked around the necessary changes to suit whatever has been best for our school. Thank you also to parents for again being so flexible as arrangements were made and changed. I’m sure everyone will have their best smiles and today’s beautiful photos will be worth the wait.

The School Board met last night and discussed a number of agenda items, including the student and parent responses gathered for our new Strategic Plan. Thank you to all parents, including our 2021 parents, for taking the time to respond and providing very valuable information for planning our future directions. Thank you also to our many parents who responded to our Insight SRC survey. Once again, your time spent was very much appreciated and your feedback is invaluable. 2021 Class structures were also finalised at the meeting. As enrolments are increasing and we wish to keep class sizes as small as possible, there will be 12 class groupings next year. Staff are still being finalised but the class structures will be as follows:

2021 Class Structures

Junior Unit	Middle Unit	Senior Unit
2 x Foundation	3 x Year 3/4	3 x Year 5/6
2 x Year 1
2 x Year 2

In the coming weeks teachers will be forming 2021 classes. Parents please be aware that teachers spend a great deal of time considering the many needs of all the children in their class. My firm belief is that teachers are in the best position to decide a child’s placement because they know all the children in their class, and have a view of the ‘big picture’. However, as parents if you feel you have extra needs to be considered that will support your child’s wellbeing or development please ensure this is put in writing to me no later than Friday, November 6th.

We will welcome many new students and families to Sacred Heart in 2021. Unfortunately, they have been unable to visit our school site and I appreciate how difficult this must be. I want to assure all families that we will do everything possible to make the transition into the 2021 as smooth as possible under the necessary restrictions. Some changes to the regulations may occur in the coming weeks and if so, we will quickly make the necessary arrangements. A parent information evening for new families is scheduled on Tuesday, November 17th which will go ahead. We may need to run extra sessions to enable small groups to attend and if this is so families will be contacted. Thank you to all our new families for your patience and understanding. One thing we have learnt in 2020 is that we can quickly change plans, reorganise events and put all the necessary things in place that will best support the children and all at Sacred Heart.

This week is Children’s Week - a national celebration that recognises the talents, skills, achievements and rights of children. It is a time for children to demonstrate their talents, skills and abilities – something celebrated each and every day at Sacred Heart! Next Friday is Teacher’s Day. Despite all the challenges of 2020 it has reinforced the significant role teachers play in the lives of their students, their families and our community. I am particularly proud of our outstanding staff and our wonderful students and all they have achieved together throughout this challenging year. Children’s Week and World Teachers' Day are two opportunities to celebrate and highlight our students and staff. Thank you to both!

Congratulations to Evie Maskell who received the Principal’s Award in week 2. Evie is an outstanding learner here at Sacred Heart. She always gives everything her very best effort and has a real passion for learning new things. Her resilience, kind nature and care for others make her a wonderful class member and friend to all.

May the Sacred Heart of Jesus continue to watch over our school community and bless us always.

Pauline Hindson

Principal

Jobseeker & CSEF

For parents/guardians who have recently applied for the Government's JobSeeker support due to COVID-19 and now hold a Health Care Card your children may be eligible for Camps, Sports and Excursions Funding (CSEF) of $125 per student. Please complete the application form from the school website link below, return to the completed form to the school office and we will lodge an application for CSEF on your behalf.

The Catholic Education Commission of Victoria has advised that the eligibility for the CSEF has been extended to Monday 5 October, with the closing date for CSEF applications now Friday 27 November. Please note we will be unable to lodge applications after this date.

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