Principal's News

Dear SMCM Community, Wominjeka!

Thank you for your continued support of our Shop for School fundraising efforts. With just five days remaining to upload receipts, we are currently in third place! Every receipt counts as we work towards our goal. The funds raised through this competition will contribute to the construction of internal walls and sliders for The Lane building, which are scheduled to be installed during the upcoming school holidays.

Winter Is Here!

After enjoying an unseasonably warm Autumn, winter has certainly made its presence felt with cold mornings, chilly winds, and rainy days. However, as we know — there’s no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing!

Winter Uniform and Outerwear

It’s wonderful to see students wearing their winter school uniform correctly and with pride. Ensuring they have the appropriate outerwear for break times is equally important. Please make sure your child brings a raincoat or jacket, beanie, gumboots, and any other items that help them stay warm and dry so they can enjoy outdoor play comfortably each day.A friendly reminder to clearly label all clothing items sent to school to help prevent lost property.

Managing Winter Illnesses

With winter also comes cold and flu season. Thank you for keeping your child at home if they are unwell and for following the required exclusion periods for illnesses that can spread easily, such as colds, gastro, conjunctivitis, Covid-19, and Influenza. Your care helps protect the health and wellbeing of our entire school community.

The Department of Health provides the following guidance on exclusion periods for common illnesses:

At school, we continue to promote good hygiene habits such as regular handwashing or sanitising, cleaning of surfaces and high-touch areas, as well as practising proper coughing and sneezing etiquette. We appreciate your support in reinforcing these behaviours at home to help minimise the spread of germs.

When our students become unwell, unfortunately, our staff are also at risk of falling ill. While we do our very best to minimise disruptions to student learning and programs during staff absences, there may be times when staff shortages are unavoidable. Thank you for your ongoing patience, flexibility and understanding during these times.

School Advisory Council Meeting

This week, we held our Term 2 School Advisory Council (SAC) Meeting. During the meeting, we took the opportunity to thank the members of our CaFE Fair Team for their tireless work, which led to the success of our School Fair and contributed greatly to our fundraising efforts.

It was also a great excuse to enjoy a meal together at Pacific Epping — and to collect another receipt for our Shop for Schools tally!

The following Principal's Report was presented to the SAC: 

Refugee Week

Next week we celebrate Refugee Week. This is a time to reflect on the challenges faced by refugees, acknowledge their strength and resilience, and celebrate the positive contributions refugees make to Australian society. The theme for Refugee Week 2025 is “Finding Freedom.”

What does it mean to be free? For many, freedom means living without the fear of war, having basic human rights respected, and being able to live without the threat of persecution. Each year, millions of people around the world are forced to embark on dangerous and uncertain journeys in search of safety and freedom. For refugees, settling in a new country brings both challenges and the hope for a life where they can live, love, dream, and rebuild their futures.

At SMCM, our vibrant and diverse community is enriched by many refugee families. Their stories of courage, hope, and determination are an important part of our community. Refugee Week offers us the opportunity to listen, to learn, and to strengthen our culture of welcome, respect, and inclusion.

Together, this Refugee Week, let us stand in solidarity with refugees and commit to building a more welcoming, safe and sustainable home where all can find freedom.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Ana, Ruben, Madalyn (Optimism Homegroup) and Xavier on the passing of Ana's Mother last week. 

Claire

Principal

claire.pitcher@smcmeppingnth.catholic.edu.au