Senior School Welcome

Dear Senior School Parents and Carers,

As we begin a new school year, I extend a warm and heartfelt welcome to our students and families. Each student arrives with their own story, strengths, and hopes, and it is a privilege to support them as they grow in confidence, character, and connection throughout the Senior School. Whether you are returning or joining us for the first time, you are an important and valued part of our community. I am genuinely excited for the year ahead and look forward to working alongside families to encourage, support, and celebrate our students throughout the year. 

For families new to Clayfield College, if you need further clarification on anything, please contact Mrs Alice David at Main Reception on 3262 0262, who will then direct you to the relevant Head of Year.

Annual Permissions

Please refer to the 'Annual Permissions' section of this communication for important actions required by parents and carers for each student. 

New Students Welcome Morning

On Tuesday 27 January, all Year 7 students and new students in Years 8 to 12 will have an Orientation Morning (Welcome Morning). All new students are required to bring their textbooks, device, stationery and morning tea to school. Students are to meet their Heads of Year in the Chapel Courtyard at 8:30am.

Dress will be summer uniform, with hat. The morning will conclude at 11:00am.

First Day

On Wednesday 29 January, all students commence the year. Students are required to bring their device, textbooks and stationery to school. 

Dress will be summer uniform, with hat.  

Senior School Students are asked to assemble by 8:25am in House Areas as follows: 

Students must bring school bags to their House Area and are not to enter any Locker Areas before school. 

House Leaders will call the roll at 8:30am and students will then move to a Welcome Assembly for the whole school. Following this Assembly, students will proceed to House meetings where lockers will be assigned, and further administrative tasks completed. Students will commence timetabled classes from Lesson 4. 

2026 Senior School Lesson Times

As communicated with families in Term 4 last year, in 2026 there will be a change in lesson times in the Senior School each Wednesday. In Week A, the day will commence with Assembly, and in Week B with a Wellbeing and Foundation session. Six Academic lessons will follow this session. 

Lesson times will remain unchanged on all other days of the week. Additionally, there will be no change to the start and end times of the school day. 

Lesson Times for 2026

Core Classes 2026

Please note that Core Classes will be published for students on the first day back at school, 28 January. Any class information that students can see currently may not reflect the final class allocations.

2026 Term Dates

To assist with your planning of the school year and holidays, please find below the school term dates for 2026. These are also available here. 

Application for Leave

Short-Term Absences (Less than three days)

• Short-term absences, such as when your child is unwell, should be reported before 8:20am via the College App.
• If the App is not accessible, please email studentservices@clayfield.qld.edu.au, including your child’s full name and class (eg Year 1A).
• If neither option is possible, you may contact the school by phone; however, please note that phone lines can be busy in the morning, so the App or email is preferred.
• For other short-term planned absences (eg appointments), please log these on the App ahead of the planned date wherever possible.
• Please do not rely solely on contacting teachers directly or writing in your child’s diary to report upcoming absences, as these may not be seen in time for official recording. All absences must be logged via the App or email.
• Students arriving after 8:30am must sign in at College Reception.
• Students leaving early must be collected and signed out by a parent or carer at College Reception.

Longer-Term Absences (More than three days)

• We recognise that, at times, exceptional personal circumstances may require leave during term time (eg family emergencies).
• However, non-essential leave during the school term, including family holidays, is strongly discouraged.
• For planned absences of three days or more, please email absences@clayfield.qld.edu.au and attach the completed Absence Request Form which is linked below. In the subject line, please include your child’s full name and class (eg Year 1A).
• Requests will be reviewed by the Director of Junior School or Director of Senior School (depending on your child’s year level) and will be authorised or recorded as an unauthorised absence if taken. Family holidays during term time will be classified as unauthorised absences.
• For unauthorised absences, teachers will not provide alternative or catch-up work during the absence period.
• All authorised and unauthorised absences are documented in your child’s report card.

Communication

Please note the following forms of communication used in the Senior School: 

The College App

We request every parent and caregiver to download the College App (free download). The App provides current information about events and activities, as well as important notices and alerts (for example, training cancellations or venue changes, wet weather plans and ETA of buses returning from co-curricular activities). It also includes a live school calendar, absentee line and key school contacts. You are able to manage your notifications and subscriptions to ensure you are only seeing what is relevant to your family. Please refer to the Resource page on the College website for further information.  

Clayfield Collective 

The Clayfield Collective is our whole school weekly newsletter, sent via email every Thursday. This bulletin-style communication includes information/articles relating to the Junior School, Senior School, Boarding, Sport, Music and date claimers for upcoming events. It is important that you read the Senior School Bulletin to be kept up to date with all events and information. This platform, together with the College App is the main form of College communication for our families.

Parent Lounge

Parent Lounge provides up-to-date information on College life. Such information includes your child’s timetable and teachers, policy documents, excursion details and school calendar. Parents are also able to update their contact details and child’s medical details, view Report Cards and schedule Parent Teacher Interviews. 

New families only: on the afternoon of Tuesday 20 January, new parents will receive an email invitation from Parent ID Passport to set-up their credential to access College portals including TASS Parent Lounge. Please follow the steps noted and contact the ICT Team for assistance if required on the email address in the communication you receive. 

Please refer to the following link for information and access:

Also provided below is a guide for parents on navigating key features of Parent Lounge:

Email

Staff can be contacted via email during the school week. Email addresses are the first initial of the teacher’s name and their surname followed by @clayfield.qld.edu.au. If you are contacting a teacher via email, please be aware they will be only checking emails throughout the day as their teaching schedule permits, and therefore will not be able to reply immediately. Whilst staff are more than happy to communicate with you through email, there is a 48-hour response time. If the matter is urgent, please call College Reception on 3262 0262, where a message will be passed on and the teacher will contact you when they are available. 

Further, the Parent Code of Conduct outlines appropriate communication guidelines between parents and staff members, and we encourage you to review this document. 

Behavioural Expectations and Policy Documents

Every student has the right to a safe, supportive, and nurturing environment. Clayfield College is committed to a culture of connection and care. Such a culture is the result of clearly articulated expectations combined with accountability. It is expected that students will behave in accordance with the PMSA’s commitment to achieving fair, collaborative, inclusive and respectful working and learning environments, alongside the College values of Care, Integrity, Resilience and Respect. Behaviour of a high standard requires self-discipline, self-respect and respect for the rights and property of others. It is expected that all members of the community strive for excellence through their language, actions and appearance. Ultimately, the promotion of positive behaviours is a shared responsibility, with all stakeholders having a role to play.

Uniform Requirements

Clayfield College expects students to take pride in their presentation each day and meet the requirements of the Uniform Policy. Please read the expectations outlined below and ensure your child is prepared for the first day back at school. 

• Students will return in summer uniform
• Shoes should be polished with laces tied
• Hair is to be kept tidy and tied up if touching the collar

• No jewellery is to be worn at school, except for 1 ear piercing in the lower lobe – small silver or gold sleepers, studs or pearls. Pearl earrings are available to be purchased at the Uniform Shop.

   

We understand students may have had false eyelashes, fake tans and acrylic nails through the holiday period, but these are not part of the Clayfield College uniform and students must remove these before returning to school. If students have received an extra ear piercing over the break, please ensure they do not wear anything in the piercing while at school. 

Infringements and detentions will be applied if students are not meeting these expectations. Please refer to the Uniform Policy for further information.

Mobile Phones

Students in Years 7, 8 and 9 need to hand their phones into Main Reception when they arrive at school and can collect them after school. The College has installed phone pouches for every student in Years 7 to 9 at Main Reception. Upon arrival at school, Years 7 to 9 students walk through Main Reception to place their phone in their pouch. Phones must be turned off. Years 7 to 9 boarding students will leave their phones in the Boarding House during the school day. Students in Years 10 to 12 are required to have their phones turned off, in their lockers and they are not to be used throughout the school day. The exception to this is students in Years 10 to 12 who require their phone for HPE lessons. It is then their responsibility to collect their phone from their locker before the lesson and return it back to the locker after the HPE lesson. If students are found with their phone, they will be confiscated and can be collected from the Dean of Wellbeing and Safeguarding at the end of the day. They will also receive an infringement. If they are found to have them for a second time, students will not be permitted to bring their phone on to campus until further notice. Smart Watches are allowed but are not to be used for messaging during the school day. If students are found to be misusing their smart watch, it will be confiscated, and the student may not be allowed to wear it on campus. 

Pastoral Care Class

Pastoral Care (PC) time begins promptly at 8:30am every morning. This is an important time of the day when PC teachers mark the roll, provide ongoing support through group and individual conversations, promote connections through group activities, encourage organisation by reading the Daily Notices, help students with their daily routines and hold students accountable for the correct wearing of the College uniform. Thank you for making sure your child arrives at school on time. If students need to leave school throughout the day or will be late to school, please notify the College by using the College App.

Crocs Café

The Cafe will be providing healthy and nutritious food options for Senior School students at breakfast, morning tea and lunch time. The FlexiSchools online ordering system is available for all students. If you do not have a previous account, please log on to the FlexiSchools website where you will find all the details to order. You will notice there is a cut-off period at 8:30am every day; therefore, morning tea and lunch orders need to be placed before this time daily. Students may use their bank cards to purchase via EFTPOS. As per the Mobile Phone Policy, students are not allowed to use their phones to purchase items from the Cafe.

Years 7 to 12 Academic Procedures and Policies Document

The Years 7 to 12 Academic Procedures and Policies Document gives an overview of all procedures and protocols that need to be adhered to by staff, students and parents with regards to:

1. Academic integrity
2. Assessment
3. Drafting, scaffolding, conferencing and feedback
4. Subject changes, and

5. AARA 

    

You can access the document below. It is also available on Parent Lounge and Student Café under Links: Assessment and Reporting. 

Progressive Reports

On completion of summative assessment across all subject areas, students will receive a progressive report which provides valuable information on their learning. The Progressive Report is personalised for each student and provides student-specific and genre-specific feedback including:

• Student learning behaviours in the lead up to the assessment
• Feedback (strengths) 

• Feedforward (future focus goals)

   

We urge you to view the progressive reports with your child, celebrate their strengths and achievements and discuss feedforward strategies/suggestions. Progressive Reports are available on Student Café and Parent Lounge. See below for directions on how to access the Progressive Reports on Parent Lounge.

Clayfield College Home Learning Policy

At Clayfield College we believe that home learning plays an important role in consolidating concepts and skills taught in the classroom. However, we also acknowledge that the expectations around home learning and the time associated with the same, are unique to different year levels, and as such will vary as students’ progress from Year 7 to Year 12. 

Fundraiser Days

Photographs

Senior School class and individual photographs will take place on Monday 2 February. All students are required to wear their summer uniform on this day. 

Warm regards

Mrs Natasha Podoliak

Director of Senior School