Engagement & Wellbeing

Anaphylaxis at Buninyong PS

Anaphylaxis is a severe allergic reaction that is potentially life threatening. The most common allergens in schools are food and insect allergies. The only way to prevent allergic reactions is to avoid being exposed to the allergen. 

We have students at our school with severe allergies to a variety of things, including:

• Nuts (all types)
• Milk & dairy
• Egg (raw & cooked)
• Kiwi fruit
• Grasses
• Pollens
• Dust mites

Our school is supporting students at risk of anaphylaxis in the following ways:

• training staff,
•  encouraging students with food allergy to wash their hands before and after eating,
• encouraging students to wash their hands after eating something their classmate/friend is allergic to,
• teaching students not to share food with friends who have food allergy,
• teaching students the importance of getting help immediately if their friend with allergy looks sick,
• educating students about allergies and anaphylaxis, and

• teaching students that teasing someone with an allergy is not acceptable behaviour.

   

Food allergy is now common in school aged children. Children can be allergic to any food, and it is not possible to completely remove all foods from our school. To help manage food allergies, our school is following the National Allergy Strategy Best Practice Guidelines (2021) which do not recommend banning foods as this is difficult to enforce and can bring a false sense of safety.

Families in a class with a student with anaphylaxis will have received a notification from your class teacher around which allergens should be avoided in that classroom, in order to minimise the risk of a serious reaction. We request that parents please consider not sending food with these allergens to school if in that class. We also request that you have conversations at home with your child around the importance of not sharing food and washing their hands thoroughly before and after eating.

If you are wanting to bring in food (birthday cakes/treats), we ask you to please provide advance notice to the teacher, and include a list of ingredients, so that we may check the ingredients carefully. Any compound items that do not have a list of ingredients will not be consumed.

We will continue to work with and educate, at a developmentally appropriate level, our school community to help with the management of food allergy and anaphylaxis.

We ask you to support the school’s risk minimisation strategies outlined so that we can increase safety and provide an environment that meets the needs of all our students.

If you have any questions please contact Narelle Sullivan, our Assistant Principal for Student Wellbeing.

Annual privacy reminder for our school community

Our school collects and uses student and parent personal information for standard school functions or where permitted by law, as stated in the Schools’ Privacy Policy and the Schools’ Privacy Collection Notice.

Our Photographing, Filming and Recording Students Policy, describes how we collect and use photographs, video and recordings of students. The policy also explains when parent consent is required and how it can be provided and withdrawn.

For more information about privacy, refer to: Schools’ privacy policy: information for parents. 

Working With Children’s Check (WWCC) Reminder

Parents and carers are reminded that all adults require a current WWCC in order to volunteer in classrooms and attend camps and excursions. 

WWCC are valid for 5 years and are free for volunteers to apply for.  You can apply, renew and check your existing status by visiting https://www.workingwithchildren.vic.gov.au/.

We regularly encourage volunteers in classrooms and on excursions. Even if it is not something you have previously considered, it can be useful to have, and we encourage you to apply. 

Once your card arrives, bring it to the school office where the staff will take a copy and add you to our WWCC register.  

Bunjil Student Awards

Congratulations to the following students who received a 5/6 Bunjil Award at last week’s assembly.

Bunjil awards recognise student achievement and those who display our school values of being respectful, responsible and kind.

Well done! All of our weekly winners enjoy a hot chocolate or zooper dooper with a principal.

Student Attendance     

PRIMARY SCHOOL ATTENDANCE - 

EVERY DAY COUNTS & EVERY MINUTE MATTERS

Please note that it is a requirement that all student absences are reported to the school and this should be done prior to or on the day of absence by 9:00am.

Notifying the school of your child’s absence helps ensure the safety and wellbeing of children and will fulfil your legal responsibility. Please see the attached sheet for further information.

Please provide an attendance note for all student absences for your child/ren in one of the following ways: 

1. Online: log the absence directly on Compass. Compass is quite simple to use to add a note for the unexplained absences for your child/ren, both past and future.  If you are having issues with your login, you can now request a reset password link directly from Compass
2. Telephone:  call the school on 5341 3560 - let the staff know your child’s name, class and reason for absences. -
3. Email: Email the school - buninyong.ps@edumail.vic.gov.au and provide your child’s name, class, date of absences and reason. 
4. SMS notification: click on the link within the text message that you received when your child was away to provide a reason for the absence

If additional support is required to assist with your child's attendance, please reach out to your classroom teacher or Narelle Sullivan.

Early pick-up of students

At our school, student safety and learning time remain our highest priorities.  To support this, we kindly remind all families that students will not be permitted to leave their classrooms early until a parent or caregiver has arrived at the front office to collect them.

This procedure is essential for several important reasons:

• Duty of Care:  There is not always a teaching staff member available at the front office to supervise students who are waiting to be collected.  Keeping students in their classrooms ensures they remain safe and supervised at all times.

• Maximising Learning Time:  Occasionally, parents or caregivers may arrive later than expected.  When students leave class too early to wait for pick-up, they can miss valuable learning time.

To help us maintain a safe and orderly environment, we ask parents to allow enough time for sign-out procedures and to arrive at the front office before requesting that a child be called from class.

We appreciate your cooperation and support in keeping our students safe and ensuring they make the most of every learning opportunity.

If you have any questions regarding this process, please contact the school office. 

Breakfast Club

School Breakfast Club Update – 2026 Kick-Off! 🍎

We’re excited to be starting up our School Breakfast Club again for 2026, and we’d love to see lots of smiling faces each morning!

All students are welcome to come along and enjoy a healthy, positive start to their day. Breakfast helps students feel settled, focused, and ready to learn.

When & Where 🗓 Monday, Wednesday & Friday ⏰ 8:15am – 8:45 am 📍 Meeting Room (just off the main admin building courtyard)

Students can enjoy toast, cereal, and fresh fruit during this time.

Volunteers WelcomeWe’re seeking parent and community volunteers to help make Breakfast Club a success. You can volunteer as often as suits you – there’s no requirement to commit every week. We aim to have 2–3 volunteers each session. 

👉 Please sign up using the form HERE

Additional SupportFresh fruit is available in all classrooms during eating times throughout the week. Home food packs are also available for families who would find this support helpful. If this could assist your family, please contact the office or Narelle, and we’ll happily arrange one for you.