Principal's Report

Dear HPS Community,

The well established gardens of our school are always a proud talking point here at Heidelberg. For the past 7 years David Oliver has been employed to maintain and continue to develop and grow our beautiful garden environments, and has done so to the envy of many who visit the school.

David has informed me that he is no longer going to continue the work, so sadly we say farewell to him.

We thank David very much for all the work that he has done to ensure the magnificent gardens of HPS continue to be a proud talking point of our school. We wish David all the best.

Evolve e-safety sessions will be happening in classes across next week. These vital sessions provide our students with knowledge, tools and strategies to be responsible and considerate online user. The parent and carer e-safety workshop on Thursday evening comes highly recommended and I encourage you to try to come along and attend- I am sure it will be beneficial to you either now or even into the future.

HPS Family Picnic - Thursday 27th Feb

We are less than two weeks away until the HPS Family Picnic Night.

Thank you to Audrey in Year 4 for creating the colourful advertising poster. The idea of the night is to provide an opportunity for families to meet and mingle. We invite you to dress in the allocated colour for your child/ren's year level so you can connect by colour! 

There will be coloured sticker dots available at the event for you to wear so don't despair if you aren't able to dress in the allocated colour.

All children will need to be supervised and remain the responsibility of their parents/carers. We encourage you to take your rubbish home with you at the end of the event.

Hoping to see lots of you there.

Call for volunteers

Our Breakfast Club operates from the canteen next to the hall currently and is run by Sue on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Breakfast club is open to anyone who arrives at school from 8.40am. Children who attend before care have breakfast catered for them there.

We are looking for parent volunteers who are available from 8.30-9.00am on Mondays and/or Tuesdays in term 1 to support the Breakfast Club. If you are interested in volunteering or have some queries or questions, please reach out to Sue or myself.

To support the program, we also gratefully accept any donation of food items. Items may include margarine, bread, spreads, fruit, milk, cereal etc

Last year we had some parents volunteer their time to lead a group of students to form a HPS Choir. Unfortunately, with the departure of those parents, our keen and ready to continue singing choir is left without a leader. If you would be interested in leading our choir group, please make a time to come and discuss with me.

Building Works Update

Whilst there has been a delay in the completion of ramp works, they are set to be back on-site next week to finish them over over the coming weeks.

The tender for a builder for our Capital Works is currently at closing stage so we will know in the next few weeks who we will be working with and when the work will begin. It will be after that when we will be able to share plans and designs with the community.

The retaining wall along Rosanna Road is completed and looks very sturdy, stable and professional. We are going to get some trees planted along there which will add to the aesthetics as well as provide a bit of a screen from the noise and sight of the traffic.

Outside Play Times

During the outside lunch and recess breaks, we have staff who actively supervise to cover all areas of the yard. Yellow vests are worn by teachers on yard duty to ensure high visibility to students who may need to seek help from a staff member. Bags containing first aid supplies and student medical plans are carried by staff to be able to provide assistance to students who get injured. Our first aid room is staffed and used on occasions when the simple first aid supplies in the bag are not adequate.

Strategies we employ to provide fair and equitable opportunities in a safe and inclusive environment includes;

• scheduled times for year levels to use the ovals and 9 square equipment
• enrichment clubs  scheduled daily to provide a structured activity option
• additional supervision around high use areas
• classroom learning programs to support development of respectful relationships and enhance social-emotional understanding to play fair and use kind talk and actions
• respectful relationships lessons to promote positive coping, problem solving and help seeking

• seeking to acknowledge positive demonstrations of our values of Respect, Compassion, Responsibility and Resilience

  Here is a nice 4 minute video that would be worth watching and discussing with your child/ren at home  https://www.brainpop.com/topic/conflict-resolution/movie/ 

Are you interested in being on the HPS School Council?

Elections and call for nominations will occur in the coming weeks and we would love for you to consider joining our school council.

What is a school council and what does it do?

All government schools in Victoria have a school council. They are legally constituted bodies that are given powers to set the broad direction of a school, in accordance with Ministerial Order 1280 Constitution of Government School Councils, and the Education and Training Reform Act 2006. In doing this, a school council may directly influence the quality of education for students.

Who is on the school council?

For most primary school councils, there are several possible categories of membership:

A mandated elected parent member category – more than one-third of the total members must be from this category. Department employees can be parent members at their child’s school providing that they are not engaged in work at the school.

A mandated elected school employee member category – members of this category make up no more than one-third of membership. The principal of the school is automatically one of these members.

An optional community member category – members are co-opted by a decision of the council because of their special skills, interests or experience. Department employees are not eligible to be community members.

Why is parent membership so important?

Parents on school councils provide important viewpoints and have valuable skills and a range of experiences and knowledge that can help inform and shape the direction of the school.

Those parents who become active on a school council find their involvement satisfying and may also find that their children feel a greater sense of belonging.

Do I need special experience to be on school council?

Each member brings their own valuable skills and knowledge to the role, however, in order to successfully perform their duties, councillors may need to gain some new skills and knowledge. 

It is important to have an interest in your child’s school and the desire to work in partnership with others to help shape the school’s future.

2025 Camp Dates:

Year 3 - Wednesday 2nd - Friday 4th April

Year 5 - Wednesday 7th - Friday 9th May

Year 6 - Monday 12th - Thursday 15th May

Year 4 - Wednesday 27th - Friday 29th August

School Council Meeting Dates: Start time 6pm, Conclude by 8pm 

Term 1

Tuesday 4 March - last meeting with 2024 council members

Tuesday 1 April - first meeting with 2025 council members

Term 2

Tuesday 20 May

Tuesday 17 June

Term 3

Tuesday 12 August 

Tuesday 9 September

Term 4

Tuesday 28 October 

Tuesday 2 December

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend, and we look forward to seeing you next week!

Naomi Ivers

Principal

Heidelberg Primary School