Principal's Report

Dear HPS Community, 

I hope that families were able to make the most of the pupil free day and Melbourne Cup public holiday this week by either getting away for a mid term break, catching up with families and friends, or resting and resetting in preparation for the end of year!

My family and I visited the Whittlesea Show on the weekend, a fabulous event that showcased such a wonderful array of talents and experiences for the whole family to enjoy. 

Today we welcomed staff from the Viewbank College Mathematics department who generously conducted an enrichment session with some of our high achieving Year 5 and 6 students and provide a professional learning session with some of our staff.

The collaboration was an opportunity to strengthen transition pathways and foster a love of learning for Maths. We thank Viewbank College and their staff for coming and working with us as we collectively work to support student confidence, create continuity in numeracy practices between our two schools, and build professional learning networks across our local network. 

Our School Age Care (SAC)program has recommenced back in their building that is now located on-site between the swimming pool and Warringal Shopping Centre.

• Before care will run fully from the SAC Building.
• Aftercare will run from SAC as well as in the BER to cater for the larger numbers of students attending.
  • Years 2, 3, and 4 will have afternoon snack and roll call in the SAC Building.
  • Foundation, Years 1, 5, and 6 will have afternoon snack and roll call in the BER Building.

At the conclusion of afternoon snack and roll call, students will be able to move between the two buildings as well as the supervised outside area to join in the activities they chose.

We understand that the change in location can take some getting used to for parents & care givers and is a further distance to walk than the previous location. We will not be allowing entry and exit through the gate at the back of the SAC building that leads into the carpark due to concerns for safety and increased traffic that would create.

Vimmy and the SAC staff will monitor sign in/out processes to refine and introduce effective and efficient changes as required to best support drop offs and pick ups where possible. 

We thank you for your understanding and flexibility.

Summer Nights & Christmas Lights 2025

This year, our current building works are going to impact our ability to hold a whole school community event in the same way as in the past. 

We believe there are two main aspects of this popular event; students having the opportunity to perform to their family and peers and having the opportunity for the whole school community to come together to reflect on and celebrate the year. 

After much discussion, investigation and consideration we are planning to be able to cater for both main aspects to be achieved.

Students will have the opportunity to perform to their family and peers at allocated whole school assemblies from 9.10am:

• Monday 1st December- Year 5 & 6 students will perform
• Monday 8th December- Year 3 & 4 students will perform
• Monday 15th December- Foundation, Year 1 & Year 2 students will perform

HPS whole school community have the opportunity to come together to reflect on and celebrate the year at two different events:

• Wednesday 3rd December from 1pm @ Heidelberg Oval for the 'Be Wise - Walk Anywhere' event to support the Pat Cronin Foundation
• Friday 28th November from 5pm @ DeWinton Park for a Family night with food trucks and movie screening

Whilst we understand it is ideal to have these opportunities combined into one big event, we thank you for your understanding and support in the need to do it a little differently this year.

More information to come on the HPS whole school community events mentioned above. Thanks to staff and Community Engagement & Fundraising committee for their support and work to achieve this!

Building update

The weather over the past week has not been helpful for having things ready for the slab of the new learning centre to be poured. If things work in our favour, there is a possibility that it will be poured at the end of next week, however this is of course completely dependant on the weather!

We continue to be grateful to work with Fairbrother Construction whose communication, attention to detail and consideration to safety remains exceptional.

Remembrance Day

Tuesday 11 November 2025, marks Remembrance Day – a significant day on which we pause to honour all those who have served, suffered, or died in wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations. It is also a time to recognise the courage and commitment of Australian Defence Force members who continue to serve our nation today.

Remembrance Day is observed each year at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, marking the moment in 1918 when World War I came to an end. Across Australia, people stop to reflect on the sacrifices made for peace and freedom, and to express gratitude for those who have given so much in service to others.

At Heidelberg Primary School, our students and staff will pause at 11 a.m. on Tuesday to observe one minute of silence. This shared act of remembrance helps our students understand the importance of respect, reflection, and community, while connecting them to an important part of our national history.

We encourage families to take a moment together on this day to talk about what remembrance means and to reflect on the enduring values of courage, resilience, and hope that define the Australian spirit.

Respect of school property

We are unfortunately experiencing some issues with vandalism to our school bathrooms in recent weeks during the school day. It is disappointing that we are needing to spend time and money reinstating fixtures and repairing intentionally caused blockages.

We thank the students who are reporting issues as they arise so that we can address them in a timely manner and ensure the impact to other students is minimised.

Please reinforce at home the conversations being had in classrooms by discussing with your child/ren the importance and responsibility for respecting property and using facilities for their intended purpose. Thank you.

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

Term 4 

Tuesday 2 December

Wishing you a lovely weekend and a great week ahead!

Naomi Ivers

Principal

Heidelberg Primary School