Welcome back to Term 4!

I hope all our families enjoyed a relaxing and enjoyable holiday break. It was wonderful to see our students return to school this week, looking refreshed and ready for the final term of the 2026 school year. Despite losing an hour of sleep with the start of daylight saving, our students seemed ready and eager to get back into their learning and reconnect with their friends and teachers.

As always, Term 4 is a busy and exciting time in the school calendar, with many wonderful learning opportunities, events and celebrations ahead of us. It is also a time for our students to continue working hard, demonstrating our school values of Respect, Responsibility and Resilience and making the most of every opportunity as we approach the end of the school year.

While our students have been settling back into their routines, our Principal, John Rudd has been embarking on a very special pilgrimage through Greece and Turkey, In the Footsteps of St Paul. Planning for this pilgrimage commenced last year and was planned to go ahead in May, but was postponed due to the unrest and ongoing troubles in the Middle East. It is wonderful that the journey has now been able to proceed, providing an opportunity to explore the places associated with St Paul’s life, ministry and missionary journeys. I am sure he is learning a great deal about the history of the early Church and deepening his understanding of St Paul’s remarkable contribution to Christianity. We look forward to hearing about his experiences and reflections when he returns mid-Week 3.

Divisional Tennis & Basketball

Last Thursday, Ms Grace, Mr Mammone and I attended the Divisional Tennis and Basketball activities held at both St Therese’s School and the Keilor Basketball Stadium. We couldn’t be prouder of the way the students cheered and encouraged each other, displaying true sportsmanship.

Tennis Report

Some of our Year 5 and 6 students recently represented St Margaret’s at the Divisional Tennis Competition. Although they did not progress to the next stage, our students displayed wonderful sportsmanship, determination and enthusiasm throughout the event. We are incredibly proud of the way they represented our school, gave their best effort and encouraged one another.

A special mention goes to Maureen, who took to the court despite returning to Australia from her European trip less than 24 hours earlier! Congratulations also to Amelia, who showed great resilience to hold off a determined opponent.

Well done to all our players. You should be very proud of your efforts and the way you represented St Margaret’s.

Basketball Report

We congratulate the boys’ basketball team on their fantastic effort at the Divisional Basketball Tournament. They won their first game against Our Lady of the Nativity 30-27, and moved onto their final game where the stakes were high; the winner goes to the next round.

All team members played hard, with the game coming down to the final second. With only one second to go, we were unable to secure the win, going down 33-32.

Although it wasn't our day, all staff and parents, as well as the broader school community, could not be prouder of the effort, sportsmanship and teamwork the boys showed.

Congratulations to Andrew, Sullivan, Patrick, Charlie, Flynn, Alexander, Paul, Christian, Leo and Xavier!

Our newest Australian citizen

A huge congratulations to Chloe in 3C on becoming an official Australian citizen! We know that Chloe was looking forward to this event and we are thrilled to be able to share this milestone with the St Margaret’s School Community.

Please join us in congratulating Chloe on becoming an Australian citizen!

National Acrobatics Competition

Over the school holidays, Makenzie (3B) travelled to the Gold Coast to compete in the National Clubs Carnival for acrobatics. Alongside her trio, she achieved an incredible 4th place overall in Level 4 Senior Women’s!

This was a fantastic opportunity for Makenzie to compete against talented athletes from clubs across Australia, showcase her skills and gain valuable experience on the national stage. It was a wonderful achievement and an experience she will always remember. Well done Makenzie, we’re so proud of you!

Last School Mass in St Margaret’s Church

As reported by Mr Rudd in the newsletter late last term, the community of St Margaret’s will farewell our church. Our last school Mass will be held next Friday 23 October from 9:15am. Our SRCs and Student Voice Leaders are working with Ms Alison to prepare and practise for this Mass.

The last Mass will be held on Sunday 25 October followed by a morning tea for parishioners, past and present staff and families. We would love to see as many people as possible attend these celebrations to farewell our much-loved church.

Year 4 Camp

Our Year 4 students are excited for their upcoming school camp to Portsea on Wednesday 21 and Thursday 22 October. They are heading to the Mornington Peninsula for two days filled with fun outdoor games, exciting team activities and time with friends. We pray for warm, sunny weather so that we can all enjoy spending plenty of time outdoors. A big thank you the Year 4 teachers Mr Nicholl, Ms Oxley, Ms McKibbin for all their background work in organising this camp. And thank you to Ms Alison, Mr Fimiani who will also be attending the camp with me!

Maribyrnong Community Event

The City of Maribyrnong will be holding its annual community event this Sunday 18 October at nearby Coulson Gardens from 10am to 1pm. The council is offering a free barbecue for neighbours to come together and get to know each other a little more.

For more information about this event, click on this link, and then chooose the "October Comunity barbeque" tab:

https://www.maribyrnong.vic.gov.au/Residents/Emergency-Management/Flood-Recovery/Recovery-Programs

Melbourne Marathon

Congratulations to our very own Physical Education teacher Mr Hogan, our 2A teacher Ms Luisa and one of our Learning Support Officers Ms Sophie, who all took on the challenge of competing in the Melbourne Marathon last Sunday! What a fantastic achievement and a wonderful example of determination, resilience and commitment. We are incredibly proud of you all for setting such a positive example for our students by embracing a challenge and striving to achieve your goals. An extra special mention to Mr Hogan and Ms Sophie, who both fronted up to work on Monday after their big effort on Sunday! We hope you had a well-deserved rest afterwards!

Thank you for your ongoing support,

Vicky

Learning & Teaching

2026 Australian Mathematics Competition