Finance

REMINDER: Due date for payments 

Looking Ahead: Keep a lookout on your COMPASS Payment Center for these events.

Finance Report – April 2025

School Newsletter – Finance Update (Term 2) Welcome Back to Term 2!

Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome back! We hope you and your families had a restful break and are settling into Term 2 smoothly. As always, we’re excited to see our students back and ready for another term of learning, growth, and fun.

Term 2 brings a number of exciting programs, including sporting, classroom incursions, and enrichment activities, all of which rely on timely funding to run smoothly.

Event Planning & Parent Reminders

We understand that family life can be busy, and we're doing our best to give as much notice as possible for all upcoming camps, excursions, incursions, and events.

To assist with your planning, please keep reading our newsletters and checking Compass regularly. This is the best way to stay informed about what’s coming up and ensure you don’t miss important dates, consent forms, or payment deadlines.

Your support in staying up to date helps us make every event run smoothly and ensures all students have the opportunity to participate in these valuable experiences.

Curriculum Contributions

We’d like to take a moment to thank all families who have made their Curriculum Contributions so far this year.

While these contributions are voluntary, they make a significant difference to the resources and opportunities we can provide. Funds go directly toward:

• Enhancing classroom materials and learning resources
• Supporting specialist programs (e.g., Art, PE)
• Maintaining and upgrading technology used in classrooms
• Providing hands-on learning experiences and enrichment activities

Every dollar helps us to offer a richer, more engaging learning environment for your child.

Payments can be made easily via Compass Pay under Events/Action Centre.

If you have any questions or need assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact the school office.

Cut-Off Dates for Compass Events

Camps, sports, incursions, and excursions are a valuable part of your child’s school experience, helping to build confidence, social skills, and engagement through real-world learning.

To help us deliver these activities smoothly and fairly:

• Cut-off dates are firm—usually set two weeks prior to each event.
• No late payments or consent forms will be accepted after the cut-off, as bookings with venues and transport providers must be finalized in advance.
• Teachers and administration staff do not have the resources to follow up or process late changes once the deadline has passed.

We completely understand that unexpected things can happen. However, we ask families to plan ahead and meet these deadlines to ensure your child doesn't miss out. By sticking to cut-off dates, we can provide well-organized, inclusive events for all students.

Front Office Enquiries – School Saving Bonus (SSB) Usage

Last term, the front office received a number of enquiries regarding the use of the School Saving Bonus (SSB). As previously mentioned in our newsletter, the COMPASS portal currently does not support direct allocation of SSB funds by parents.

We have been in contact with COMPASS, and while they are working on a solution, they have not yet provided a release date. However, they have assured us that enabling this functionality is a high priority due to the strong demand from both schools and families.

In the meantime, please note the following process for using SSB funds:

1. SSB funds must first be requested and allocated through the Department Portal.
2. Once allocated, please allow 2–3 business days for the transaction to be processed.
3. After processing, you can contact the front office via email, phone, or in person to advise how you would like the funds to be applied (e.g., for camps, excursions, or fees).
4. Our admin team will then manually apply the funds to your selected activity or service.

Following these steps ensures efficient processing and allows our team to better support all families in a timely manner.

If you have any questions regarding payments or financial support, please don’t hesitate to contact our school office. Thank you again for your cooperation and support—we’re looking forward to a fantastic Term 2!

Warm regards,

Jess Moran

Administration

What is Compass?

Compass is a school management solution that allows parents and carers to access up-to-date and meaningful information about your school and your child’s progress. Compass includes many different features, including the ability to:

• Monitor your child’s attendance, and enter an explanation for absence or lateness
• Communicate with your child’s teachers, and update your family contact details
• View your child’s timetable and the school calendar
• Monitor your child’s homework and assessment tasks
• Download and view your child’s academic reports
• Book parent-teacher conferences
• Pay and provide consent for events and school fees

For more information about COMPASS PAY, please visit the link below.

If you need additional assistance, feel free to reach out to our office staff.

https://www.compass.education/guide/

How do I pay for an excursion on Compass?

Make snappy, online payments in minutes with our online platform. Simply:

1. Login to your Compass portal (mobile app or web), and view your home page. When an excursion requires consent/payment, a notification will appear here.

2. Click on this link to be redirected to your Action Centre, where all upcoming events/excursions requiring parental/guardian action will automatically display.

3. Click anywhere on the desired event’s line to open the consent/payment section.

4. Fill in the fields provided. To pay specifically, select saved credit card details from the dropdown menu available, or add a new credit via the ‘New Credit Card’ option.

5. Once completed, select Proceed, to submit your payment for processing. 

Friendly Note: Currently, only VISA or MasterCard payments are accepted by Compass. Alternative payment options may be available at your school’s general office.

Where do I see the payments I've made through Compass?

View in-Compass payments, in three simple steps:

1. Login to Compass.

2. Select the Cog Icon in the top right hand corner of your page.

3. Select the My Payments option, and review your payment history.

CSEF applies to financially means tested HealthCare Card applications.  If you have your own healthcare card (in your name), as listed below then you would qualify.

Below is a list of means tested cards that are accepted:

• ABSTUDY – Schooling Applicant (ABA)
• ABSTUDY – Secondary/Tertiary (ABY)
• Age Pension (AGE)
• Austudy Payment (AUS)
• Bereavement Allowance (BVA)
• Disability Support Pension (DSP)
• Health Care Card (HCC)
• Job Seeker (JSP)
• Newstart Allowance (NSA)
• Non-Agency Payment (NAP)
• Parenting Payment (PP)
• Partner Allowance (PTA)
• Sickness Allowance (SKA)
• Special Benefit (SPL)
• Widow Allowance (WDA)
• Widow B Pension (WID)
• Wife Pension Age (WFA)
• Wife Pension Disability (WFD)
• Veterans Card (Gold)
• Youth Allowance (YAL)

Cards that are not financially means tested are not accepted. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Foster (FO) – Foster Parents must provide a copy of the temporary care order letter from the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
• Child Disability (CD)
• Family allowance (FA)
• Ex-Carer Allowance (Child) Health Care Card
• Carers Card (CAR)

Department Policy below. 

https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/camps-sports-and-excursions-fund/guidance/eligibility

APPLICATIONS CLOSE AT THE END OF JUNE.

For the first time State Schools' Relief is now offering a SUMMER version of our Prep CSEF Uniform Package so that the newest students in 2025 can start their school year all decked out! Applications for the Prep 2025 Summer CSEF Uniform Package are open now and can be placed via our online application portal. 

Information sheets for families, plus the order form, can be found on our website and downloaded as required.  

Please note the following:

-  All vouchers have an expiry and must be redeemed before the expiration date

-  All applications for this package will close at the end of Term 1, 2025.

In order for a student to be eligible to receive the Prep 2025 Summer Uniform Package the student must be a Camps, Sports and Excursion Fund (CSEF) recipient. 

To find out more, please visit the Department of Education website. 

Should you have any questions about this package, please contact our Customer Service team on 8769 8400 between the hours of 8.30am - 4.30pm, Monday to Friday or email us anytime at contact@ssr.net.au

Make the Most of Your School Saving Bonus with State Schools' Relief!State Schools' Relief offers high-quality, unbranded school uniforms and school shoes, perfect for using your School Saving Bonus (SSB).To help parents and carers navigate the process, we've created a digital information pack with all the details you need.Click or download below for more information:

SSB PORTAL USER GUIDE

HOW TO MAXIMISE YOUR BONUS

EXHANGES POLICY

The best news is that when you shop with State Schools’ Relief, you’re helping more than just your own family. Every dollar spent supports critical welfare programs for students in need across Victoria. So, you can feel extra good about those new school shoes!

School Saving Bonus

Parent and carer School Saving Bonus code distribution 

The Victorian Government is delivering the School Saving Bonus – a one-off $400 support for government school students from Prep to Year 12 in 2025.

From Tuesday 26 November 2024, you will receive an email from the Department of Education with your unique $400 School Saving Bonus code.

The School Saving Bonus will help families cover the cost of uniforms, textbooks, excursions, activities and more.

If you have multiple children enrolled in Victorian government schools for 2025, you will receive one School Saving Bonus code email per child. These emails might arrive on different days. Please make sure to check your spam/junk email folder.

Parents and carers can use the School Saving Bonus code in store at school-nominated suppliers. Parents and carers can also choose to access the School Saving Bonus online system, where they can allocate part or all the $400 bonus to use at school nominated-online suppliers or for school activities.  To learn more about the School Saving Bonus, visit School Saving Bonus | vic.gov.au (www.vic.gov.au). A step-by-step user guide will be available on the webpage on 26 November.  

If you have not received your School Saving Bonus code via email by Friday 29 November, please contact the Department of Education by emailing school.saving.bonus@education.vic.gov.au