New Parents – Download the Compass App

New parents and carers are encouraged to download the Compass App to their mobile device and access the Compass parent portal viahttps://balmoralshs-qld.compass.education/

Through the Compass portal, parents can view important information relating to their child/children, complete required actions, and access communications shared by school staff.

Key features of the Compass parent portal include the ability to:

Monitor student attendance and submit explanations for late arrivals or absences
Communicate directly with classroom teachers
Monitor homework and assessment tasks, including outstanding learning tasks
View My News, a feed of school announcements, alerts and updates
Access student timetables
Book parent–teacher conferences

Login details:

Login emails have been sent to all families who have not previously accessed Compass. These emails include your initial username and password.

Compass is an essential tool for staying informed and engaged with your child’s learning journey at Balmoral State High School.

QParents Safety Letter – Technologies Classes

Parents and carers are reminded to please check QParents for the Technologies Safety Letter. This form must be reviewed and signed to ensure students can participate in Technologies classes. Thank you for taking the time to check and complete this important requirement.

Year 7 Laptop Reminder

IT Inductions

Year 7 students are reminded that they will need to bring their school laptop from Wednesday onwards as part of upcoming IT Inductions. Please ensure laptops are fully charged and brought to school each day to support these sessions.

New Parent Meet & Greet

Monday 10 February

We warmly invite new parents and carers to attend our New Parent Meet & Greet on Monday 10 February at 4:00pm. This is a great opportunity to meet key staff, connect with other families, and learn more about life at Balmoral State High School.

Uniform Update – Style 2 Ties

Please be advised that Style 2 ties are currently on back order at the Uniform Shop.

Students who do not currently have a tie are required to attend Uniform Correction before school to arrange an interim replacement.

Students should see their relevant Student Engagement Head of Department:

Years 7 & 8: Mr Steve Brady
Years 9 & 10: Mr Trevor Buckingham
Years 11 & 12: Mr Michael Jesberg

Thank you for your cooperation while we manage this temporary supply issue.

GEM Chats: Gratitude

As part of our ongoing focus on student wellbeing, families are encouraged to take part in GEM Chats, an initiative from The Resilience Project designed to build positive habits and stronger connections through everyday conversations.

GEM Chats provide a simple wellbeing check-in that can be easily incorporated into daily routines, such as at the dinner table. This week’s focus is Gratitude, helping students and families reflect on positives, support one another, and strengthen relationships.

Try asking questions like:

What are you grateful for today?
What was the best part of your day?
What made you smile?
How can you support someone tomorrow?

Research shows that practising gratitude consistently can help rewire the brain to notice positives more often, supporting overall wellbeing and resilience.

Families are encouraged to engage with the poster and give GEM Chats a go at home.

2026 Student Resource Scheme (SRS) Information & Early Bird Discount

Balmoral State High School will again offer the Student Resource Scheme (SRS) in 2026, providing families with a cost-effective way to ensure students have access to all required learning resources. While the Queensland Government funds school operations such as staffing, facilities, and administration, families are responsible for supplying individual student resources. The SRS offers a convenient alternative, giving parents significant savings through the school’s bulk purchasing and hire arrangements. The scheme operates on a cost-recovery basis only and is not used to raise funds.

Participation in the SRS is optional. Families of new students must return the SRS Participation Agreement Form before 21 January 2026. If a form is not received, families are considered to have opted out and will be required to supply all listed resources independently. Continuing families will automatically remain in their current participation status unless they choose to opt in or out for 2026 by submitting a new form.

The SRS includes a combination of owned, used, and hired resources, detailed in each year level’s SRS Inclusion List available on the school website. Hired items such as textbooks or equipment must be returned in good condition, and families are asked to notify the school if any items listed are not received.

The Department of Education’s Textbook and Resource Allowance (TRA) is applied directly to reduce SRS fees for eligible students in Years 7–12. In 2026, the TRA is $164 for Years 7–10 and $357 for Years 11–12. The 2026 SRS participation fee is $350 for Years 7–12, with the TRA already deducted.

Families experiencing financial hardship are encouraged to contact the school to discuss support options confidentially. Flexible payment arrangements, including instalments, are available, with invoices managed under departmental processes.

Fee Payment Arrangement Forms should be returned to

receivables@balmoralshs.eq.edu.au by 21 January 2026.

Early Bird Bonus for 2026! Additional School Credit in 2026

Families who have finalised all outstanding school fees and have paid their 2026 school fees in advance by 1 February 2026 will receive a $20.00 credit applied to their child’s student account.

This credit can be used throughout the 2026 school year for:

Excursions
School events
Other miscellaneous school-related items

We appreciate the ongoing support of families in helping us plan effectively for the year ahead and ensuring seamless delivery of educational programs for all students.

If you have any questions regarding payments or your account, please contact the school office.

Further information, including detailed SRS inclusions, is available on the school website or in the letter below.

We’re excited to welcome a group of Japanese students to Balmoral State High School from 2–10 March 2026, and we’re currently looking for warm, supportive host families to be part of this cultural exchange.

Hosting is a wonderful opportunity to share Australian life, build global connections, and create lasting memories for both your family and our visiting students.

We’re interviewing host families now — if you’re interested or would like more information, please contact our International Department.

Please get in touch with Yuki if you are interested!

Email: yukiedventure@gmail.com

Phone: 0432 240 093

2026 Cruise Craft Work Experience Program

We are excited to highlight an outstanding opportunity for students interested in manufacturing, engineering, design, and marine technology. Cruise Craft Boats—an Australian, family-owned leader in premium boat building—is offering a dynamic Work Experience Program in 2026.

Across two immersive weeks, students gain hands-on experience in real marine manufacturing environments, working alongside skilled tradespeople in areas such as composites, CNC machining, 3D CAD design, assembly, upholstery, and marine mechanical rigging. The program provides meaningful, structured learning rather than observation-only participation, with each student paired with a dedicated mentor.

Program Overview:

Days: Monday–Thursday
Hours: 6:30am–4:30pm
Week 1: Industry immersion – safety induction, factory tours, composites, boat assembly, logistics, and more
Week 2: A tailored experience based on the student’s interests identified in Week 1

Students will gain real-world skills, explore trade pathways, and experience a major marine manufacturing operation firsthand. Cruise Craft offers clear career pathways through Certificate III qualifications in Marine Craft Construction, Polymer Processing, Marine Mechanical Technology, and Upholstery.

Requirements:

Enclosed steel-cap footwear
Completion of all safety induction and consent documentation
A short student interest profile (e.g., composites, mechanical, machining)
Confirmed transport arrangements

This program is an excellent opportunity for students looking to fast-track their skills, build confidence, and explore future apprenticeship options in a thriving Australian industry.

For more details or application support, please contact the school’s Work Experience Coordinator.

Request for Old Uniforms to be Upcycled

Students are currently looking at a project that upcycles old unforms that are beyond repair to be repurposed into items like pencil cases, book bags etc.

If you have a shirt, skirt, skort or shorts that you are thinking of binning please help us to rescue from landfill.

If you would send these after laundering to Student Services, please.

Many thanks,

Zena Carusi-Lees

HOD Horizons

Same Day Student Absence Notifications

Keeping your contact details up to date

There are times when we may need to contact parents and carers. Do we have your most up-to-date details? If not, please contact the school on (07) 3823 8588 so we can update our records. These details include:

Parent/carer’s name
Address
Phone numbers
Email address
Emergency contact details

Please remember to notify the school if any of these details change.

Absence notification process

If your child is going to be away or late to school, please notify us early in the morning by calling (07) 3823 8555 or via the Compass app so the absence can be recorded correctly.

Same day notification

If a student is absent and we have not received a reason, the school will contact parents and carers as soon as practicable on the day.

If you are advised that your child is away without explanation, please respond as soon as possible to let us know where your child is. If no response is received, the school will follow up with parents/carers directly.

Become A Homestay Host!

Turn your spare room into a world of opportunity! Balmoral State High School is seeking welcoming families to host international students and share the very best of Australian life.

Provide a safe, supportive home where students can thrive, experience our culture of excellence, and become part of your family. Celebrate diversity, create lifelong connections, and make a difference — all from your own home.

Please contact us on social media, marketing@balmoralshs.eq.edu.au or (07) 3823 8588 to learn more!

Have you heard about Parentline?

Parentline is a free, confidential counselling service for all Queensland parents. Get help supporting your child with:

bullying
relationships
peer pressure
anxiety
depression
and more.

Problems can come up at any time, so you access Parentline’s qualified counsellors any day of the week from 8 am until late.

Call the phoneline (1300 30 1300) between 8 am and 10 pm, or jump on the live web-chat (parentline.com.au) between 8 am and 9 pm.

https://parentline.com.au/

Brisbane’s New Bus Network Has Launched

From Monday 30 June, Brisbane’s new bus network — including the Brisbane Metro M1 — is now live. Inspired by world-class systems like those in London and Hong Kong, the new network connects more buses to more places, more often.

🚍 Over 70% of routes have changed, so its important students check how their journey to and from school may be affected.

🔎 Plan your journey:

Visit Translink Journey Planner
Enter your start and end location
Find your updated route

📚 For school-specific services, use Translink’s School Service Finder and Journey Planner.

🚧 Please note:

Rail closures are occurring on the Beenleigh and Gold Coast lines until Friday 18 July
Changes have also been made to Logan and Redlands bus services

🤝 Staff from Translink will be present at key stops to assist students during this transition.

For help, call 13 12 30 or visit translink.com.au.

Behaviour on Buses

🚌 REMINDER: Code of Conduct for Students on Buses

To keep bus travel safe and enjoyable for everyone, all students are expected to:

Act safely + responsibly — pay the fare, follow the driver’s instructions, and follow bus rules.
Respect others — speak politely, respect personal space, and leave the bus tidy and undamaged.
Stay calm + careful — wait patiently at stops, stay seated if possible, store belongings safely, keep noise down, and avoid distracting the driver.
Get on + off safely — wait until the bus fully stops, signal the driver if you need to get off, and only cross the road once the bus has moved away.

⚠ Misconduct has consequences:

Category 1: Irresponsible behaviour → written warnings or short travel bans.
Category 2: Unsafe behaviour → up to 5–10 days refused travel.
Category 3: Dangerous/destructive → up to 10 weeks refused travel + behaviour
agreements.
Category 4: Life-threatening behaviour → long-term or permanent refusal of travel.

Let’s work together to make sure every bus journey is safe, respectful, and smooth!

For full details, see the attached document.

Away for the Day Policy

Our Away for the Day policy requires that all mobile phones are kept away during school hours to support a focused, distraction-free learning environment.

Students who are seen using their devices or anything that needs to be linked to a device to work (e.g. headphones/ear pods) will be asked to hand the item in for the rest of the day.

If you are finding it difficult to manage your phone use, remember that you can use your phone pouch at any time to help keep your device secure and out of sight. If you do not have a pouch, please visit the office to purchase one.

Let’s work together to make sure all students are following this important policy every day. Thank you for supporting a positive learning space for everyone every day.

Options Career Information Bulletin

Packed with opportunities, updates, and advice, this is your go-to resource for exploring pathways beyond school.

Whether you're planning your next steps or just starting to think about life after graduation, this bulletin is designed to help you take those exciting first leaps into the future with confidence.

Cleaners Wanted

Casual Cleaners are needed. If you are interested in casual cleaning work at Balmoral, please email facilities@balmoralshs.eq.edu.au

Upcoming Payments

Important upcoming payment dates: