Dear Parents and Carers,

A warm welcome back for the 2026 School Year, and I hope that the summer break has been filled with opportunities to break away from the busyness of the school term.

Today's communication will be brief, and you can expect a more substantial edition of the first full school newsletter next week.

Beyond Edu Care has a new home!

In 2026, our provider of before and after-school care services will be operating from a new location. The location is using several classroom spaces in Building A, and access will be via our main car park (Gate 4).

During the hours of service, families can use the stairs from the carpark drop off\pick area or the flat path of travel available at the gate next to the main office entry.

We look forward to the benefits of having our OSHC service closer to the front area of the school.

Please see the map below for more information.

Student and Family Morning Drop-off and Afternoon Pick-up in 2026

In 2026, the following areas will be open for students and families during the school drop and pick up time period.

The double gates between the school and church will no longer be available for regular school drop-off and pick-up routines.

The aim of these arrangements is to have pedestrians coming to and from the school, use the designated footpaths and pathways, avoiding carpark driveways and throughways.

These changes will be monitored closely over the coming weeks, with further communication to clarify the arrangements.

THIS CHANGE WILL BE EFFECTIVE FROM MONDAY 2nd FEBRUARY

Recess and Lunch Times and Areas of Play in 2026

In 2026, we have made the following changes to Recess and Lunch times and areas of play.

Recess and Lunch Play times will now each be 40 minutes in duration (previously 30 mins for Recess, 50 minutes for Lunch)

Key times for Bells and movement are as follows:

8:20am School gate opens (car park drop off\pick up area) Before School Supervision Commences
8:30am Classrooms Open - Students settle for learning
8:40am First Bell: Students settled ready for Whole School led Prayer
8:45am Morning Block Learning Begins
10:45am Morning Block ends\Recess begins (40 minutes)
11:20am Recess Bell to line up
11:25am Middle Block begins
1:25am Eating time begins
1:35pm Lunch play (40 minutes)
2:10pm Lunch bell to line up
2:15pm Afternoon Block begins
3:15pm School dismissal (end of the day prayer 3:10pm)

At St Simon's, we are blessed with many and different play spaces for our students to play and enjoy together. These include:

the oval
sand pit
gaga pit
adventure playground
athletics track
fitness trail equipment
basketball courts
prep playground
middle court yard
deck areas

The current school size, based on the student enrolment, determines the amount of government funds (state and federal) we receive to operate the school.

With the number of students we currently have enrolled, there are not enough staffing resources to continue supervising all the play spaces available to students during recess and lunch.

To enable students to access all our play spaces throughout the school day, we have introduced designated play areas for Recess and Lunch.

The map below shows where the students will be playing during recess and lunch, noting that the Middle courtyard and deck area are available at all times.

St. Simon The Apostle Primary School

EDITION 0.1 2026 School Returns Welcome Back · 30 Jan 2026

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