Principal's Message 

PA 100-Year Tiles

Have you had a chance to see our beautiful new 100-Year Tile Display? It has quickly become a standout feature in our school, and we are absolutely thrilled with how it has turned out. This project represents creativity, collaboration, and the wonderful community spirit that makes our school so special.

A heartfelt thank you to our incredible PA for bringing this vision to life. In particular, we would like to acknowledge:

• Rebecca Major and Stacey Cookes, our PA Presidents, for their wonderful organisation and leadership.

• Rachel Baum, who coordinated all class images with care and enthusiasm

• Ethan Cooper, who generously contributed by drawing a number of the staff tiles.

• Paul Maaskant (parent of Sophie and Ava), who coordinated the installation and spent many hours preparing and finalising the project. 

• Organised Tiling, whose expertise ensured the tiles were beautifully placed.

We also extend a special thank you to Bowen’s in Croydon for kindly donating the plaster sheet, your generosity helped make this project possible.

The display not only celebrates our school’s rich 100-year history, but also highlights the creativity and connection of our students, staff, and families. We encourage everyone to stop by, take a look, and enjoy this beautiful tribute to our past and our future.

Grade Structure for 2026

As we look ahead to the 2026 school year, we are pleased to share our planned class structure:

• 2 × Prep

• 1 × Year 1

• 1 × Year 1/2

• 1 × Year 2

• 2 × Year 3/4

• 3 × Year 5/6

This structure reflects our current enrolment and allows us to create classes that are balanced, carefully planned, and supportive of all students’ learning and wellbeing. Each year, schools review their class structure, and this model is the most suitable for our students in 2026.

At Yarra Road Primary School, students learn at their point of need, ensuring teaching is tailored to support growth, challenge, and success. Our teachers are highly skilled and their approaches include:

• targeted small-group instruction

• differentiated learning

• ongoing assessment to monitor progress

• extension or challenges for students 

• support and consolidation 

• explicit instruction 

• collaborative and engaging learning opportunities

We will have our Stepping Up day on Tuesday 9th December, where we aim to have students meet their new classes.

If you have any questions, please feel welcome to contact us. We are committed to ensuring families feel informed, confident, and reassured as we move into 2026.

Mrs Haysom’s Retirement

After many years of dedicated service to Yarra Road Primary School, Mrs Haysom will be retiring at the end of this year. During her time at our school, she has worked across many areas, making a lasting and positive impact on students, colleagues, and the wider school community.

We warmly invite families to join us at Assembly on Monday 15th December to honour Mrs Haysom, express our gratitude, and celebrate the many ways she has enriched our school.

Please join us in wishing Mrs Haysom all the very best as she begins this exciting new chapter in her life.

A Note from Judy Haysom

Hi everyone,

I am writing to inform you that I am retiring at the end of this year. This is not a decision I made recently, but actually made last Christmas holidays. It is time for me to spend more time with my family and I have been doing this ‘gig’ since 1984! It actually has been fun knowing that everything I did this year was my last one. I am leaving on such a high. It has been a privilege to be part of such a supportive and vibrant school community for the past 21 years and I am deeply grateful for the many wonderful students, families and colleagues I have had the pleasure of working with over the years. While I will miss the daily connections and the absolute joy of the classroom, I’m looking forward to the next chapter and the opportunities that retirement will bring. 

Judy Haysom

Thank You for a Fantastic Swimming Program!

What a wonderful success this year’s swimming program has been at Yarra Road Primary School! I would like to acknowledge our students who displayed enthusiasm, effort, and resilience all week. It was fantastic to see them challenge themselves, build confidence in the water, and support each other.

Thank you to our parent helpers for their time and effort assisting students at the pool, and to our teachers for their dedication and organisation in making every session run smoothly and safely.

Thanks to everyone involved, the program was a great success, and it’s been inspiring to see students develop skills, confidence, and a love of swimming.

School Uniform and Safety Reminder

To help keep all students safe and comfortable during their school day, we kindly ask families to support our uniform expectations with safety in mind.

• Closed–toe shoes help protect feet during outdoor play, movement, and when using equipment.

• Small studs or sleepers are the safest option for earrings, as larger or dangling styles can be more easily caught during play.

• Necklaces, bracelets, and similar accessories are best kept for home, as they can sometimes be accidentally pulled or become caught on clothing or playground equipment. Jewellery that could be caught by a finger or item during play can increase the risk of injury, so we encourage simple and safe choices.

Thank you for your ongoing support and partnership in keeping our students safe.

If you have any questions about uniform expectations, please contact the school office. 

Christmas Concert

Junior School Council Salvation Army Fundraiser

This term the Junior School Council (JSC) will be once again fundraising for the Salvation Army. Therefore we are accepting the following:

• Non - perishable foods.

• New toys.

• Monetary donations.

This is a wonderful opportunity to support families in need this Christmas.

Thank you from the Junior School Council.

Uniform Using State Schools' Relief (SSR) 

If you have any unused State Schools' Relief (SSR) vouchers, please take them directly to Spartan School World to use to purchase uniform. 

If your voucher/s have expired, please contact the school office to have them re-issued.