Principal's

Message

START TO THE TERM

I hope you all enjoyed a restful holiday! It was lovely to slow down a little and recharge. The children have settled beautifully into school routines this week. Our Prep to Two students have also done a wonderful job with their swimming program. Years 3-6 will be swimming in the last week of school. More information will be provided in early November. 

DISCOVERY BUILDING NEWS

In very exciting news, School Council has approved the installation of walls on the ground floor of the Discovery Building. The proposed works are due to be completed during the January holiday period. Two classrooms will be completely enclosed with glass and the remaining spaces will have dividing walls. It is hoped that these measures will significantly reduce noise and visual distractions, improving student engagement. Our staff are also very excited to have walls to pin up learning charts and student work. All going well, we will investigate the inclusion of walls on level one which will hopefully take place in the first 6 months of 2025. Once the works are complete, we hope to be better placed to assess cooling options. 

RAMPS

The Education Department have requested that ramps in all Victorian schools be evaluated. We have 8 ramps that require various levels of rectification. Most the works are limited to resurfacing and installation of new hand rails. The 3 main areas of work include the northern entrance to the gym which requires a level platform at the door and a ramp adjacent to the building. The ramp on the decking near the breakfast club will have a completely new non-slip surface, to increase safety. And finally, the ramps leading from the front gate to the entrance directly ahead will require complete rectification due to gradient concerns but will be returned to the current aesthetic.

ADMINISTRATION BLOCK AND TURF

Over the break, we installed split systems into the Administration block. I’m also pleased to let you know that the turf on the southern end of the prep terrace will be installed this weekend. The final instalment between the gym and the playground will occur post completion of the ramp at the northern entrance of the Gym. 

PREP, YEAR 7 & WITHIN SCHOOL TRANSITION

This term we will commence our transition program for our in-coming Preps. If you are yet to enrol a Prep for next year, please do so as soon as possible so that you don’t miss out on the information regarding orientation days. Our Year 6s will be participating in their Year 7 Orientation Day on Tuesday, 10th December. We will also hold our within school transition day on December 10th, where students will meet their new classmates and teacher for 2025.

SUPERVISION BEFORE AND AFTER SCHOOL

Student safety at South Melbourne Park Primary School is our highest priority and the safe and appropriate supervision of students is an important element of our duty of care to students. Part of this duty is ensuring parents and students are aware of our student supervision arrangements before and after school. 

Before school: School grounds are supervised from 8.45am. Students may wish to play on the grounds until classroom doors open at 8.50am. Students can continue to play on the grounds or enter the classroom for a ‘soft start’, until the first bell at 8.58am. All students must be inside, ready for learning at 9.00am. 

After school: School grounds are supervised until 3.45pm. Students who have not been collected by 3.45 are taken to the office for parents/carers to be called. If the student remains at the office past 4pm, they will be taken to TheirCare, at the expense of the parent/carer.

Students on school grounds outside these times will not be supervised (unless they are attending a before or after school care program or supervised extracurricular activity). Parents/carers are requested to ensure that students do not attend school outside of these supervised times unless they are attending before or after school care, or a pre-arranged supervised activity (i.e. sports practice). 

Families are welcome to stay and play on the main playground and netball court after school on the condition that all students and siblings are carefully supervised. Children are asked not to play with equipment in tubs (except balls) after school, and to return balls to the tub. Students and families should not enter school buildings during this time and are asked to leave via the sandpit gate no later than 4.30pm.

The TheirCare program services children in the school from 7am – 9.00 and 3.30 – 6pm each day.  TheirCare also offer Pupil Free Day and Holiday Care during the school holidays from 7am – 6pm. Families wishing to use this service can visit the TheirCare website: TheirCare.com.au for more information.

I really appreciate your support with this.

Nicole