Principal's Report

Start Up Performance

Thanks to the many families that came along this morning for our Start Up Performance. Apologies that Brett and I had a Principal Forum and couldn't attend. It's a simple formula, but one that has all students enjoying the great start they have made to the new school year.

Thanks also to our staff for supporting the students.

School Crossing - Footpath Works

As mentioned in a separate Compass alert, the City of Greater Bendigo are doing footpath works near our crossing. These works are expected to continue for the next 6 weeks.

Phones & Smart Watches

As a reminder to families, all Victorian government schools are required to follow the Victorian Government’s mobile phone policy, which states that students must not use mobile phones during school hours, including recess and lunchtime.

If students bring a mobile phone or smart watch to school, it must be switched off and securely stored for the duration of the school day. Phones and smart watches are not to be kept in school bags. The secure storage spot is the front office.

This policy is in place to ensure that our classrooms and playgrounds remain focused, safe and connected spaces. We appreciate the ongoing support of families in reinforcing this expectation with their children.

If you have any questions regarding the policy, please feel free to contact the school.

School Uniform Expectations

Our school uniform is an important part of our identity at Spring Gully Primary School. It promotes a sense of belonging, pride and equality among our students, and reflects the standards set by our School Council through the development of our Uniform Policy.

Recently, we acknowledge that we have not been as vigilant as we could be in consistently upholding uniform expectations. To support the policy endorsed by School Council and ensure fairness for all families, we will be placing a renewed focus on students wearing the correct school uniform each day.

We ask families to please ensure that children are attending school in the approved uniform, including plain black shorts/pants and plain white or black socks. Nike, Adidas, Hurley, etc are not to be worn. If there are any challenges in meeting uniform requirements, we encourage families to contact the school so that we can provide support where needed.

Thanks in advance for supporting our uniform policy.

A Quick Safety Reminder – Drop-Off and Pick-Up

We’ve noticed an increase in illegal parking and U-turns during drop-off and pick-up times. We understand that these times can be busy, but some of these behaviours create real safety risks for our students.

Please make sure you’re following parking signs and road rules, and avoid illegal U-turns near the school. A little extra patience goes a long way in keeping everyone safe.

School Council Summary

Our February School Council meeting was held recently. Many items were discussed and/or ratified, including:

School Council Elections 2026

Most School Council position for 2026 were filled. We still have a vacancy for an interested parent/carer.

2025 Annual Report

The Annual Report was discussed and will be available at the AGM in March. The purpose of the annual report to the school community is to inform parents and the wider school community of the school's performance outcomes and its efforts to progress improved student achievement, and to meet legislative and regulatory requirements under the Education and Training Reform Act 2006 and the National Education Agreement 2008.

Enrolments

We currently have 408 students enrolled at our school. We have deliberately reduced this number from 427 at this time last year. Our enrolment cap is set 399.

Staffing News

As reported late last year, Mrs. Natalie Todeschini is currently in an Acting Principal position at Dunolly Primary School. We have not backfilled this position (Mental Health Leader/Inclusion Coordinator) for Term 1.

Other staffing news is summarised below:

Mrs. Katie Moss (Social Worker) – Katie has increased her time-fraction from four days a week to fulltime
Ms. Megan King (Occupational Therapist) – Megan was appointed to an advertised vacancy on the last day of Term 4 and will work with us for one day per week (Tuesdays)
Ms. Meg Haynes (Speech Pathologist) – Meg appointed to an advertised vacancy recently (6/2) and will work with us for one day per week (Thursdays).

These two recent appointments now mean that our allied health team are all employed directly by us, including the consultancy arrangement we have with Mrs. Tara Byron (Psychologist).