From the Leadership Team
Principal’s Message
It has been an exciting start to the term, with lots of action around the school and students getting straight into their learning and community activities.
Our school, house and specialist captains have been doing a fantastic job in their first couple of assemblies, speaking confidently and calmly in front of the whole school, and this week Mrs Knoll held the first choir practice for this year, which attracted 58 students!
Mrs Platt and Mr Trend have also been running the highly-valued 'Quiet Club' for students wanting to avoid the energy of the playground. And our beautiful Preps have been lighting up the school with their smiles and funny stories.
Unfortunately, we also had our first incident of vandalism already this year, with a skylight in the Prep rooms being kicked in. Fortunately, this was made safe quickly by the department and should be repaired fully in the near future. In the next week we are also expecting a full industrial flush of all the drains under the school, which will hopefully lead to lots of small improvements across the school, too.
The trees are beautiful but they sure do cause a lot of issues!
And, of course, we are nearing completion of the roof works, including full replacements of the roofs on the admin building, the Prep/Staffroom building, the Year 3 portable and the Hall! On top of that, we are beyond-excited to see the straw ceiling in the hall is gone and is now much brighter and this week the floor has been completely rejuvenated and will look like a whole new facility when it's completed in around a week.
When this work has been completed, we will then see the delivery of a temporary toilet block, next to the OSHC building, and the breezeway toilets will be completely refurbished.
As always, the construction phase causes some inconveniences here and there but the builders have been wonderful at accommodating our needs and the short-term pain will definitely be worth the long-term gain for all our students.
While we are delighted that all of this is happening and we are extremely grateful to the people who have helped advocate for us over the last few years to get to this point, we are always striving to deliver more for our students and families.
Last year's fundraising efforts from parents are still designated for a few projects, including: a native landscape garden at the back of the school; improvements in junior play spaces; improvements in Year 4 and Prep classes to manage noise better; and improvements to our courts and/or Hall as sports facilities. This year's Family Festival will be another huge support in helping the school provide even better spaces and opportunities for our students.
School Council are also currently in discussions with Team Kids to see if we can collaborate on improvements in the Prep gathering space as the rubber surface has not held up well and is a bit of an eyesore.
Even though we do work hard to access as much government funding through grants and other programs, so much of our success in these areas relies on the combined input of many. If you are considering how you can contribute to the school to assist in any way, the following options are open to all.
Parent & Community Support for the School
Parent Contributions
At our Information Sessions yesterday (Thurs Feb 12) you will have heard some of our School Council parent representatives speak about how your contributions help the school.
At the most basic level, government funding ensures we have buildings to learn in, a rudimentary level of maintenance to keep the spaces safe, teaching staff with an average of 5 years experience and a ratio of 1:30 students, and a level of administrative support and leadership staff that is rather low.
Any improvements on this, for example having a more experienced group of teachers, having nicer grounds and playgrounds, having air conditioning in the buildings, having technology for students to use, relies entirely on what is called 'Locally raised funds'. This is really only two things: parent contributions and fundraising/donations.
While you may have a personal opinion that parents shouldn't be expected to contribute anything to a free education, the reality is that Victorian public schools are underfunded for political reasons. Without parent contributions, it is almost impossible to provide additional extras that we consider essential.
Any and every contribution you make helps your child:
access greater support through experienced teaching, learning support and student wellbeing staff;
enjoy comfortable physical spaces both inside and outside;
have access to better resources and facilities for learning and playing.
Even little things, like how often we can call a plumber out to help fix a broken toilet, is dependent on the level of parent contributions we receive.
I understand the philosophical argument that public education is free. And that can be true. But without parent contributions, people's expectations about what a public education looks like would need to dramatically change.
It is not how it should be, but it is the current reality.
I encourage you, by all means, to complain to your local MP and other representatives to encourage the Victorian government to meet their obligations to fully fund schools now and not by 2034 as they have agreed.
But in the meantime, I make this appeal, hat in hand, to continue providing your children the experience they deserve now and not in 8 years time.
Parents and Friends Association (PFA)
The PFA is an exceptional gathering of our local families who come up with new and interesting events and promotions that support the school. From social events to fundraisers, stalls for Mother's and Father's Day to parent trivia nights and the Christmas raffle, the PFA work on bringing fun, connection and opportunity to all the students and families at RNPS.
Watch the PFA page in the newsletter each fortnight for opportunities to get involved. Parents are always welcome to join in the meetings and planning, but are just as necessary as volunteers at events.
School Council
School Council Nominations are now open and we invite parents to nominate themselves or others for the positions.
There are 4 parent positions open for a 2-year term (2026 and 2027). See the information in the attached document, follow the link for a parent fact sheet and return a nomination form to the school office if you would like to assist the school.
We always need new parents keen to join, so please don't hesitate to nominate or get in touch if you're interested.
Please note that from 2026, all School Council parent members will be required to have a current Working with Children's Check to be eligible for nomination.
Safe Travel to School
Information from the TAC for families to learn more about travelling safely to and from school.
Maroondah Council Survey
Have your say
- Complete the short survey.
- Look up your address and make a comment on the interactive map.
Visit the project page to learn more and provide feedback: yoursay.maroondah.vic.gov.au/pedestrian-network-review
Consultation closes Friday 6 March 2026.