School News
Primary School Leaders' Forum
Last Tuesday, our School Captains Joel and Alaia, attended the Primary School Leaders' Forum at Parliament of Victoria, held by Jess Wilson (Member for Kew). Both captains were invited to speak about one local and one state issue that was a concern to them.
Local-Bike Lanes
Joel:
At Sacred Heart we believe there should be more bike lanes in Kew. The safety of cyclists should be a high priority in our suburb and the benefits of riding bikes are extensive. By including more bike lanes on our major roads and streets there will be less injuries to cyclists and it will encourage more people to ride rather than drive, they will not be deterred from riding on the roads because there will be more lanes dedicated to just cyclists. Not only will people subsequently become fitter from riding their bikes around Kew, but our total emissions will decrease due to less cars being on the roads. Bikes are much more environmentally friendly than cars, not only does their production have less environmental impact than cars, but they also do not use petrol, a non renewable form of energy. Adding more bike lanes to our major roads and streets is something that we would like to see in Kew to benefit all our residents.
State-More electric chargers
Alaia:
At a state level we would like to see more electric charging stations distributed across Victoria. We know that the purchase of electric vehicles is on the rise in our state and we must keep up with the infrastructure to support people who already drive, or plan to drive these cars, in the future. By providing charging stations in public places such as petrol stations, car parks and shopping centres, there will be less need for people to install chargers in their homes, improved accessibility to the charging network, and it will encourage uptake of electric vehicles. Additionally, charging stations are proven to charge cars faster than those that people install in their homes, and increasing them will result in less gasoline powered cars on the road, thereby lowering our emissions. The more electric charging stations that are made available in Victoria the better it will be for all Victorians and the environment in which we live.
We are extremely proud of Joel and Alaia who spoke with confidence, poise and grace, proudly representing Sacred Heart Kew.
Thanks to Alyssa Privitelli for accompanying Joel and Alaia to this event, providing much encouragement and support on the day.
Nationally Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD)
The NCCD is an annual collection of information about Australian school students who are receiving adjustments because of disability.
- For the NCCD, schools count the number of students receiving adjustments because of disability and make decisions about the level of adjustment being provided for each student with disability.
- Schools provide NCCD information to education authorities and the Australian Government Department of Education.
- For the NCCD, school teams must have evidence to show that they have followed the Standards processes.
For more information about the NCCD, please read the link below.
Feast of the Sacred Heart
Last Friday we celebrated the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The feast day is celebrated nineteen days after Pentecost, on the Friday after Corpus Christi. The Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is also a celebration of our Parish Feast Day. It is a reminder that by belonging to our parish faith community we celebrate our faith as God’s people.
We celebrated our feast day with a Mass in the morning and follow up activities in the classroom. Thank you to Mr James Millane for organising the day.
Thank you to all the families who kindly contributed to the Food Drive to support the Brigidine Asylum Resource Centre this year. Your continued generosity, kindness and compassion is very much appreciated. Thank you also to Woolworths Kew for donating reusable shopping bags for us to transport the grocery items.
We also enjoyed a heart shaped cookie treat made by Bake 'n Flake Bakery and Cafe located on Cotham Road.
Walk-A-Thon
Once again, thank you to the Sacred Heart school community for your very generous support of the Walk-a-Thon on Friday 31 May. We raised an impressive $4390 which has been donated to CatholicCare Victoria. The kindness and compassion of the school community brings hope to the lives of so many in need and supports individuals and families to live life to the fullest.
Grandparents' and Special Friends' Day
Friday 26 July
Next term, Grandparents and Special Friends Day will occur on Friday 26 July. On this day, all Grandparents and Special Friends are invited to visit their special child(ren's) classroom from 8.30am - 9am. We will all then attend the 9.15am Parish Mass. After the Parish Mass, all Grandparents and Special Friends will enjoy a Morning Tea in the MPR from 10am - 10.30am. We look forward to celebrating our Grandparents and Special Friends later next month. Further details will follow next term.
School Counsellor
Elise, our school counsellor, is available on Tuesdays in 2024. Parents are welcome to reach out to discuss if counselling is the right fit for them and their child. Please contact the School Office admin@shkew.catholic.edu.au
Term 2 School Assemblies
All parents are welcome to attend our Assemblies which take place in the MPR on Fridays at 2.30pm (see below dates). From Term 2, classes will be timetabled to present an item to the school community.
Term 2 Assemblies:
Week 10 - Friday 21 June (Wellbeing Groups-No Assembly)
Week 11 - Friday 28 June (End of Term 2 12:45pm-No Assembly)
2024 Term Dates
Term 1
Thurs 1 February (Students begin) – Thurs 28 March (12:45pm finish)
Term 2
Mon 15 April – Fri 28 June (12:45pm finish)
Term 3
Mon 15 July – Fri 20 September (12:45pm finish)
Term 4
Mon 7 October - Tue 17 December (12:45pm finish)
2024 School Closure Days
The following days and dates will be School Closure Days in 2024:
Term 2
Thursday 25 April (ANZAC Day)
Friday 26 April (Time in lieu day for staff) *
Monday 10 June (King’s Birthday Public Holiday)
Term 3
None
Term 4
Monday 4 November (Time in lieu day for staff) *
Tuesday 5 November (Melbourne Cup Day Public Holiday)
Friday 6 December (Staff Planning for 2025 School Closure Day)
Children finish on Tuesday 17 December at 12.45pm
Wednesday 18 December (Time in lieu day for staff) *
As was communicated to families towards the end of last year...
* Time in Lieu (TIL)
The new Catholic Education Multi-Enterprise Agreement 2022 (the Agreement) introduces a formal time in lieu (TIL) process for teachers. The Agreement provides that a principal may require a teacher to undertake work and attend a school activity outside the normal hours of attendance (i.e., in excess of the 38 hours or normal hours for a part-time teacher) and when this occurs, it will attract TIL.
Principals should prepare for the accrual and acquittal of TIL through their annual planning process. The timing of the acquittal of TIL is at the discretion of the principal, having regard to the operational needs of the school and causing the least disruption to the educational program of the school.
Principals may elect to acquit TIL through designating days during the year on which all staff and students are not required to attend school. For 2024, there are opportunities to acquit TIL for the whole school on the following days:
Friday April 26 (day after ANZAC Day);
Monday November 4 (day before Cup Day);
early finishes on the last days of Terms 1, 2 and 3;
end of Term 4 from Wednesday 18 December.
Please note that no primary school students should be dismissed from schools prior to Tuesday 17 December 2024 – this is their earliest finish date