Principal's Report

Who Do I Go To? 

From time to time, parents have issues or concerns that they wish to raise or clarify but they don’t know who to speak to. There are several staff members you can contact:

• your child’s classroom teacher, 
• the year level coordinator, 
• Sarah Giles, the Junior School Coordinator, 
• Dale Adams, the Assistant Principal, 
• Janet Paterson, Principal 

If it is a matter related to your child, I suggest you speak with their classroom teacher first. At Preston we don’t have a hierarchy; you can approach the person who you believe will best assist you with your concerns. 

Parents can email teachers through Compass or can call them on 9470 1167. Please be aware that teachers cannot talk to you during teaching times, so I suggest you ring them before or after school. 

Remember a small problem is easy to solve and a big problem is harder to solve. 

Parking

Please be considerate of our neighbours when parking near the School. 

Please ensure that driveways are not blocked at any time, even for a short period, as this can prevent residents from entering or leaving their properties and creates unnecessary frustration. 

Also make sure that you obey the parking signs in the streets around the school at drop-off and pick-up times.  Parking Officers do patrol the streets surrounding the school on a regular basis and will issue fines to drivers who are not abiding by the road rules.

School Council 

The final meeting of our current school council will be held on Monday February 23rd. 

School Council Elections 

On Monday February 16 the School Council elections process for 2026 began. School Council works on a biannual basis. Parents and staff are elected for a two-year period. At the end of the 2 year term, members can renominate for another term if they want to. 

Preston Primary School Council consists of 8 parent (2 year term), 4 staff (2 year term) and 2 community member (2 year term) positions and the Principal. 

The current members who have completed their term are

• Parent Reps are Anthony Stanley, Alison Harvey, Nadia Mecoli, and Bec Gray. 
• Staff reps, Dale Adams and Jennifer Cora. 
• Community member, Felicity Blake. 

School Council nominations opened on Monday February 16 and will close on Monday February 23.  

• Nomination forms will be posted on Compass and will also be available at the Senior School office. Parents can either self-nominate or have someone nominate them. Any person who is nominated MUST sign the nomination form to indicate they have accepted the nomination. 
• If you would like any further information, please contact Janet Paterson or Dale Adams on 9470 1167 or come into the school to have a chat with either of them.

The timeline for our election process is: 

• Monday February 16           Nominations open
• Monday February 23           Nominations close at 4pm
• Wednesday February 25    Names of candidates posted via Compass 

If there are more nominees than positions available there will be an election. The timeline below will be used if an election is needed. 

Riding Bikes to School 

As more students are riding to and from School we would like to remind everyone to make safety a priority. 

We have had reports about students riding around the streets near school in an unsafe manner so would like to remind all students to ride responsibly, follow road rules, and avoid riding around nearby streets before and after school. 

Please ensure that helmets are worn at all times when riding, as this is both a legal requirement and an important way to prevent serious injury. 

We ask families to reinforce these expectations at home so that all students can travel safely and help maintain a safe environment for our local community.

Choosing a Secondary School

Time is fast approaching for our Grade 6 parents to make the final decision as to which secondary school their child will attend next year. 

All our local secondary schools send us information about Information Sessions, Open Days and Tours which we put in our school newsletter. I suggest that parents keep an eye out for the information and ensure that you look at as many schools as you can before you make the final decision. I strongly suggest that parents of the Grade 5 children also start looking at schools this year as it will give you time to visit schools before having to make your decision. 

Don’t be swayed by what other parents say or past reputations, the best way to make a choice is to be informed and the only way to do that is to visit the schools yourself. 

Regards,

Janet Paterson,

Principal.