Principal's Message
At St. Joseph's we want to ensure every child can thrive and make the most of the educational opportunities available to them. Attending school is the best way to ensure your child has their academic, social and emotional needs met. The best thing you can do is ensure your child comes to school every day. We understand that this is not always easy and we are here to support you however we can. Parents are our best partners in supporting our students to come to school with a positive attitude, so we want to keep you informed of your child's attendance.
Beginning this term, we will be sending home emails to all parents sharing current attendance data for each child enrolled at St. Joseph's. This will occur every 30 days. We believe it is important that parents have updated attendance data to keep communication open between yourself and your child, become aware of any patterns of absenteeism early, and prevent chronic non-attendance.
Please reach out to your child's classroom teacher if you have any concerns about your child's attendance.
⏰ Every Minute Counts: Understanding Our Attendance Policy
You will have received our first attendance email this week, and we’d like to take a moment to explain how our attendance system works and why punctuality is so important.
At our school, we believe that every minute of learning matters. To support this, we track student attendance very closely. Please note that for every one minute your child arrives after 8:50am, it affects their overall attendance percentage.
To ensure your child receives full attendance for the day, they must arrive between 8:30am and 8:50am. Arriving within this window allows students to settle in, connect with their peers, and be ready to start the day on a positive note.
We understand that mornings can be busy, and we truly appreciate your efforts in helping your child arrive on time. Together, we can make sure every student gets the best possible start to their day.
Thank you for your continued support!
YMCA Survey
Thank you to the families who completed the YMCA after-school care survey. Congratulations to Molly Kennedy - who has won the $25 Corner Store Voucher.
Fete Money
Following our previous discussions at the Advisory Council meeting, regarding installing a digital sign at the roundabout on Broadway Street, we have undertaken a more detailed assessment of the project’s feasibility. In consultation with the Shire, we were advised that VicRoads would require additional traffic and lighting assessments, which would incur an extra cost of $11,120. It is important to note that this expenditure does not guarantee project approval.
With the total projected cost now exceeding $50,000, the School Advisory Council has determined that proceeding with this initiative is not a viable option at this time.
As an alternative, we are now seeking quotes to improve the area within the school grounds behind the BBQ area. This space currently poses occupational health and safety concerns, as it cannot sustain grass due to the surrounding large trees, and becomes muddy and unusable during winter.
Our proposed improvements include:
- Installing artificial turf to ensure year-round usability,
- Adding seating around the three large trees, and
- Creating a functional, welcoming space to house the new table tennis tables.
We believe this alternative project will offer tangible benefits to our school community and address a long-standing issue in a high-use area.
Please see the images below for a visual reference of the area under consideration.
