From the School Leadership Team
What a wonderful week it has been in our school community!
Last Friday, it was a pleasure to have our Year 1 - 4 students attend the production of Alice in Wonderland at the Shedley Theatre. Congratulations to all the students, families and staff involved in the performance, and thank you to our P&F for their support in making the excursion possible.
We also appreciated those who were able to join us for the P&F meeting on Friday morning following Chapel. It was lovely to see so many familiar faces, and we are grateful for the generous offers of time we have already received from those willing to help with the organisation and preparation of our upcoming Trivia Night in August. If you are able to assist in any capacity on the night, please don't hesitate to contact the office as many hands truly do make light work!
Well done to our debating students, who represented the school with great distinction in our second debate of the year, tackling the topic of whether TV advertising should be banned before 8pm.
We are also delighted to recognise Kerry Abraham, who received the Rotary Club of Salisbury Pride in Excellence Award on Monday evening. Each year we take the opportunity to celebrate a member of our wonderful team, and Kerry is a most deserving recipient. She has been with us for a number of years as a Learning Support Officer, walking alongside students in their learning, and has also given generously of her time as a parent through her past involvement in our School Council and P&F. We congratulate Kerry warmly on this well-earned recognition.
It is a pleasure to welcome mid year Foundation students and their families back for their second tranisition visit and to see everyone settling in to our community so well.
Finally, this Friday in Chapel we look forward to presenting our new students in Years 1–6 with their own Bible. We pray that every blessing of God's word will go with that special gift.
Staffing Update
We look forward to Ellen Zimmer taking our mid year Foundation class in Terms 3 and 4.
Ellen is currently our specialist teacher for Art, and we are pleased to welcome Samantha Ridley to our learning community to take on this role in Terms 3 and 4, where she will focus on Dance and Drama with each class as a weekly specialist lesson. Many of you will already know Samantha, as she has worked with our GGOSH for some time, including as Acting Director during Term 4, 2025, and she is a long-standing member of our church congregation.
Thank you for joining me in welcoming Samantha as she steps into this role for Terms 3 and 4.
Mel Bishop will take 1/2 HZ on Fridays with Lauren Hall with Ellen Zimmer moving to the mid year Foundation role.
ELC Update
As shared in detail via email last week, we wanted to include a brief summary here for the broader community.
We are planning a new 41-place ELC for 3 and 4 year olds, with our Development Application to the City of Tea Tree Gully progressing well and an original target of early 2027.
In recent weeks, an exciting opportunity has emerged through the Australian Government's Building Early Education Fund, which has identified Golden Grove as eligible for grants of up to $3 million for purpose-built early childhood facilities. We have applied for this grant in partnership with Good Shepherd Lutheran School Para Vista. If successful, it would fund a larger, 66-place ELC serving children from birth to five years on a small part of our oval — a significantly better long-term outcome for our community.
A successful grant would shift our opening to early 2028 rather than 2027, and we appreciate your patience. Importantly, we have not paused our original planning — work on our Development Application, soil testing, traffic assessment and policy development is all continuing. If the grant is unsuccessful, we will move quickly toward opening the 41-place ELC in the first half of 2027.
Grant outcomes are expected in late August 2026, at which point we will share a confirmed timeline. Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions in the meantime.
LLL - Charitable Donations Program
We're thrilled to partner with LLL Australia to bring you a meaningful way to support our school through their Charitable Donation Program.
Your generosity in making a deposit with the LLL through a Charitable Facility Account which will assist us in upgrading our Foundation playground.
The funds you hold in your Facility will generate notional amounts of interest that is retained by LLL who will make a regular allocation to us to further our project, while your original investment remains completely untouched.
Our partnership with LLL Australia makes it simple and secure by:
- Opening a new LLL Charitable Facility.
- Nominating Golden Grove Lutheran Primary School as the preferred beneficiary of the interest your facility will forgo.
That's it! You can rest easy knowing your money is making a meaningful difference in our community—all with zero fees or charges to you.
If you would like to know more, please contact Tanya Rowland, our Business Manager.
The link below enables you to open an LLL Charitable Facility and nominate our school.
Your investment helps us build a brighter tomorrow, together.
A few reminders
Please be reminded of some of our key events:
Term 2
Week 7
Friday 12 June – P & F Meeting 9.30am
Week 8
Wednesday 17 June – Foundation Mid-Year Transition Visit
Week 9
Glow Week
Wednesday 24 June – Foundation Mid-Year Transition Visit
Thursday 25 June – Principal Tour 9.15am
Friday 26 June – Closing Service 8.50am,
Glow Week Assembly and Presentations 2.00pm
Our full school calendar can also be viewed on the school website.
Our full school calendar can also be viewed on the school website.
Will Wallace
Principal