Message from the 

School Principal

Dear Sacred Heart Families & Friends,

Last week, I attended the National Catholic Education Commission (NCEC) Conference  which focused on Formation for Mission as leaders in Catholic schools. As members of Faith Formation team at Sacred Heart, Cath Palmer and Sue Burke joined me as well.  The NCEC  is the peak body for Catholic education in Australia and is responsible for the national coordination and representation of Catholic schools and education authorities.

In an increasingly secular society, the mission and purpose of Catholic schools is fundamental in ensuring the education of our children in a Catholic context and, as speaker Jacinta Collins expressed, provide an ongoing "transmission of faith" that is Christ centred and life giving.  

In August this year, a discussion paper was released by the NCEC titled "Life to the Full: The Mission and Purpose of Catholic Schools".  The paper is intended to provide an opportunity for dialogue to enhance the shared understanding of why Catholic schools exist in Australian society and supports all who work in and with Catholic schools to understand, communicate and apply the fundamental mission of our schools in each local context. The paper will serve as a springboard for leaders, teachers and parents in our school community of Sacred Heart to continue to explore why and how our school can continue to be a place of  belonging, accompaniment, acceptance, inclusion and hope. 

Cath, Sue and I will continue to reflect on what we have gained from this opportunity to ensure Sacred Heart remains at the forefront of thinking and work in this essential aspect of our Catholic identity and purpose. 

NAPLAN 2024

In March this year, the Year 3 and Year 5 students sat their NAPLAN tests in English and Mathematics. Whilst the comparative data for state and national means is not yet available at the time of writing, our student data is available and has been provided to the families of children in Year 3 and Year 5. 

On Tuesday, 13th August, Kim Dalmau (Maths Leader) presented early data analysis of student achievements to the School Advisory Council which was well received and provided useful insights to the SAC members. For those of our parent community who are interested, we will be holding two more sessions for parents/carers to hear what was presented to the SAC and learn more about our overall performance this year, what we have learned and future directions for our school in these key areas of the curriculum. 

The dates for these sessions are: 

Tuesday 15th October 4.30pm - 5.30pm

Friday 25th October. 9am-10.00am (tentative)

FIRST EUCHARIST

Over the past few weekends, our Year 4 children have been receiving the sacrament of their First Eucharist. Congratulations to those children who have already received the eucharist for the first time and those who will be doing so over the coming few weeks. I offer this prayer for you.

Lord Jesus,

Bless the children coming forward to receive Holy Eucharist for the first time. May this day be a first step into a life-long love of the Eucharist. May they turn to You for comfort, guidance and wisdom as they grow into full discipleship.

We ask this prayer through you, loving Jesus.

 Amen. 

I remain yours in faith and gratitude,

Kaylene Carlin

SCHOOL PRINCIPAL