Principal's Report

Mobile Phones

We are concerned about mobile phones being kept in student bags and, on occasions, students being caught using them during the school day.

Our local policy reflects the Victorian Government’s mobile phone policy, which requires all students to switch off their phones and store them securely. For SGPS, that is at the office during school hours. Students do not need to use a phone at school. Mobile phones pose a safety risk and act as a significant distraction from learning and social interaction.

To ensure a safe and focused environment, any phones that are not handed in to the office at the start of the day will be confiscated. If a phone is confiscated, parents will need to collect it from the front office at the end of the day.

This information also applies to all smartwatches.

Thank you for your cooperation in keeping our classrooms focused and safe.

Autism in Schools Conference 2026

I had the privilege of attending the Autism Institute of Teaching Conference recently.

The Department of Education’s Diverse Learners Hub was presenting, and I was fortunate to join Mel from Different Journeys on a panel discussing the successes and challenges schools face when working with families to better support our young autistic and neurodiverse children.

Pleasingly, the Department of Education, through direct funding and greater professional development opportunities, is helping schools better meet the needs of all students.

I thoroughly enjoyed the conference, and in particular, it was powerful to hear from so many people with lived experience. Their stories and insights highlighted the importance of all schools continuing to learn, reflect and grow in this space, with the shared goal of better supporting every student.

A valuable and inspiring day, and one that reinforced just how important collaboration between schools, families and people with lived experience is in creating more inclusive education.

Proud Alumni News

We are always excited to celebrate the successes of our past and present students — and success doesn’t get much bigger than being selected to represent your country in your chosen sport!

We would like to offer huge congratulations to our very own Alice McGowan, who has been selected for the Team Australia Junior Roller Derby team! 

Better known as ‘Manic Panic #17’ when she’s on the track, Alice will be heading to Glasgow in 2027 to compete in the World Cup.

For those who aren’t familiar with roller derby, it’s a full-contact racing sport on skates — equal parts skill, athleticism, strategy, chaos and courage! 

To follow Manic and her team’s journey, you can visit their Facebook page.

Good luck, Manic! We’ll be cheering you on! 

Father's and Special Friends' Day Breakfast & Gift

A Compass alert will be released soon regarding our upcoming Fathers’ and Special Friends’ Day Breakfast. This year it will be held on Thursday 3 September. This will ensure there is no clash with the Prep excursion to Ballarat on the following day.

School Council Summary

Our August School Council meeting was held on Monday. Many items were discussed and/or ratified, including:

Workforce Planning

Our current projected enrolment for 2027 is 408 students. Please note that this number is likely to change over the coming weeks and months.

Our Prep enrolments were capped again for 2027 due to our ongoing enrolment pressures, meaning that unfortunately, a number of families were unable to secure a place at SGPS.

Prep Testing 2027

The start of next year will look as follows for our Preps:

• Wednesday, 27th of January – Compulsory Curriculum Day (Grade Prep-6)
• Thursday, 28th of January – Parent Interviews for Grade 1-6 (11am-7pm)/Prep Assessments (8am-4pm)
• Friday, 29th of January – Prep Assessments (8.30am-3.30pm)
• Monday, 1st of February – First full day at school for Prep
• Wednesday, 3rd of February – Prep Assessments (8.30am-3.30pm)/First rest day for those not involved in an assessment on this day.

2026 Autism in Schools Conference

I shared details of the conference with School Council.

Parent, Caregiver and Guardian Opinion Survey

On Tuesday, 18 August, approximately 130 randomly selected families received an invitation to participate in our Parent/Caregiver/Guardian Opinion Survey.

A big thank you to those who have already completed the survey! For those who haven’t had the chance yet, there’s still time—the survey will close at the end of Term 3, on Friday 18 September.

Your feedback is incredibly important to us as it helps shape the future direction of our school. The survey takes only 10 minutes to complete, and we’d love to hear from as many families as possible.

Road Safety Around Our School

We continue to receive concerns about unsafe driving and parking around the school, particularly during peak drop-off and pick-up times. This includes vehicles parking in designated pick-up/drop-off areas and the bus zone, as well as drivers failing to follow the 'No Right Turn' signage when exiting the gravel car park.

With significant numbers of students and families moving around the school at these busy times, these behaviours create unnecessary risks for pedestrians and other road users.

Please take extra care, follow all parking and traffic signs, and be patient during peak times. Keeping our students and families safe is everyone’s responsibility.