Principal's Report
Last Thursday, we had a lovely afternoon with our grandparents, parents, and special guests. We love having visitors in the school, and it is always so meaningful for our students to have the opportunity to welcome grandparents or other important people into their classroom. It was wonderful to see everyone participating in activities, sharing in the learning, and experiencing a little of what school life is like.
An added bonus was having the Book Fair running at the same time, giving grandparents and special guests the chance to treat their very special young, or little person to a new book or treat.
The Book Fair was a huge success this year! A big thank-you to our wonderful staff, Tania Billington and Meredith Anderson, who coordinate this event each year, and to all the additional staff who supported sales throughout the week.
We raised a total of $1000 worth of books - these will update and expand our current selection in our library.
On Saturday, I had the pleasure of attending our inaugural Trivia Night, organised by parents Lara Hunter, Karina Burdess, and Shell Lyons. With around 120 parents, friends and staff in attendance, and Matty Monk taking the stage to test our general knowledge, the evening was full of fun and challenge. Many of us were stretched by the questions, and the winning team was very proud of their efforts!
We were also treated to fantastic entertainment by local band East Pocket, made up of four exceptional musicians—and parents from our school community—Bronson Valpied, Richard Glen, Claire Bishop, and Tina Reilly.
Our organising team - Lara, Karina, Shell and their helpers did a tremendous amount of work coordinating tickets, prizes, sponsorship, and the silent raffle. Special thanks to them all, and to the Warrnambool Football Netball Club for generously allowing us to use their facilities. A special shout-out also to Matty Monk for giving up his time to host the evening.
The team raised approximately $9,000, which is an exceptional effort (see Trivia Night page for a list of sponsors). Thank you to all parents, staff and friends who attended, we absolutely love bringing our community together.
We hope all families are preparing for a lovely evening together next Wednesday night. We can’t wait to showcase the artwork students have been creating with Mr Doak, and we’re also excited to hear the bands that have registered to play. If you haven’t added your name to the list yet, please register via the link.
The focus of the evening is to celebrate our community spirit and acknowledge all we have achieved in 2025. It will be a relaxed, low-key BYO picnic on the oval, with great music and a wonderful opportunity to appreciate the creativity and effort our students bring to the Arts.
You may be aware of a recent alert about craft sand products that may contain asbestos. For current information about the recall, including a list of products, visit the ACCC website.
At our school, we are taking the steps set out by the Department of Education to collect and dispose of the products. Current advice from national and Victorian health authorities is that there is a low risk to human health from these products.
If you have the product at home, however, the advice from the health authorities is that you should stop using it and follow the safety advice published here: Safe disposal and health information for consumers with recalled sand products | ACCC Product
Lastly, I would like to take a moment to keep one of our students, Tyson Leonard in Grade 4, and his family in our thoughts. A couple of weeks ago, Tyson became seriously ill at school and it has been an incredibly challenging time for him, his mum Nicole, dad Daniel, and little brother Jordan. I also want to acknowledge our wonderful staff whose swift and compassionate response ensured that he received emergency care promptly.
Our school community wraps Tyson and his family in love, strength and hope as he continues his recovery in hospital in Melbourne. Our hearts are with them every step of the way, and we will continue to stand beside them, offering support, care and encouragement through this journey.