Known and Loved

 Inclusion at Kildare

Dear Kildare Community,

Our College Vision, inspired by Jesus, is to bring all to the fullness of life, enlivened by the Gospel truths and the example of our founder charisms. 

We all have a role to play in supporting our community to reach this Vision. Our Vision guides us in our Mission, where we place Christ and our faith in the forefront of our decisions, where diversity is honoured and the dignity of each individual is paramount. We promote respect, equity and social justice. 

As a community of learners, who seek to educate the whole person. It’s important that we challenge stereotypes and norms within our society, particularly around discriminatory, harmful language and actions. Our community is generous and proud of our inclusive practice, and we want to walk with our students as we create environments where all feel welcome and belong. 

Pope Leo, in his 2026 Lenten message, challenges us all to "recognise and respond to the cry of those who are anguished and suffering,” and to do this we must all “begin by disarming our language, avoiding harsh words and rash judgement” to measure our words to cultivate kindness in our families, our schools and in our online communities. 

Kildare is a community that embraces challenge, and we want to work with our young people to set a new standard in communication, where all are welcome and belong, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, disability, gender, sexuality or appearance. 

All individuals are welcome at Kildare and all forms of discrimination will not be tolerated.

In Week 5, we will be meeting with all Year groups from Year 7 to 10 to clearly outline our expectations and the individual rights and responsibilities of all members of our community. Our conversation will be framed around our Positive Behaviour for Learning framework and College values of Faith, Learning, Care and Justice.

Our message will draw on lawful human rights , catholic social teachings and our Mission as a Catholic community. Simply, we will be reminding students of the teachings of Christ to ‘love your neighbour’ and ‘treat others as you would like to be treated’. We are a community where all are known and loved children of God.

We will be sharing examples of some concerning reports of incidents of harmful discrimination such as racism, homophobia and body shaming. We will educate our young people about the harmful effects of this form of unlawful harassment and clearly state that this behaviour is not acceptable in the Kildare community.

We understand that our young people are a product of their environment and that increasingly, they are influenced by forces outside of the family such as social media. In these complex and polarising times, our work as educators, in partnership with caregivers, is more important than ever. Students need guidance in how to navigate the online world and harmful messages and influences. We need to teach them how to be positive members of the community.

When we meet with students, we will talk about discriminatory and unkind behaviour as a behaviour error. As with all other behaviour errors, the College will follow our Positive Behaviour for Learning framework and processes. The College responses to this form of behaviour will include an educative response in the first instance if appropriate. If students do not correct their behaviour, they may need more intensive support such as a small group intervention. For those who choose not to meet our values and expected behaviours repeatedly, we will have no choice but to impose a suspension to maintain a safe and supportive environment for all.

As part of our support to our young people, our College will be training more staff to be facilitators of the Love Bites program which covers all aspects of healthy and positive social interactions, friendships and relationships. Our PDHPE curriculum also covers many aspects around healthy relationships, including bullying. We have also been working hard to update our bullying procedures in line with the NSW Government anti-bullying framework. 

We all have a role to play in supporting our community to reach this Vision of a safe, supportive and inclusive school community. Please support us by keeping the conversation going at home. We want to work together on this important issue.