Principal's message
2026 NAPLAN: A Year of Outstanding Growth
This year has been one of the most successful in Castlemaine Secondary College's recent history, with our 2026 NAPLAN results confirming that students are achieving at high levels and making exceptional learning growth.
While NAPLAN is only one measure of student achievement, it provides valuable insight into both how students are performing and, importantly, how much progress they are making over time. We are delighted that our students exceeded both similar schools and the Victorian average across every Year 7 achievement measure and every Year 9 growth measure.
Year 7 Achievement
Students achieving Strong or Exceeding
- Reading: 87% (Similar Schools: 70% | Victoria: 64%)
- Numeracy: 85% (Similar Schools: 70% | Victoria: 66%)
- Spelling: 76% (Similar Schools: 67% | Victoria: 68%)
- Writing: 67% (Similar Schools: 64% | Victoria: 62%)
- Grammar & Punctuation: 67% (Similar Schools: 59% | Victoria: 55%)
Year 9 Relative Growth
Students achieving Medium or High Growth (Year 7–9)
- Reading: 88% (Similar Schools: 70% | Victoria: 74%)
- Writing: 83% (Similar Schools: 72% | Victoria: 73%)
- Numeracy: 79% (Similar Schools: 69% | Victoria: 74%)
- Grammar & Punctuation: 78% (Similar Schools: 70% | Victoria: 73%)
- Spelling: 78% (Similar Schools: 71% | Victoria: 74%)
The Year 9 growth results are particularly significant because they measure the progress students have made during their time at Castlemaine Secondary College. They demonstrate that our students are making substantially greater learning growth than students in similar schools across every assessed area.
These results are a strong affirmation of the work taking place across our college. Over the past two years we have focused on creating calm, predictable and consistent classrooms, implementing our School-Wide Instructional Model (SWIM), and strengthening our sub-school structure to ensure every student experiences high-quality teaching every day. The results suggest these initiatives are having a positive impact on student learning and achievement.
While there is always more work to do, these results represent another important milestone in our school improvement journey. They reflect the hard work and commitment of our students, the professionalism and expertise of our staff, and the ongoing support of our families. Together, we are building a school that is well on its way to being recognised as one of Victoria's high-performing government secondary schools.
Individual NAPLAN reports were mailed to Year 7 and Year 9 families earlier this term, and we congratulate every student on the progress they have made.
Welcome to our new Mental Health Practitioner
Congratulations to Libby Blackmore, who has been appointed as Castlemaine Secondary College’s Mental Health Practitioner and will commence at the beginning of Term 4.
Libby is a qualified social worker with extensive experience supporting the mental health and wellbeing of children, young people and families. She joins us from Wodonga Middle Years College, where she has worked as a Wellbeing Practitioner and Mental Health Practitioner, providing counselling, case management, crisis support, student programs and professional learning for staff.
We look forward to welcoming Libby to our college community and benefiting from the considerable knowledge and experience she brings to the role.
Child Safety and Wellbeing Update
Castlemaine Secondary College has recently worked with the Department of Education to review our child safety and wellbeing policies and practices. This review focused on ensuring our practices comply with the Victorian Child Safe Standards and identifying opportunities to further strengthen our child safety framework.
We are pleased to report that the Department of Education found the College to be fully compliant with the Child Safe Standards.
As part of the review, we updated our Child Safety Risk Register, which documents how identified child safety risks are managed across the College. We have also:
- updated our policies and staff induction materials to clearly document expectations for meetings between staff and students
- strengthened staff induction guidance regarding appropriate communication with students
- developed a policy outlining expectations for staff communication
- provided clearer guidance regarding the transportation of students in private vehicles
- updated our policies to reflect College practices for activities conducted after hours
- arranged further child safety training for staff to strengthen their awareness and understanding of potential risks.
Castlemaine Secondary College remains firmly committed to the safety and wellbeing of every student. We will continue to monitor, review and strengthen our child safety policies and practices.
Our policies are available on the Castlemaine Secondary College website. We welcome feedback and suggestions from families and community members. Anyone wishing to discuss a child safety matter is encouraged to me or Chris Hewitt, Assistant Principal – Wellbeing and Engagement.
Justin Hird - Principal
