Principal's Report 

Dear BEPS community,

Student Achievement

Stella competes in Little Athletics and is proving to have some natural talent in track and field events. Some of her most recent results at Seaford and Coburg indicate a real passion for running across many different events.

"Seaford LAC 2024 T&F Open Day" at Seaford Little Athletics Centre on 3 March, 2024:

First Place – 60m Hurdles

Second Place – 500m

Third Place – 100m

"All Star Day" at Coburg Little Athletics Centre  on 25 Feb, 2024:

Second Place – 500m

Third Place – 70m, 100m

Changes to Foundation Enrolment Process for 2024 

In 2023, the Department of Education introduced a new process for Foundation (Prep) enrolment that included a timeline to follow. Having a set date for enrolment worked very well in 2023 and was an effective change that provided schools with more certainty earlier in the school year.

This year the Department of Education is taking this a step further with the introduction of a new online system for putting in applications for enrolment.  Families will put in an online application to enrol via the new ‘Insight’ Portal using a quick and easy process. Basically, it will be a matter of entering your child’s name, residential address and then choosing Burwood East PS as your school. Like any new process we will work through it in good faith with the hope that is functions well. A reminder will be sent out to our community in Term 2 with instructions. 

CCTV

I want to inform our community, as a courtesy, that we have CCTV cameras all around Burwood East PS. The purpose of these cameras is to provide security for our school campus out of school hours. CCTV is a very effective deterrent and helps us to ensure we are not subject to vandalism. The footage is kept for a short time and is only accessed if there is an issue.

Safety at our School Crossing

Having crossing supervisors at our main intersection of Blackburn Road and Highbury Road is vital in supporting us to maintain community safety. Our crossing supervisors have a very important role to play in assisting all families to arrive at school safely. We need to make sure that we support our crossing supervisors to undertake their role by following their directions. As we have this intersection crossing, we discourage families from crossing the road within 100m of the intersection. Walking out from behind a parked car can be dangerous as drivers may not see you or your child.  There are always reports of unsafe behaviour, and we all need to work together to ensure there are no accidents. 

Student Illness

From time to time, children are unwell and are unavoidably absent from school. Although we would like students attending school every day where possible, it is important to keep sick children at home.  This prevents other children from becoming unwell and a bug spreading through the school. We have spoken to our students about the importance of hand washing and personal hygiene and appreciate your support in reinforcing this at home with your child.

School Uniform

As I walked through classes this week, I was pleased to see that our students were looking smart in their uniforms. A reminder that our policy states that students should wear a black shoe/runner, and this offers lots of scope in the design of shoe. Fluorescent shoes should not be worn as part of the school uniform, and we ask for community support to meet the school policy in this regard. It really does look fantastic when our whole school is in uniform. It creates a sense of connectedness and pride in our school.

Year 6-7 Transition (Relevant for Year 6 families)

The statewide Year 6-7 transition process will begin in the first week of next term, with all Year 6 students in Victoria receiving a transition information pack. This pack will detail the transition process, including the relevant paperwork required to apply for secondary schools. Please keep an eye out for this very important information early next term. In the meantime, we encourage our senior students and their families to attend open days/night and tour secondary schools in the area to become familiar with the possible schools your child may attend. If interested, please contact your local Catholic or Independent Secondary Schools to inquire into their enrolment process, as they differ from the shared process of all Government Secondary Schools.

School Council Meeting

Our school council met on Monday evening for our first meeting together as a 2024 team. This meeting addressed our Annual General Meeting/AIP 2024 and office bearers were elected for the year ahead. All school council meetings are open to attendance from any members of our school community. Please email me at any time if you would like to attend. 

Our 2024 Council is: Cindy Lu (President), Malsha Swan (Treasurer), Yeun Lam Wu (Vice President). Bahar Maghsoudi, Persephone Wan, Louise Godden, Jene Jing Liu, Shin Yee Tang, Samantha Tse, Lorriane Howell, Adam Williams, Teri Smith (Secretary), and Darren McDonald.

Ramadan – March 11th to April 9th 

Ramadan is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting, prayer, reflection, and community. It is a time for spiritual purification and gratitude. Ramadan concludes with the celebration of Eid al-Fitr, which culminates in a celebratory feast as families gather to mark the end of fasting. I wish all members of our school community that observe Ramadan, ‘Ramadan Mubarak’. 

Board of Inquiry: 

On the 6th of March, the Victorian Government tabled the final report of the Board of Inquiry into historical sexual abuse at Beaumaris Primary School and certain other government schools. It is now publicly available online. Burwood East Primary School has no historical implications in this report but it made for very challenging reading, in particular recognising the significant impact on survivors and victims that have shared their stories. If nothing else, the report and 9 supporting recommendations from the Board of Inquiry ensure that we are continuing to frame our work around child safety and advocate at all levels for the safety of children in all Victorian Government schools. 

As Term 1 comes to a close I write to let everyone know that I will be on leave in the last week. During my absence Teri will be acting principal with support from Edwina. I would like to thank all of our families for such a terrific start to the 2024 school year. Just a reminder that Term 1 finishes at 2:30pm on Thursday March 28 and Term 2 starts on Monday April 15.

Yours in Partnership,

Darren.