FWPS Parent's Association

The PA have had a very busy few weeks, so plenty of thank-you’s and news for you all.

Before we get into it, have you joined the group chat yet? Our community WhatsApp group provides access to event notifications (and reminders) in a quick and easy format along with options to ask questions and clarify details - to access, download WhatsApp and click on this link https://chat.whatsapp.com/GsuwaW7zgDn9TT7megWR8r we’d love to meet you. 

Trivia is here!! Tickets are selling fast for our night of nights, but we still have some tables left.  If you’re on the fence about whether or not you should take the plunge into the land of trivia, this is your reminder that it’s one of our last fundraising events of the year, with raised money being utilised to resurface our outdoor basketball courts and upgrade the rings. 

So, dust up on your trivia, assemble a team or purchase tickets as singles or small groups and come and join the fun.  Tickets are available via compass, $70 each or $35 for concession.  https://compasstix.com/e/q734eguvgz

On the 22nd of October we held our Annual General Meeting, hosted within the fabulous walls of 540 on Barkly (A great space for you and 100 of your friends for your next event!). 

A big thank-you to Leigh and the team for hosting us and for those that attended.

Our AGM is a great way to end the year and reflect on our achievements while acknowledging the hard work that has gone on behind the scenes to bring our calendar of events to life. 

A PowerPoint presentation highlighting our key achievements and fundraising totals can be found on our website here 

https://www.fwps.vic.edu.au/page/247/Parents

This year we introduced some new events;

• Zooper Dooper drive
• Sibling photos with local photographer
• Second-hand book sale at the West Footscray Writers Festival
• Costume donations to the second-hand uniform stall
• Book week second-hand book sale

Some behind the scenes achievements that have improved the way we run events and the PA include;

• Improvements to financial reporting
• Ethical recycling of old uniforms
• Clearing out of the PA uniform container
• Increased quality of gifts for special persons stalls with external supplies of gifts that complimented our donated items.
• School Disco - DJ skills of DJ Tom Showtime and his son Parker

A big thank-you to Assistant Principal Liz Beazley for attending to facilitate the election of our 2027 Office Bearers.  We are very proud to announce the following successful candidates;

Co-President

Tanya Tran - Mai (6), Vi (4), Marco (1)

Wessene Jackson - Isaac (3), Ezra (1)

Vice President

Jacqui Solly - Zac (2)

Co-Secretary

Rebecca Gregg - Zoe (3)

Erica Chatterton - Zoe (Prep)

Co-Treasurer

Lisa and Rob Audsley - Mae (1), Zoe (Prep 2027)

Comms/Social Media

Alex Burke - Ava (1), Holly (Prep 2027)

We also say goodbye to our existing office bearers Stu Balloch (Co-President) and Simone Traglia (Treasurer) who did not nominate for office bearer roles for 2027 but will continue as members of the PA.  Stu and Simone thank-you for giving up your time to contribute to the PA over the last twelve months, it’s been a pleasure working alongside you and seeing what can be achieved when everyone is moving in the same direction.  

At the start of the year, we set a fundraising goal of $30,000 that we’ve been tracking across each of our events.  As each fundraiser ended, we were thrilled to watch the overall tally climb higher, below highlights the funds raised at each event, for events where purchases were required (special persons day stalls, school discounts etc) the net result is shown. 

The above fundraisers have enabled the PA to make the following contributions;

Naturally, we can’t do any of this without the help of our amazing volunteers.  Although we are very fortunate to have a number of people giving up their time to assist with our events, we would like to share our appreciation for the following people who volunteered on more than 7 occasions; Anna Kelly, Erica Chatterton, Gazel Goh, James Edwards and Nerida Eftos.  An extended thank-you to Eleni Kakoulidou who volunteered at every PA event this year along with many of our second-hand uniform stalls.  We are so fortunate that we have all of you in our community and that you have been able to give up your time to make these events happen.   

As we move towards the end of 2026, it is natural that we reflect on achievements, but also the amazing things that we already have.  This is an incredible school community filled with so many people who are willing to give up their time to help improve the environment that our kids learn and grow in every day.  If you’d like to get involved, but you’re not sure what that might look like, reach out via our WhatsApp Group or by emailing the PA at FWPSParentsAssociation@outlook.com.

Thanks again to everyone who makes the achievements of this team possible. We are very much looking forward to closing out the year with a great celebration at the trivia night and our last event of the year! 

The FWPS Parents Association