St. Mary's Hampton Newsletter

Principal News

Welcome Back to Term 3

We hope everyone enjoyed a restful and rejuvenating school holiday break. It’s been a fantastic start to Term 3, with students and staff settling back into routines. 

 

This term promises to be full of exciting events across the school. Prep celebrates their 100th day of school next week. Our Year 4 students are preparing to receive the Sacrament of First Eucharist, a special milestone in their faith journey. Year 6 students will continue to deepen connections with our community through the Intergenerational Program. We’re also excited to welcome local kinders who will be visiting St Mary’s, giving them a taste of life at our wonderful school. 

 

There’s plenty of adventure on the horizon too, with both our Grade 3 and Grade 5 camps coming up. And of course, the ever-popular Battle of the Boots dads’ footy match is sure to bring out the competitive spirit (and perhaps a few sore muscles!). Finally, the Collingwood supporters in the community are gearing up for another serious shot at the AFL premiership!

 

Here’s to a great Term 3 ahead!

2025 NAPLAN

A big congratulations to our Year 3 and Year 5 students on completing the NAPLAN process earlier this year. Individual results have been shared with families, and we are incredibly proud of each student and what they have achieved.

 

It’s important to remember that NAPLAN is just one test on one day, it doesn’t define a student’s potential, character, or future. As always, we celebrate the growth, effort, and unique strengths of every student well beyond standardised testing.

 

Over the coming weeks, we’ll be sharing more detailed data summaries with families. At a school level, NAPLAN trends are carefully analysed to support our strategic planning and improvement. In the meantime, here are a couple of highlights:

  • 100% of Year 3 & Year 5 students achieving exceeding or strong in Writing
  • Year 3 students Reading average is at an exceeding level
  • 90% of Year 3 students achieving exceeding or strong in Maths
  • 85% of Year 5 students achieving exceeding or strong in Reading
  • 75% of Year 5 students achieving exceeding or strong in Maths

James Newbury MP Visit

We were delighted to welcome James Newbury MP, our local state member for Brighton, to St Mary’s on Wednesday. James attended our school assembly, where he kindly donated new flags for the school and spoke to the students about his role in Parliament. He also had the honour of presenting our Semester 2 SRC students with their leadership badges. Following the assembly, Ev Whatmore and I had the opportunity to take James on a tour of the school and discuss potential funding opportunities for some much-needed improvements across our school. We thank James for his time and ongoing support of our school community.

 

SRC Semester 2

We would like to congratulate the following students on being elected to the SRC for Semester Two:

 

Prep - Molly & Leo

Year 1 - Lucy V & Charlie

Year 2BH - Luna & Henry W

Year 2 MW - Lulu & Frankie

Year 3 - Gemma & Alfie K

Year 4S - Ava & Jai

Year 4DB - Meredith & Zac 

Year 5C - Indigo & Sebastian

Year 5V - Zac & Valencia

P&F Annual Fundraiser

As previously communicated, the annual P&F fundraiser has been postponed to later in the school year. A huge thank you to Sarah Kavanagh for the incredible amount of work she has already put into planning the event, with the support of our dedicated P&F team. We’re looking forward to a fantastic event later in the year and appreciate the community’s ongoing support and enthusiasm.

 

P&F Fundraising Goal - New Playground

Each year, we will set a clear plan and goal for how P&F fundraising money will be spent, ensuring it directly benefits our students. These funds are used to provide resources and experiences that help make school a fun, engaging, and enriching place to be. This year, the money raised will go towards a much-needed replacement of the adventure playground near the blue basketball courts, as well as the addition of a brand-new Gaga Pit for students to enjoy. Our SRC students have already begun the design process! 

 

Thank you to our P&F for helping bring these projects to life!

Inform & Empower Parent Session

A huge thank you to the 40 parents who joined us for our Raising Kids in a Digital World session, presented by Marty and Carley from Inform & Empower. The evening was engaging, practical, and thought-provoking—helping us all to better understand the challenges and opportunities our children face in the ever-evolving digital landscape.

Marty and Carley shared valuable insights into how technology is shaping young people's lives, and provided parents with helpful strategies for navigating screen time, social media, online safety, and digital wellbeing.

 

We are incredibly grateful to Bridie Kelly, our Teaching & Learning and IT Leader, for organising this important event.

 

Resources from the session will be shared with families via nForma over the coming weeks.

 

 

Thanks

Steele