Principal's Message

2025 End of Year Arrangements

As we approach the busy end to the 2025 school year, please keep an eye out for special activities and events that are coming up.  Please make sure you keep up to date with all our platforms, especially COMPASS, Newsletter and the Yearly Planner/Calendar.  

Wednesday 3rd  December - Year 6 Graduation, invitations sent home.

Students' final day of formal classes will be Friday 12th December.  All school reports, books and lockers must be emptied and any other items will be sent home on this day with students. Please ensure your child/ren have extra carry bags on that day.

For the remainder of term, we have the following: 

Last Week Monday 8th  - Thursday 11th December-  Primary Swimming Lessons

Thursday 11th December - Awards Night.

Friday 12th December - All School Pool Party. 

School reports will be handed out at Awards Night, Thursday 11th December.  

The following week, Monday 15th to Wednesday 17th December, teachers will be involved in Professional Development, Berry Street Wellbeing and First Aid Training. Students will not have their usual teachers as a majority of staff will be in training or meeting activities. Should you require assistance you will need to contact the Assistant Principal, Mr Lockhart to arrange this.  Please refer to our yearly calendar, thank you for your cooperation and understanding.  

Primary Classrooms, grade structure and staffing will be hopefully announced in the next newsletter.   

Christmas World Land will be opened on Monday 1st of December so come and say hello to the old favourites; Santa, the Penguins, the Kangaroos and Joaney the Dinosaur!

Year 12 Graduation Dinner - Class of 2025

Last Thursday, 20th November, we held a formal dinner for our graduating class of 2025. The dinner was held in Steel Stadium and was catered for by Kylie and Robyn. Thank you to our Year 11 waiters and waitresses who did an outstanding job. Despite the late notice  Grace Lockhart did an amazing job as our guest speaker for the evening. Grace  reflected on her full circle journey; from her years attending Wedderburn College as a student followed by university before returning to the classroom this year as a graduate teacher. School captains, Lillian Stephenson and Ella Weber also made speeches recognising their journey and about setting challenges for the group in the future.  

Graduation Dinner Speech 2025

Tonight is a moment to pause, reflect, and celebrate your last 13 years of education. To all our Year 12 students — well done. You have persevered, pushed through every stage of schooling, and grown from your early days in Prep to become confident young adults ready for what comes next. You have lived our school values of respect, resilience, and responsibility, and these will continue to serve you well throughout your lives.

This milestone is not yours alone. Well done to your parents, carers, grandparents, brothers, sisters, and friends — the people who have lifted you, guided you, nudged you out the door on cold mornings, encouraged you when the work felt too hard, and believed in you even when you doubted yourselves. Tonight is just as much their celebration as it is yours.

Across your years at Wedderburn College, you’ve faced challenges head-on, supported each other through highs and lows, survived the frustrations of two years of COVID and two years of building works, laughed, disagreed, learnt, and created memories that will stay with you long after tonight. You’ve shown what it means to work hard, be kind, and turn up — qualities that will carry you into the future beyond the school gates.

On nights like this, we should also pause to recognise the teachers, the year level coordinators,  the ones who you laughed with, scared you disciplined you, supported you and the staff who motivated you, stood beside you, made lasting memories and lifted you when things were tough. You should recognise their dedication, kindness, and for making learning meaningful have shaped not only your education, but the person you are becoming.

As you take your first steps in the big wide world remember that life is full of opportunities waiting to be seized. Say yes to new experiences. Take chances. Be brave enough to follow your passions, even when the path ahead is uncertain. The world beyond school is wide and wonderful — it will challenge you, surprise you, and inspire you in ways you cannot yet imagine. Keep learning, not just from books, but from people, places, triumphs, mistakes, and every adventure along the way.

These next years will hold some of the best moments of your life. Enjoy the journey. Celebrate your wins, learn from your setbacks, and take pride in who you are and where you have come from. Carry your Wedderburn life lessons with you — connection, kindness, hard work, and community spirit — and you will always find your place in the world.

And remember: the doors of Wedderburn College will always be open to you. Whether you return to visit, to share your successes, to seek advice, or simply to say hello, we will be here, cheering you on wherever life takes you.

Finally, as you turn the page and begin the next chapter of your lives, step into it with optimism, courage, and a sense of excitement for everything ahead. This chapter will be full of possibility — new experiences, new people, new challenges, and new opportunities that will shape you in remarkable ways. Embrace it fully: say yes to adventure, work hard for what matters, look after those around you, and stay true to the values that have brought you this far. Carry with you the confidence that you are ready, capable, and deserving of every success to come.

Congratulations, class of 2025 — go forward proudly, go forward confidently, and remember to enjoy writing your next chapter. 

Big Finish to the School Year

Well done to the Energy Breakthough Team who competed for the first time in 17 years in Maryborough over the weekend.  The team worked well together and had an awesome time.

Thanks to the staff, students and parents for your support.  Check all the action and photos on the schools facebook page.  

Year 9 students are currently enjoying their MY9 Canoe Adventure to Gunbower Creek and Echuca.  Despite the warmer weather the group have paddled hard in the canoes for three days and are now enjoying some downtime, a hot shower and a comfortable bed in Echuca!   Well done year 9's!

Wanted Donation of Old Shoes 

Wanted shoes or boots with character (no football boots). If anyone has some old shoes that are being a pain in the neck at the back door, are taking up valuable space in the shoe basket or need to be moved on from the kids room or the walk in robe please consider donating them to the school.

I need 15 pairs or 30 shoes all together for a visual display around the school.   They can have holes in them but they must look like a shoe or a boot.   They will not be returned and they will not be worn by anyone.   They can be of any size and colour,  Please send them to the front office for Mr Forrest.

New Social Media Laws - December 10

How to support your child under 16 with the new social media age restrictions.

From 10 December 2025, the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 will require social media platforms to:

· prevent children and young people under 16 from having a social media account

· deactivate or freeze existing accounts held by people under 16.

Delaying access to social media protects the health and wellbeing of young people and gives them extra time to build real world connections and digital literacy skills.

The responsibility will be on the social media platforms, not parents, carers, children or schools, to implement these new restrictions.

Most popular social media platforms will be age restricted. These include Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), Reddit and YouTube.

Messaging services and online games, as well as apps and platforms that support health and education, can still be used.

How to help under 16s prepare for the change

Parents and carers play an important role in supporting their children to be safe online.

To help get under 16s ready for the social media minimum age requirements, you can go to the eSafety website to learn more about the social media age restrictions and find tips on how to talk about social media age restrictions with young people.

Respect - A School Core Value

Let's All Communicate & Engage Respectfully

Wedderburn P-12 College maintains an open-door communication policy and welcomes conversations with families. To ensure we can give your concerns or ideas the attention they deserve, please book ahead if you wish to meet with a Principal Class member or teacher. Respect is a two-way street - our staff are expected to model professionalism and care, and we ask that the same standards of respect and consideration are extended by parents, carers, and students in return.

From time to time, we remind our school community of the importance of maintaining high standards of safety and respect in all interactions. Every member of our staff works hard to provide the best possible learning environment for our students, and it is essential that they are treated with courtesy, understanding, and respect at all times. We ask that communication with staff remains calm, constructive, and focused on positive outcomes for students.

The Victorian Government has recently given government schools greater powers to enforce community standards, including the ability to issue bans or Community Safety Orders where necessary to protect staff and students. While we sincerely hope it never comes to that at Wedderburn College, we will continue to uphold our commitment to a safe, respectful, and supportive learning environment for everyone.

Let’s focus on the positives and continue to celebrate everything that makes Wedderburn College such a wonderful place to live, learn and grow. There has truly never been a better time to be part of the Wedderburn and district community.

New Wedderburn College ELC. - Repeat

The new Wedderburn College Early Learning Centre (interim name) is on track to be opened in early February 2026 when school resumes.  It was great to have the new centre director Damien Sparks on deck to meet with prospective parents over the last couple pf days in the school meeting room.   Damien is very excited to have access to the new building from next week so they can begin setting up.   We look forward to establishing a strong relationship with the Damien and the ELC team in the future.  

Enrolment Timeline and CCS

Enrolments are currently open for families, and we’ve started reaching out to families who have received enrolment offers over the past few weeks, beginning with our 4yo and 3yo Kindergarten families. ELV Wedderburn (Interim Name) will continue contacting families again in November and December for our childcare facilities for children under the age of three. As part of the enrolment process, families will receive detailed information about fees and payment options. Our fee structure has been designed to remain affordable, transparent, and supportive of families’ needs. We encourage you to explore your Child Care Subsidy (CCS) entitlements, which can significantly reduce out-of-pocket costs! 

How to claim Child Care Subsidy - Child Care Subsidy - Services Australia

The daily fee for long day care is $149. Most families will not pay the full fee amount, as they can access the Child Care Subsidy (CCS) and Free Kinder funding for kindergarten-age children. Families with more than one child in care may also benefit from higher CCS rates for second and younger children. Families can use the Starting Blocks CCS Calculator to check what support they may be eligible for and estimate their out-of-pocket costs. 

Child Care Subsidy Calculator | StartingBlocks.gov.au

The Additional Child Care Subsidy (ACCS) provides extra support for families already receiving CCS who need further help and meet specific criteria. More information is available on Services Australia. Our Early Learning Victoria centre staff can assist families in understanding and applying for the Child Care Subsidy and determining if the Additional Child Care Subsidy may be available to you. 

How to apply for Additional Child Care Subsidy - Additional Child Care Subsidy - Services Australia

Work With Us

We are also excited to be expanding our educator team as we prepare for opening. Several positions are currently available, and recruitment is underway. To explore current opportunities, visit Early Learning Victoria Careers and search “Wedderburn” Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested in joining the ELV Wedderburn (Interim Name) team. 

Work with us | earlylearning.vic.gov.au

Cook - Centre Cook Job in Wedderburn, Bendigo, Goldfields & Macedon Ranges VIC - SEEK

Cert III - Early Childhood Educator Job in Wedderburn, Bendigo, Goldfields & Macedon Ranges VIC - SEEK

Diploma - Early Childhood Educator (Diploma qualified) Job in Wedderburn, Bendigo, Goldfields & Macedon Ranges VIC - SEEK

Meet the ELV Wedderburn (Interim Name) Centre Director:

About me: Damien Sparks

I have been working in the Early Childhood and Education sector over the past decade in several different roles initially starting in the sector as a trainee 10 years ago and now stepping into the Centre Director role in Wedderburn.

My previous role has been at Early Learning Victoria Nyernilang Lar as the Assistant Centre Director supporting one of the first four Early Learning Victoria services. In this role I have gained experience into the operations of the Victorian Department of Education’s first owned and operated Early Learning Services. Prior to joining Early Learning Victoria I supported the operations of a local government provider in the City of Greater Bendigo Council.

I am passionate about high quality early education and children’s access to care in regional areas. As a child, all my early education and schooling came from small regional Kindergartens and Schools. This has embedded a deep passion for quality early education in my professional career and believe it’s important for all children to access to high quality early education in their formative years.

I’m excited to continue my journey with Early Learning Victoria as a Centre Director and lead such a high quality and accessible early education service for the children in the Wedderburn and surrounding community.