Principal's Report

An Awesome Start to 2026!

Welcome to the 2026 school year. It has been wonderful to see students return with such positive energy, and it’s been a pleasure reconnecting with so many smiling faces during our first week back. I’m pleased to share that the year has begun smoothly, and I thank our whole community for contributing to such a positive start.

The opening weeks of the term are an important time for building relationships and establishing clear expectations and routines. This foundational work supports student wellbeing and learning, both in the classroom and the playground, and sets us up well for the year ahead.

A very warm welcome to our new Prep (Foundation) students who began their schooling journey at SGPS on Monday. We are also delighted to welcome new students and families across the school and hope your time with us is a happy and successful one. I would also like to acknowledge our Year 6 students as they commence their final year of primary school. I hope this is a memorable and rewarding year for you all.

Finally, I would like to thank our staff for the significant time and effort they have invested to ensure the school was well prepared for the start of the year. Their dedication ensured a smooth transition, and we are very fortunate to have such a committed and caring team.

Alta - The Celebration Bell

The celebration bell at the Royal Children’s Hospital is rung by young patients to mark the end of their cancer treatment or to celebrate being in remission. 

Below is a photo of Alta participating in this ceremony on Friday, 23rd January. Congratulations, Alta! We are so proud of you and love having you back at SGPS. Our school wasn't quite as awesome without you here.

School Assembly

Our assemblies will be held will be held in The Hub at 3:00pm each fortnight, starting tomorrow. Families are most welcome to attend.

The following awards are handed out at assembly:

Principal Awards - Principal Awards are nominated by the classroom teacher. This year student awards will follow the schedule/cycle below: 

1. Grade 3 to Grade 6 

2. Preps to Grade 2 

The Principal Awards are based on the School Values. Approximately 10 children per class will receive a Principal Award this year. We do not keep a record of these from year-to-year. In any given year, the classroom teacher recognises those students who best display our School Values through their words and actions.

GuGu Awards - These awards are part of our School-Wide Positive Behaviour Support program (SWPBS). Students will be recognised at assembly for reaching key milestones i.e. 25, 50 and 100 stickers.

Specialist Awards - These awards are nominated by Michael Smith (Health & PE), Shannon Leed (Visual Arts), Adele Riordan (Auslan) and Effie Hamilton (Music). 

Families will be notified on Thursday via Compass if their child is to receive an award at Friday assembly. Our student leaders will receive their badge at assembly tomorrow.

Booklist Collection Day

I would like to thank parents for supporting booklist collection day. Special thanks to Sonia for organising this event. Thanks also to Wendy for supporting this day.

New Staff

This year we have a few new faces at our school:

• Mrs Georgia Greene (Teacher - Grade Prep)
• Mrs Sami Craig (Teacher - Grade 1/2)
• Mr Sam McCloud (Teacher - Grade 3/4)

• Ms Megan King (Occupational Therapist)

   

I wish these staff members all the best for the coming school year. I know they will love working with our school community.

Returning Staff

This year  we are welcoming the following staff back:

• Mrs Caitlin Harris (returning Teacher - Grade 3/4)

   

I wish Caitlin well for the coming school year. It's great to have her back at SGPS. 

Staffing Structure for 2026

Class Teachers:

Prep A – Miss Abbey Dunn

Prep B – Miss Georgia Mortlock

Prep C – Mrs Georgia Greene

Grade 1/2 A – Mrs Tegan Edwards

Grade 1/2 B – Mrs Jane Rodda

Grade 1/2 C – Mrs Sami Craig

Grade 1/2 D – Mr Chris McClellan

Grade 1/2 E – Miss Madie Floyd

Grade 3/4 A – Mr Rohan Daenke 

Grade 3/4 B – Mr Daniel Lidgett

Grade 3/4 C – Miss Jade Patrao-Hurley

Grade 3/4 D – Mr Caitlin Harris / Mrs Jenna Brewer

Grade 3/4 E – Mr Sam McCloud

Grade 5/6 A – Mrs Kate Murphy

Grade 5/6 B – Mr Corey Greer

Grade 5/6 C – Mrs Emma Clohesy

Grade 5/6 D – Mr Luke Crawford

Grade 5/6 E – Mrs Siobhan Garmey / Mr Luke Staley

Specialist Teachers:

Visual Arts – Ms Shannon Leed

Auslan – Mrs Adele Riordan

PE & Health – Mr Michael Smith

Music – Mrs Effie Hamilton

Literacy Intervention – Mrs Melissa  Gleisner

Mental Health Leader/Inclusion Leader - Mrs Natalie Todeschini (from Term 2)

Mrs Todeschini is currently the Acting Principal at Dunolly PS. She is due to return in Term 2.

Welfare/Allied Health Staff:

Social Worker – Mrs Katie Moss

Speech Pathologist – TBC (currently advertised)

Occupational Therapist – Ms Megan King

Psychologist - Mrs Tara Byron (in a consultancy role)

Leadership:

Principal: Mr Francis Trezise

Assistant Principal: Mr Brett Parkes

Learning Specialist:

Mr Luke Staley

Mrs Jenna Brewer

Administration Staff:

Business Manager: Mrs Sonia Lewis

Office Assistants: Mrs Wendy Sloane and Miss Rachael Connelly

Integration Staff:

Mrs Sophie Smith

Miss Julie Robertson

Mrs Jacqui Jones

Mrs Neveen Budair

Mrs Emily Ludeman

Ms Bree Whittle

Miss Taylah Collins

Miss Zoe Davies

Mr Oliver Kean

Mrs Kellie Flavelle

Ms Kylie Weightman

Gardens:

Ms Tanya Kemp

Cleaning:

Mrs Gen Taylor

Mr Graham Taylor

School Times

The school times are as follows:

School Council Elections 2026   

The Annual General Meeting for Spring Gully Primary School will be held on Monday, 16th March at 6:00pm followed by a School Council General Meeting at 7:00pm. Spring Gully Primary School has four Parent Member vacancies and two DET Employee Member vacancies. The vacancies are for a two-year term.

The current School Council members are as follows: 

Parent Members:

Retiring at this election – Mr Ronnie Lowe, Mrs Allison Patrick and Mr Stuart Fremantle

Ending in March 2027 – Mrs Sarah Schoots, Sandy Hopner and Mrs Genevieve Fells

DET members:

Retiring at this election – Mrs Lauren Schulz and Mr Brett Parkes

Ending in March 2027 – Mrs Natalie Todeschini

Executive Officer: Mr Francis Trezise 

I would like to thank our ‘retiring’ school council members for their significant and important contributions to the school community. Retiring school councillors are able to renominate for School Council if they still meet the eligibility requirements. 

What is a school council and what does it do? 

All government schools in Victoria have a school council. They are legally formed bodies that are given powers to set the key directions of a school within centrally provided guidelines.  In doing this, a school council is able to directly influence the quality of education that the school provides for its students.  

Who is on the school council? 

There are three possible categories of membership: 

• A mandated elected Parent category. More than one third of the total members must be from this category. Department of Education and Training (DET) employees can be Parent members at their child’s school as long as they are not employed at the school. 
• A mandated elected DET employee category.  Members of this category may make up no more than one third of the total membership of school council. The principal of the school is automatically one of these members. 
• An optional Community member category.  Members are co-opted by a decision of the council because of their special skills, interests or experiences.  DET employees are not eligible to be Community members. 

The term of office for all members is two years. Half the members must retire each year, creating vacancies for the annual school council elections.  

Why is parent membership so important? 

Parents on school councils provide important viewpoints and have valuable skills that can help shape the direction of the school. Those parents who become active on a school council find their involvement satisfying in itself and may also find that their children feel a greater sense of belonging.  

How can you become involved? 

The most obvious way is to vote in the elections, which are held in Term 1 each year. However, ballots are only held if more people nominate as candidates than there are positions vacant. In view of this, you might seriously consider: 

• standing for election as a member of the school council 
• encouraging another person to stand for election.​

Do I need special experience to be on school council? 

No. What you do need is an interest in your child’s school and the desire to work in partnership with others to help shape the school’s future.  

What do you need to do to stand for election? 

The principal will issue a notice and call for nominations following the commencement of Term 1 each year.  All school council elections must be completed by the end of March. If you decide to stand for election, you can arrange for someone to nominate you as a candidate or you can nominate yourself.  DET employees whose child is enrolled in a school in which they are not employed, are eligible to nominate as parents for the school council where their child is enrolled.  

Once the nomination form is completed, return it to the principal within the time stated on the notice of election. You will receive a Nomination Form Receipt following the receipt of your completed nomination. If there are more nominations received than there are vacancies on council, a ballot will be conducted during the two weeks after the call for nominations has closed.  

Remember

• Ask at the school for help if you would like to stand for election and are not sure what to do 
• Consider standing for election to Council this year 
• Be sure to vote in the elections, if a ballot is held
• Contact Mr. Francis Trezise for further information. 

School Council Election Timeline

• Notice of election and call for nominations – Friday, 6th February (via this newsletter)
• Closing date for nominations – Friday, 13th February at 4:00pm
• Ballot papers prepared and distributed (if required) – Friday, 20th February
• Close of ballot (if required) – Friday, 27th February at 4:00pm
• Vote Count (if required) – Tuesday, 3rd March
• Declaration of ballot (if required) –Tuesday, 10th March
• School Council meeting (elect office bearers) – Monday, 16th March at 6:30pm.

Please collect a nomination form if you would like to stand for election at School Council.

Parent Club AGM

As mentioned in the Parent Club section of this newsletter, Parent Club will be holding their Annual General Meeting on Friday 13th of February, at 2pm, in the administration building. 

Parent Club is open to any parents or carers. One of the main things that happen at this meeting is the election of Office Bearers i.e. President, Secretary and Treasurer. All Office Bearer positions will be declared vacant at the AGM and are open to any Registered Member of Parent Club. Office Bearers will be elected to office for a period of 12 months i.e. until the next AGM.

Keeping in Touch

Throughout the year, there may be times when you need to contact your child’s teacher, Mr Parkes, or myself. We value open and respectful communication and encourage families to raise any questions or concerns, whether big or small, as early as possible.

If there is something you are concerned about, uncertain of, or would like clarification on regarding your child, we recommend arranging a meeting with your child’s classroom teacher in the first instance. While brief conversations before or after school can be convenient, these times are not always suitable for more detailed discussions.

To arrange a meeting, you may send a note or email to the school, which will be forwarded to the classroom teacher, or contact the teacher directly via email on Compass. The teacher will then be able to respond and organise a suitable time to connect with you.

Late Arrivals and Punctuality

If your child does arrive late, we ask that you come via the office and sign your child in. This is necessary as class rolls are marked by 8:45am and if your child is not in class at this time they will be marked as absent. By signing your child in we are able to adjust our records, so your child is then marked as late rather than absent. Punctuality is very important. Please assist your child by having them to school on time.

Correct Uniforms

Most students are in the correct SGPS uniform and looking great. Please remember that our socks and shorts are not to have any logos i.e. Nike, Adidas, etc. Our uniform supplier, Noone, can supply these. You can also purchase these at numerous retail shops around Bendigo.

If you have any second-hand uniforms, please drop them off at the office and we will use these to support other families.

School Crossing Times

The school crossing is supervised from 8:00am-8:45am and 3:00pm-3:45pm by our friendly crossing supervisor, Sam. Please make sure your children use the crossing at all times if they are crossing Spring Gully Road. 

Student Accident Insurance

As a school we do as much as we can to protect and care for injured students, including first aid, notifying parents and emergency contacts if students are injured or hurt, and if necessary, an ambulance is called. Parents and guardians are generally responsible for paying the cost of medical treatment for injured students, including any transport costs. Most medical costs will be refunded by Medicare. If you are a member of an ambulance or health insurance fund, you may also be able to claim transport or other expenses from that fund. The Department of Education and Training does not hold accident insurance for school students. Reasonably low-cost accident insurance policies are available from the commercial insurance sector and these can be obtained by parents for their children.