Dear Families,

Lord,

We thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit and for the blessing of the

Sacrament of Confirmation.

As our Year 6 students prepare to receive this special sacrament on Friday, fill their hearts with Your love, courage, and wisdom. Help them to grow as faithful disciples of Jesus, making choices that reflect kindness, compassion, and hope.

May the gifts of the Holy Spirit guide them each day, strengthening them to live their faith with confidence and to share Your love with others through their words and actions.

Bless their families, sponsors, teachers, and parish community who walk beside them on this journey of faith.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

"Paint Outside the Lines" 🎭

A huge thank you to everyone who contributed to making our recent performance such a wonderful success!

A very special thank you to Maria Buttifant for writing and producing the script and for the incredible time, creativity and energy she invested in bringing the performance to life.

Thank you also to Vassie and Caitlin from Studio V for their support and expertise throughout the production. Your contribution helped make the performance such a memorable experience for our students.

I would also like to thank all of our staff for the many hours spent rehearsing, preparing costumes, supporting students and working behind the scenes. Their teamwork and commitment were evident in the outstanding performances.

Most importantly, congratulations to our students! They should be incredibly proud of themselves. Their confidence, enthusiasm and hard work shone through on stage, and it was wonderful to see them perform for our community.

Thank you to everyone who helped make Paint Outside the Lines such a special celebration of our students and their talent

New Nforma App- Update

We would like to remind you that the nForma for Parents app will be decommissioned at the end of this month.

From 1st September, all parents and users will need to access the new app through the current nForma Connect app.

Many teachers and parents have already downloaded and transitioned to the new app. However, if you still have users accessing the old nForma for Parents app, we kindly ask that you remind them to download nForma Connect as soon as possible to ensure uninterrupted access. They have been prompted to upgrade/update via the old app.

For further information and guidance on downloading and using the new app, please refer to our FAQ page:

https://nforma-help.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/51000437532-nforma-connect-app

Thank you to our hardworking staff, students, and families for partnering with us in this learning journey.

📚 Book Week Celebration:

Congratulations to all our students and families on a fantastic Book Week! It was wonderful to see the incredible creativity, imagination and effort that went into creating and putting together so many wonderful costumes.

A special congratulations to all the students and teachers who embraced the opportunity to dress as their favourite book characters. We saw an amazing range of characters, from much-loved classics to more recent favourites. The costumes truly brought the magic of books and storytelling to life around our school.

Father's / Special Person Day Celebrations

As we look ahead to Father’s/Special Person's Day, we look forward to celebrating the wonderful fathers, grandfathers, stepfathers, uncles, brothers and special people who play such an important role in the lives of our children. Our Father’s Day/Special Person Stall will be held tomorrow, Friday 28 August, providing students with an opportunity to choose a special gift for someone they love. Please send some money wiht your child in a purce, wallet, zip locked bag.

We will also come together for our Father’s Day Breakfast on Friday 4 September.

$5 per person- e.g., one dad, two children=3 tickets=$15

Tickets are now available here.

Thank You

A special thank you to David, Mason and Charli’s dad, for giving his time to help our students prepare for the upcoming District Athletics Day.

We truly value the partnership between our school and families and greatly appreciate parents who take the time to share their skills, knowledge and support with our students. Your involvement makes a wonderful difference to our school community.

Thank you, David, for supporting our students and helping them prepare for the day!

Year 5 Fundraising Initiative

Newsletter Calendar Trial

Thank you to those families who have taken the time to provide feedback on the new calendar format.

The feedback provided has indicated that the preferred Calendar is the Google Calendar. We will now only have the google calendar displayed on the newsletter.

Thanksgiving Mass – Sisters of Mercy- Sunday 13 September at 10.30am.

As part of our 175th Anniversary celebrations, we warmly invite all St John’s families, students and staff to attend a special Thanksgiving Mass celebrating the Sisters of Mercy.

Sunday 13 September at 10.30am.

Sister Emma and students from OLMC will assist with the Mass, and we would especially love to see our St John’s School Captains and students in attendance.

This special Mass provides an opportunity for our school and parish communities to come together and give thanks for the Sisters of Mercy and the many years of service they have given to St John’s School and Parish over the past 175 years.

We encourage as many St John’s families as possible to join us for this wonderful celebration of our shared history, faith and the lasting legacy of the Sisters of Mercy.

2027 -Changes To MACS Schools

As I mentioned in my previous email, MACS has asked all Catholic schools to continue to strengthen their financial position by carefully managing their budgets and increasing the levies paid to MACS. This is an important step in ensuring that our Catholic schools remain financially sustainable and viable into the future.

As part of this, MACS has asked all Catholic schools to introduce a four-tiered school fee structure. This means that the amount families pay will be based on the number of children they have attending the school. There will be a one-child fee, two-child fee, three-child fee and a four-or-more-child fee.

I will advise families of the specific fee amounts once the MACS budget has been finalised and our school budget has been set.

MACS has also asked schools to work towards an average of 25 students per class. St John’s is in a fortunate position that our current structure of straight classes will not need to change in 2027, as we currently have an average of 24 students per class.

We are very fortunate to be in this position and will continue to carefully manage our enrolments and resources to ensure we can maintain our current class structure while providing the best possible learning environment for our students.

We understand that changes to school fees are an important consideration for families. We are committed to keeping families informed as further details become available and ensuring that St John’s remains a strong, sustainable and welcoming Catholic school community.

Upcoming events

Please have a look at the PIC section as we have so many wonderful upcoming events.

Raffle Tickets

Feeling like you need a holiday? 🌴✈️

Why not purchase a raffle ticket or two for your chance to win a travel voucher and put it towards that long-awaited holiday!

You could be just one ticket away from your next adventure. Good luck, and thank you for supporting our school!

Purchase your raffle tickets here:

https://bit.ly/stjohnsraffle26

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools – School Improvement Surveys (MACSSIS)

From 31 August to 18 September 2026, students, families and staff will be invited to participate in the Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools – School Improvement Surveys (MACSSIS).

These confidential surveys provide valuable feedback about our school and help guide our ongoing improvement. The surveys are managed through a secure online platform operated by ORIMA Research Pty Ltd, which meets high privacy and security standards.

Students will complete the survey during a supervised session at school, while families will receive an email with a secure link and password to complete the survey at a time that suits them.

Your feedback plays an important role in helping us continue to provide the best possible learning environment for all students.

Please don't use the staff carparks - Near the Church and the Tennis Courts

The safety and well-being of our students and school community is our absolute priority. To ensure a safe environment for everyone, please be reminded that families are strictly not permitted to use the Church (staff) parking lot or the Tennis Court parking area at any time.

These spaces are reserved exclusively for school staff, who need clear access as they arrive and depart throughout the day. Crucially, many of our students and families walk directly through the Church grounds during peak drop-off and pick-up hours. Restricting vehicle traffic in these areas is essential to keep our walkways clear and protect our children.

Additionally, please remember that parents are not permitted to park or leave their vehicles unattended in the drop-off zone. This area must remain clear and continuously moving to ensure a smooth, efficient, and safe transition for all students during peak times.

We greatly appreciate your cooperation, support, and shared commitment to keeping our school community safe every day.

School Illness

As we move through Winter, we continue to see the usual seasonal illnesses circulating throughout our St John’s community.

A gentle reminder that if your child is unwell, particularly with a contagious illness, please keep them at home until they are well enough to return to school and have met any relevant exclusion requirements.

We know that Winter can be a challenging time for illness, particularly in a busy school environment. Keeping children home when they are unwell is a small but important way we can help minimise the spread of illness and protect the health and wellbeing of our students and staff.

Thank you for your continued support.

Alison Dean

Community News

School Holiday Hockey Clinics (Ages 6–15)