Greetings from Shaun

Working Bee

We had a great turnout at our working bee on the weekend, with families and staff rolling up their sleeves to help get the school grounds ready for the fete. We had so many volunteers that a lot was achieved in a short amount of time, from weeding garden beds and planting through to painting another coat on the cubbies, clearing leaves and general fete related preparations.

The grounds are looking fantastic, and I really appreciate the time and effort people gave to support the school. Thank-you to all involved!

Fete Volunteers

I just want to say a genuine thank you to everyone who has taken the time to attend a volunteer induction session, complete the OHS requirements and ensure your Working With Children Check is registered with the school.

A quick reminder that if you’ve attended a session, you still need to sign the agreements, we have fillable forms we can email and you can return electronically. If you’re unsure of your volunteer status, please reach out to the office and the team will be happy to help.

I know it’s another thing to fit in during a busy time, and I really appreciate the effort people have gone to. With the fete bringing big crowds and a lot happening across the day, it does create a busier environment. Making sure everyone is familiar with our Child Safe requirements means we’ve got more eyes looking out for our students and young people and a stronger, more aware presence across the school. That shared responsibility really matters in helping keep everyone safe.

It’s all part of how we look after one another, and I’m really grateful for the way our community continues to step up and support this.

Fete

I’m really looking forward to this Saturday and what I know will be a fantastic celebration of our wonderful school community and all things Northcote Primary. 

As always, there will be a big final push on Friday evening as we move into the last stage of preparations. It’s a mammoth job to get everything set up and ready to go, and I want to acknowledge in advance the huge effort from staff, families and volunteers who make it happen.

A quick reminder to keep our school values of Respect, Collaboration and Community Mindedness front and centre on the day. I look forward to seeing everyone come together and enjoying a great day.

Harmony Day

Harmony Day is an important opportunity for us to celebrate the rich diversity within our school and the broader community. It’s a chance to recognise and value the many cultures, backgrounds and experiences that make Northcote Primary such a welcoming and inclusive place.

At its heart, Harmony Day is about inclusion, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone. We are proud of the way our students and families embrace these values each day, and we look forward to continuing to build a school where everyone feels seen, valued and connected.

At a time when there is a lot happening in the world, it also serves as a reminder of what matters most. Kindness should always guide the way we treat one another, and perhaps now more than ever, it’s something we can each choose to show every day. 

Stop Work Action- March 24th

Many families may have seen recent media coverage regarding industrial action being undertaken by members of the Australian Education Union (AEU) as part of negotiations for the new Victorian Government Schools Agreement.

As part of this statewide action, some staff at our school may choose to participate in stop work action on Tuesday the 24th of March 2026. This may result in some disruption to the normal school program on that day.

At this stage, I am still confirming the level of staff participation and what this may mean for classes and programs across the school. I will provide a further update closer to the date so families have clear information about any arrangements that may be required.

Thank you for your understanding.

NAPLAN

NAPLAN is wrapping up after what has been a busy period across the school the last couple of weeks.

I want to sincerely thank our families for your support throughout the process. It makes a real difference in helping students feel prepared and confident and we really appreciate it.

I’ve been incredibly impressed with the way our students have approached the NAPLAN sessions. They took it seriously and showed genuine respect for one another, along with patience and persistence throughout. They also demonstrated strong collaboration and community mindedness, encouraging one another and contributing to a calm and focused testing environment. Even with a few minor disruptions along the way, they responded calmly and maturely and continued to give their best.

They represented our school values beautifully and should be very proud of their efforts.

Trading Cards

We’ve seen a noticeable increase in trading cards being brought to school recently, and while we understand they are special and enjoyable for many students, they are beginning to cause some challenges during the school day.

We are seeing situations where older students are taking advantage of younger students in trades, as well as disagreements about the value of cards. These issues are increasingly leading to conflict between students and are starting to impact learning time.

For this reason, we strongly recommend that trading cards are not brought to school. If cards are brought to school, staff will ask students to place them in school bags or will hold on to them until the end of the day.

Youth Leadership Conference

Yesterday, our eight School Captains had the opportunity to attend the Dream and Lead Conference in Melbourne, a one day leadership event designed to inspire and empower primary school leaders.

Throughout the day, they took part in a range of engaging sessions focused on teamwork, communication and leadership, while also building their confidence and understanding of the impact they can have as young leaders.

It was fantastic to see our students step into this experience, connect with other young leaders and hopefully bring back ideas and energy to continue strengthening student voice and leadership across our school.

School Tours/ Enrolments 

School tours for our 2027 Prep students are now underway, and it has been wonderful to welcome prospective families into the school to see our learning in action.

Enrolment applications will open at the start of next term, from Monday the 20th of April 2026. If you, or someone you know, has a child starting school in 2027, we encourage you to join a tour and begin the enrolment process early.

Behaviour Expectations- School Values + Burndapil Points

We’ve been continuing to build a more consistent and positive approach to behaviour across the school, and it’s been great to see the impact this is having in classrooms and around the yard.

At the centre of this work are our school values of Respect, Collaboration, and Community-Mindedness. These values are brought to life through our Behaviour Matrix, which helps students understand what positive behaviour looks like in different settings across the school. It also supports staff to respond in a clear and consistent way, so students know what to expect.

You might have heard your child talk about Burndapil Points. This is our whole-school reward system, where students are recognised for demonstrating our values in action. It’s been great to see students engaging with this, and classrooms using it in different ways to celebrate positive behaviour.

We’re also continuing to strengthen our use of restorative practices, supporting students to reflect on their actions, repair relationships, and learn from mistakes. This helps us maintain a strong focus on both accountability and belonging.

You can support this work at home by having conversations with your child about our school values and the positive choices they are making each day.

Kitchen Garden- Donations

Planting is underway in our vegetable garden and we are looking forward to bringing the space to life with our students. We have purchased a range of seedlings so that each class can begin planting in their allocated garden beds as we get the garden program underway.

At this stage the focus is on getting started, going through expectations and modelling the planting process with students, so the beds will gradually fill over time as the garden grows. If any families have seeds, seedlings, herbs or vegetables they would like to donate for planting, we would love the support. 

 If you are able to contribute, please get in touch with your child’s classroom teacher.

2025 Annual Report- Community Meeting

Each year we complete an Annual Report to share with our community, reflecting on the previous year and how we delivered on our goals and commitments to student learning.

Our Public Reporting Meeting will be held on Wednesday the 25th of March. All members of our school community are welcome to attend.

Following departmental endorsement, the 2025 Annual Report will be published on our website. Previous Annual Reports can also be accessed via the Publications section of the website.

Take care,

Shaun