From the Principal

AngliSchools 40th Anniversary Eucharist Service

Dear Parents and Carers

Term 1 is a time that is full of events, new activities and opportunities. Such is the pace of the start that it is hard to believe we are already into the second half of the term. As a school, and a community, we have much for which we can be thankful. I am grateful for the ongoing positive energy of the staff and students, who continue to approach all they do with respect, care and commitment. Some of the great things that we have been involved with include the start of our 40th Anniversary celebrations of AngliSchools, the launch of our 2025 School Theme, the many presentations and growth opportunities that our students have engaged with, various sporting events and the opportunity to recognise the achievement, and share in the journey of the JWACS students involved in the FIRST Lego League.

AngliSchools 40th Anniversary

As a part of AngliSchools, John Wollaston was delighted to be a significant contributor to the celebration of AngliSchools 40th Anniversary at St George’s Cathedral, Perth. We were well represented by a number of staff and the nearly 30 students present at the Cathedral, gathering together as a community to mark 40 years of contribution to Australian education. The work of AngliSchools across this period has been pivotal in ensuring that a growing number of families have access to high quality, affordable private education and to strong, values-driven communities in which students can grow and thrive.

2025 Theme

We are pleased to be launching our School Theme for 2025: Look in, Look out, Look up

I would particularly like to thank all those who share their ideas of what might inspire and challenge us this year. There were many wonderful suggestions from across the staff and student bodies. Our theme this year reminds us to:

Look in, considering our own needs, what we can contribute, our responsibilities to each other and how we will ‘show up’ in and for our community.
Look out, inviting us to think about each other, inclusion, kindness how we can help others and ways we can be helped by those around us, ensuring that none of us need walk alone.
Look up, lifting our eyes and minds (even simply from our screens), looking beyond our own group, seeing the beauty of our community and surroundings, as well as engaging with our connection to God and the wider world.

Cybersafety with Paul Litherland

We have, once again, enjoyed welcoming 2022 WA Australian of the Year, Paul Litherland to John Wollaston to speak with our students about the safe navigation of life online, both in terms of social media and taking care with their digital footprint. Paul is an incredibly engaging presenter, speaking from a wealth of experience as a parent, advocate, police officer and educator. His willingness to share his personal experiences, depth of knowledge, understanding of young people and the internet was greatly appreciated by students and staff alike.

Primary Inter-School Swimming

Our Primary Inter-School Swimming team competed with good sportsmanship and great effort at the 2025 IPSHA Inter-School Swimming Carnival. The students returned with a sea of ribbons for great performances in the pool. As always, we are very proud of the wonderful way that John Wollaston was represented by our students. We also would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to Mrs Wilton, Ms Fowler and Mr Tsironis for leading our team on the day.

Bingo Night – Supporting out FIRST Lego League Australian Champions

A reminder that tickets are currently on sale for the FIRST Lego League JWACS BINGO event! This promises to be a fantastic evening, held here at the School next Friday 21 March. We are delighted to support the fundraising efforts of our JWACS team as they prepare to represent Australia at an international robotics championship in Houston, Texas. Their journey so far, winning the National FIRST Lego League Championship, is just remarkable. As you can imagine, the expense and logistics to travel and compete on the world stage is a significant undertaking! One of the great ways you can support our students is to register a table at Lego League Bingo Tickets.

Please see further exciting information around the Bingo Night later in this newsletter.

It promises to be a fabulous evening, I look forward to seeing you there!

Enjoy this edition of our Wollaston’s Wrap Newsletter and all that this exciting term has to offer.

With best wishes

Tim Russell

Principal