St Justin’s Primary School acknowledges the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as Australia's First People and Traditional Custodians of the land and waterways on which our school stands.

We pay our respects to the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation, and their elders past and present, and emerging as we continue to proudly live and learn on their land.

St Justin's Primary School - Celebrating over 40 years of Catholic Education

Dear Families and Friends,

Father's Day Breakfast

It was wonderful to see so many dads and their children at our Father’s Day Breakfast this morning! Families enjoyed delicious bacon and egg rolls, fresh fruit, tea and coffee, followed by a range of fun activities including colouring, soccer, table tennis, chess, quoits and connect four. It was fantastic to see our dads spending quality time with their children and enjoying the wonderful sense of community that makes St Justin’s such a special place.

The morning concluded with a special Father’s Day Liturgy, providing a beautiful opportunity for our school community to come together in prayer and give thanks for the special role that fathers, grandfather's and father figures play in the lives of our children.

A huge thank you to Melinda, the P&F and the many volunteers who generously gave their time and effort to make the morning possible. It was a wonderful community event, and we are very grateful to everyone who helped make it such a success. Wishing all our wonderful dads and father figures a very Happy Father’s Day this Sunday!

A Prayer for Fathers

Heavenly Father,

We thank you for the gift of our fathers and all the men who are like fathers to us.

We ask you to bless them with peace, patience, and a kind heart.

Help them to guide us with gentleness and to be a loving presence in our lives.

We pray for the fathers who are no longer with us,

and we ask that you welcome them into your heavenly home.

May we always be grateful for the love and care they give us.

Amen.

Father's Day Stall

Yesterday the children had the opportunity to purchase that special gift for their dads or grandads. A special thanks to all those who helped out. These things don’t just happen - they are the result of much planning and preparing well in advance. As always, we are extremely grateful for all those who do so much to help our community. Thank you.

Important Dates

Whilst we have most dates in the calendar, some dates include:

Sunday 6th September - Father's Day
Tuesday 8th September - Prep & Year 5 Parish Mass 9.15am
Thursday 10th - Friday 11th September - Year 4 Camp
Thursday 10th September - Year 3 Camp Experience
Friday 11th September - RU OK Day?
Friday 11th September - Year 1 & Year 6 Parish Mass 9.15am

Please refer to Dates Ahead for more dates. Please note that dates do change from time to time.

Change of Date – Grandparents’ Day

Please note that Grandparents’ Day has been changed from Friday, 23rd October to Thursday, 22nd October from 9.00am to 10.00am. We apologise for any inconvenience and appreciate your understanding.

SENIOR SOCCER – 2026 STATE CHAMPIONS!

What an incredible journey it has been for our St Justin’s Senior Soccer Team! What started at the District Competition has turned into a remarkable achievement, with our team now proudly crowned Victorian State Champions!

The team first came together at the District Competition, where they began to build their connection, confidence and belief as a team. From there, they progressed to the Division Finals, where they continued their winning form and secured their place at the Regional Finals. At the Regional Finals, the team once again showed incredible determination, teamwork and resilience to take the victory and earn their place at the Victorian State Finals.

Facing the best school teams Victoria has to offer, our team rose to the occasion and produced an outstanding performance to win the State Final and become State Champions! This achievement is a testament to their dedication, hard work, sportsmanship and belief in one another. They have represented our school with immense pride, both on and off the field, and have shown what can be achieved when a team works together and never gives up. This historic victory marks the first time in our school’s history that a soccer team has been crowned Victorian State Champions! It is an extraordinary achievement and a moment that will be remembered for years to come.

A special thank you to Coach Adam Rudzki for his guidance, encouragement and commitment throughout the team’s incredible journey.

We would also like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the parents and families who supported the team every step of the way. Your encouragement from the sidelines, along with the many hours spent providing transportation to and from training, competitions and venues across Victoria, played an important part in making this journey possible. Your support has been greatly appreciated.

From District, to Division, to Regional, and now State Champions! What an unforgettable journey! Congratulations to our Senior Soccer Team! We are incredibly proud of you!

Thank you to Mrs D'Angelo for her passion and support of the team over the last few weeks on their journey to becoming State Champions.

Parents and Friends - Major Project

Over the years, funds raised by the Parents and Friends have made a significant contribution to the running of our school. From books and learning resources to the refurbishment of learning spaces, technical equipment, musical resources and sports equipment, the generosity of our school community has supported students in countless ways.

Currently, we are focusing our fundraising efforts on a major project: the replacement of our existing junior playground.

The playground is one of the original pieces of equipment at our school and has served our community for almost 40 years. Many of our current parents fondly remember playing on the very same playground when they were students themselves. While the playground has received some upgrades over the years, including new shade sails and a rubberised soft-fall surface, the equipment and surface have gradually deteriorated and are now due for replacement.

For the past few years, we have been carefully saving our funds while working with a number of companies to seek quotes, explore options and gather advice on the best way forward. While replacing the playground will be a significant investment, we are getting close to our fundraising goal and are hopeful that we will see some exciting developments take place over the next 12 months.

We are incredibly grateful for the ongoing support of our Parents and Friends community. Every contribution brings us one step closer to creating a safe, engaging and exciting new space for our students to enjoy for many years to come.

Walking in the Footsteps of St Paul

For the next two weeks, I will be taking some time away from school as I join 15 other principals from the South Eastern Principal Network on a pilgrimage through Greece and Turkey, following in the footsteps of St Paul. We will be accompanied by Fr Fabian Smith, Parish Priest from St Kevin's, Hampton Park, who will support and guide us throughout our journey.

I must admit, this wasn't a pilgrimage I had originally intended to undertake. Planning for the journey, including the funding arrangements, had commenced before St Justins moved from the Eastern Network into the Southern Network. However, after speaking with Fr Andrew, I was encouraged to reconsider and attend - not only for my own spiritual enrichment, but also for the spiritual benefit of the wider St Justin's community.

Fr Andrew spoke about the incredible experience of literally walking in the footsteps of St Paul and how a pilgrimage such as this can bring the New Testament to life. To travel through the ancient lands and cities where Christianity first took root, and from where the faith began its expansion into Europe, is a truly unique opportunity.

The more I have read about St Paul, his ministry and the incredible journeys he undertook, the more I have come to appreciate what an extraordinary experience this will be. While I'm sure we'll be travelling considerably faster than St Paul did, following his journey through these ancient places will provide an opportunity to reflect on his courage, perseverance and unwavering commitment to sharing the Gospel.

I know the school will be in very good hands while I am away, and I am particularly grateful to Mrs Snell for her support. I am very mindful of the additional workload that my absence places on her, and I know she will have plenty of support from our wonderful staff and leadership team. With everything else that is happening at the moment, this certainly hasn't been an easy decision to make. However, I am now very much looking forward to the experience and to returning with new insights, reflections and stories to share with our community.

Below is a map highlighting some of the places we will visit along the way. It will be quite a journey - although, as I mentioned, we'll certainly be travelling a little quicker than St Paul!

During our daily Masses and moments of prayer, I will certainly keep you, our families and the entire St St Justin's community in my prayers. I look forward to sharing some reflections from the pilgrimage when I return.

In the meantime, I hope the next two weeks are a wonderful and rewarding time for our students, staff and families.

MACSIS Survey

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools – School Improvement Surveys (MACSSIS): Surveys (MACSSIS): Monday 31 August –18 September 2026

Throughout each year, we pause to listen to our students, families and staff to gauge how our learning community is travelling. This feedback is invaluable to our progress as effective school communities and is backed by evidence-based research and best practices.

A significant and formal way in which we engage and gather data is through MACSSIS, the Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools – School Improvement Surveys.

Thank you to the 33 families who have already taken the time to complete the survey. It would be great if we could have more families fill in the survey as your feedabck is very important to us.

Footy Colours Day - Friday 18th September

We’re getting behind Fight Cancer Foundation’s Footy Colours Day to help support Australian kids and families affected by cancer.

On Friday 18th September, students are invited to come to school dressed in their favourite footy colours! Wear your team’s jumper, scarf, beanie, colours or other footy gear and help us fill the school with team spirit for an important cause.

Every day, 3 Aussie kids are diagnosed with cancer, and many families need to travel long distances from home for treatment. Money raised through Footy Colours Day helps Fight Cancer Foundation provide accommodation and support for families during this challenging time.

How can you help?

Come dressed in your favourite footy colours on Friday 18th September.

Please make a donation to support Fight Cancer Foundation.

Click the link below to make a donation:

https://www.footycoloursday.com.au/fundraisers/StJustinsFootyColoursDay/footy-colours-day-2026-schools

Every donation, big or small, helps make a difference for kids with cancer and their families.

Get your footy colours ready and help us kick goals for kids with cancer!

St Justin’s Art Show

Our St Justin's Art Show is fast approaching and will be held from Wednesday Oct 21st – Fri October 23rd. The opening for the Art Show will be Wednesday 21st October at 5.00pm.

The students have been creating some fantastic artwork during Visual Arts lessons

and we are excited to showcase their creativity, imagination and hard work.

Sick Bay

We respectfully request that the privacy of our students is respected by not entering the sick bay, please only enter the room if you have been invited into the First Aid Room by a staff member.

Second Hand Uniform Sale

Fair on the Hill

Our Fair on the Hill will be held on Saturday 7th November 2026 (the weekend after the Melbourne Cup - lock it in). Please refer to the Fair on the Hill page for more details.

Next week, families will receive information packs inviting families to contribute in various ways. The information packs will include:

Lucky Jar & Choc toss donation/free dress day
Cake stall donation details
Family Sponsorship opportunity
Invitation to Volunteer (the more the merrier)

As always, we are extremely grateful for the amazing amout of work which has already gone into organising this community every - much appreciated. We would love everyone t get behind our volunteers and upport them when and where we can.

St Justin's Bank Account Details

We have recently been made aware that Melbourne Archdiocese of Catholic Schools has changed our bank account name. If you are making a direct deposit or funds transfer directly into our school bank account and you are using "St Justin's School" as your Bank Account name, you may see the following message:

"The account is in the name of ARCHDIOCESE OF MELBOURNE CATHOLIC DEVELOPMENT FUND - PARISH SCHOOLS".

Your bank may ask you to review the account name as it doesn't match the one that you entered and recommend that you recheck the details and contact the payee. If that is the case, and you have used the bank account details from your school fees invoice or statement you can override the message to directly deposit funds into the account.

We apologise for any inconvenience around this as we were not made aware that this was occurring, otherwise we would have notified you to reduce any concerns that you may have.

Thank you for your attention to this notice and should you have any queries, please don't hesitate to contact us.

2027 Prep Enrolments

If you have a child starting Prep in 2027, please be sure to continue to check your emails for updated information and for any outstanding items that may need to be sent to the office.

We are looking forward to seeing all the children and their parents as part of our Prep Transition program throughout Term 4.

Dates for these are as follows:

Thurs 22nd October 2026 - 7:30pm - 9:30pm - Information Evening (Parents only)
Thurs 5th November 2026 - 9:15am – 10:45am - Transition Session 1
(Students & Parent School Readiness Session in PAC)
Thurs 12th November 2026 - 9:15am - 10:15am - Transition Session 2
(Students & Parent Mathematics and Literacy Session)
Friday 27th November 2026 - 9:15am-10:15am - Transition Session 3 (Students)
Friday 4th December 2026 - 9:15am-12:00 noon - Prep 2027 Students Orientation
Tuesday 2nd March 2027 - 7:30pm - 8:30pm - Managing Big Feelings Webinar

Privacy policy, students and parent updated

Our Administration of Medication Policy has changed.

The updated documents are available on the MACS policies webpage in the ‘Governance’ tab.

All the best

Pat

Mr Patrick Torpey

Principal

Student Wellbeing News MHiPs- Mental Health in Primary Schools