Dear Families,

I am genuinely excited to have been appointed to the Acting Principal position for Term 2 and 3 at Fitzroy North Primary School. As some of you may know, during Term 1 this year I was working over two schools (Fitzroy Primary and Fitzroy North Primary) in an Assistant Principal capacity. One thing really evident to me from the beginning of the year was the positive school culture and interpersonal intelligence of the students at Fitzroy North Primary School. I clearly remember my first day, a group of students introduced themselves to me within minutes of arriving. I have continued to see such warmth with the interactions between students and the conversations between staff and students over the last months. I would also like to acknowledge Tania’s contributions at this time as it was a vision brought into action through exceptional leadership that has fostered this environment and I wish her all the best.

As an introduction, I thought I would share a bit about my educational history and philosophy. As an educator, I have worked in school leadership for over 15 years and worked in both primary and secondary schools. School culture is a passion of mine and I was delighted to accept a position at a school that has clearly built a lovely one. Owen Eastwood (who is an international expert in creating cultures of belonging) eloquently defines culture as "the environment that we are in at any point in time and how it is making us feel." Our environment is our community, our families, our students, and our staff and when these work in unison, schools thrive. Owen also speaks of our ancestors, reflecting upon how they understood our need to belong, to work together, to thrive in groups, and to celebrate rites of passages. Having worked in both primary and secondary settings, I have been fortunate to see the full scope of these milestones from the first day of Prep to the last day of Year 12.

In my experience, I have seen how the collective actions, attitudes, interactions, and contributions of each member of the community shapes the collective journey of a school. In a world influenced by ever-evolving technologies that can often distract us from the fundamental need for belonging, schools play a pivotal role in fostering genuine connections. In an era where virtual networks expand exponentially, they can never replace the authenticity and depth of real, meaningful human connections. I see schools, now more than ever, as places where children and young people can forge genuine connections, learn, and grow together.

I take immense pride in serving as a leader within our wonderfully diverse state school system and one I have been a part of for over 20 years. I also know that the people I work alongside in this system are committed to supporting students on their academic journey, but also to the broader and more worthy cause of guiding our students to live the values of respect, resilience, and kindness.

I look forward to getting to know you more over the next two terms and I appreciate the warm welcome I have received.

Kind regards,

Nick England

Acting Principal

IDAHOBIT Day - Friday 15th May