Principal's Message 

Dear Families,

St Andrew’s School Storm Restoration Program

We thank all families for your support for our optional day of schooling on Monday.   The small number of children onsite allowed for staff to work as a team to relocate classrooms and clear additional flood affected work spaces. 

We outlined through an Audiri App on Monday afternoon the new work spaces that Grade 1/2Q, 1/2A, 3/4T, 3/4G, 3/4H and 5/6P classes have moved into.    As also outlined through the App message, the majority of classes will be in these work spaces for approximately 3 weeks with Grade 3/4H and 5/6P likely to be based in their new learning spaces until the end of the term. 

We remind families that the Out of Hours Care Program is based in the ‘B Building’.  The ‘B Building’ can be accessed at the front of the school property near the second basketball court. 

We thank the staff for their collaboration as a team in their efforts to support the relocation process throughout the past week.  We’re pleased to see our children settled and enjoying their new workspaces. 

2024 Prep Family Welcome Mass - 11am Sunday 25th February 

The St Andrew’s parish and school community warmly invite all 2024 Prep families to our Prep Mass, this Sunday 25th February at 11 am.  It will be a lovely occasion to get together to welcome our Prep families into our St Andrew’s community.  Our students will perform a short reflection at the end of the Mass to incorporate part of their learning in Education and Faith. 

We look forward to seeing you there.

Swimming Program - Year 3 & 4 Water Safety Friday 

Our Year 3 and 4 children tomorrow complete their 8 day swimming program at Aqua Star.  The dive into a new swim centre has proven to be a great initiative with positive feedback from parents, children and staff.

Water Safety - T-Shirt & Shorts

The focus for our Friday lesson will be water safety.  The children will be required to bring a pair of shorts and a t-shirt and from there be instructed how to keep safe in the water whilst wearing clothes.   Please also include a plastic bag for the wet clothes at the end of the lesson.

Swimming Squad - Congratulations

Bentleigh District Swimming Carnival - Tuesday 27th February

We congratulate those children who have attended swimming squad training sessions throughout the past fortnight.  The final training session was held this morning.    A squad of children has been chosen to represent the school at the Bentleigh District Swimming Carnival on Tuesday 27th February.  

Please contact Beth if parents require further details.  bkromer@saclaytonsth.catholic.edu.au

We thank our staff volunteers for their support of our children. 

We wish all of our swim squad members a most rewarding day next Wednesday! 

St Andrew’s Swim Squad 2024

Giselle D, Ruby M, Savannah T, Alise Ti, Mikaela W, Katie Mc, Elvin K, Oliver C, Alfie C, Oliver N, Aaron K, Joshua F, Duy P, Lachlan Mc, Emma B, Alannah R, Melodie W, Lachlan T, Raphael C, Curtis H, Zara S, Isaiah W, Daksh P and Zach F.

Year 6 2024 School Jacket Presentation Friday 1st March (3.00pm - 3.15pm) 

Each year in term 1 our Year 6 students are presented with their Year 6 level jackets which they take great pride in wearing throughout their final year of primary school.   We welcome all family members to join the school at 3.00pm on Friday 1st March for the handing over of the year 6 jumpers. 

We are pleased to advise families that our 2023 School Captains, Eva and Cooper,  have accepted our invitation to be onsite to hand over the Year 6 jumpers to our school leaders. 

This event will take place in front of the school administration area.  Join us for a bit of fun and what will hopefully be a special moment for our senior students.

Should wet weather intervene we will invite our Year 6 students to gather in the hall for the presentation of jumpers with their parents/carers welcome to attend this event.   We will advise families of this arrangement closer to the date. 

We thank Nerida Sibilia for her role in coordinating the purchase and distribution of the Year 6 jackets.

Running Club Launching Next Week! 

On the School Oval - Thursday 29th February at 8am

We are excited to announce the commencement of our 8am Running Club on the school oval, starting next week, 29th February. The Running Club will be held every Thursday morning between 8 am and 8:30 am and will continue only throughout Term 1. 

Miss Kromer will be present to supervise the children on the oval, creating a supportive and enjoyable atmosphere. Parents are welcome to drop off their children at the school oval through the hall gate or may choose to actively participate in the running! 

As we prepare for our upcoming Cross Country and Athletics day, this running club offers an excellent opportunity for children of all year levels to stay active and prepare for these events in the morning. 

Children at the end of the sports session will be provided with a fruit selection courtesy of Woolworths, Clarinda. We thank ‘Woollies’ for their generous support. We also acknowledged members of the Parents and Friends team who collect the fruit from Woollies on a weekly basis. 

Prep Students Rest Days

Prep parents please be aware that our final Prep Rest day will be held on

 Wednesday 28th February. 

Non-Food Sharing - Birthday Party Gifts 

On a regular basis we have parents inquiring as to whether foods can be provided to be shared with children as a means of celebrating their child’s birthday.   We refer parents to the St Andrew’s Sharing of Food policy.   

• When children celebrate a birthday, home-cooked food items are not permitted to be provided for the whole class, e.g. a container of cupcakes. This applies to all home cooked and prepared foods. Parents can provide students with bought packaged foods (such as a lollypop or packaged chocolate), a different experience, an item or an unusual treat, i.e. party hats, drink bottle to keep, etc. Food items are required to be taken home for students to eat.

Other related items can be found below:

• Students are not permitted to share food. Students will be reminded by teachers about not sharing or swapping food at appropriate times such as morning snack time and lunch times. 
• Fruit and vegetables prepared at school by staff, or under supervision of staff, are exempt. 
• All members of the school community need to be aware that students are not to swap or share food and can only eat food provided or approved by their parents. 

St. Andrew’s Open Days for 2024                                   

Prep/Foundation Children and new Enrolments from Year 1 to Year 6

Icy Pole Sales - Friday Zooper Dooper Sales - 50 cents 

Children can bring 50 cents to school to purchase a Zooper Dooper on a Friday - a maximum of 2 zooper doopers can be purchased. 

All profits raised from the sales will go to our Kadasig Social Justice fundraising efforts.

School Photos – Tuesday 19th March 

(No Sports Uniform)

School Photos will be taken on Tuesday 19th March. Please ensure that children are present at school for an 8.45am start so as to avoid your child missing their class photo. Please note that the ordering and payment process will be made available to parents in the coming weeks. 

Please note that the children are required to wear the normal school uniform on the day, not the sports uniform.

Dates for the 2024 Year - Closure Days & Time in Lieu Days  

Parents/carers please note the School Closure dates and Time in Lieu days set for the 2024 school calendar. 

There are 4 days set aside for staff professional development and first aid training.  There are additional 2 days as set aside for staff Time in Lieu Days (TIL).   TIL days were introduced last year as a component of the Enterprise Bargaining Agreement. 

• Friday 8th March - Closure Day (Continued partnership with Chris Daicos -training and development consultant) 
• Friday 26th April - (TIL - All Schools) 
• Monday 27th May - Closure Day - (Faith Development) 
• Friday 16th August - Closure Day 
• Monday 4th November - (TIL - All Schools) 
• Friday 22nd November - Closure Day (3 Hours First Aid & Data Analysis)

‘No Hat - No Play’

 Our school has a ‘No Hat – No Play’ SunSmart policy, therefore all children are required to wear their school hat to school, at all outdoor sessions and home from school. 

Please note that with the additions of the blue shade structures outside the Prep classrooms and the church we now have greater capacity for children to play in areas providing shade.

Child Safe Practices - Working with Children Checks 

St Andrew’s School is committed to providing a child safe environment and takes active steps to ensure any person authorised to conduct ‘child connected works’ does not pose a risk to their safety or welfare. To achieve this, the school implements screening processes, including Working With Children Checks (WWCC), to assess and verify their suitability. 

St Andrew’s School ensures that non-teaching staff, contractors, volunteers and visitors are of suitable character and do not have a relevant criminal record that poses an unjustifiable risk to children. 

Teaching Staff & Casual Relief Teachers who are registered with the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT) undergo criminal record checks via their annual registration.

Volunteering to Assist with School Programs- WWCC

Parents would be aware that to assist with any of our school programs that all volunteers, parents/guardians/family members are required to have a current Working With Children Check on our school records.

Please refer to the following site for details on accessing a WWCC.

Family members are to provide a copy of the WWCC to the school office. 

2024 School Calendar 

The 2024 School Calendar is available on the School Website. It can be found mid-way down on the front page under the heading ‘WHAT’S ON’.   We will endeavour, where possible, to remain true to the dates on the 2024 calendar. We would recommend that parents make a regular visit to the school website to see updates on all school events.

Audiri School App– Please ensure you download the Audiri App to get alerts for weekly newsletters, important announcements and reminders.

Paul Wakeling

Principal