Principal's Report

In this week’s newsletter:

News and Appreciations

• What a positive start!
• Preps - Raring to go!
• School Facilities update
• Upcoming works
• Year 6 rugby tops and graduation tshirts 

Coming Up

• Swim Trials years 4-6 tomorrow
• First Friday assembly
• Meet the Teacher Information Sharing forums Monday to Wednesday over the next fortnight
• TheirCare program relocation rescheduled until next Tuesday
• Inform and Empower Cyber Safety program parent flyer
• Next Tuesday is Safer Internet Day
• School Council information update
• West Footscray Roosters 

News and Appreciations

What a Positive Start! 

I feel it worth noting that the adjustment to our morning routine seems to be working very well. By providing students with the opportunity to come straight inside on the 8.50am bell, or to continue to play for several minutes until the calming music starts playing, seems to be meeting more of our kids’ morning needs. Not needing to line up makes for a calmer start. I have received some really positive feedback from both students and parents/carers about this adjustment. We had been toying with the idea for a while but felt that it was best to make the change at the start of the school year. I hope you too are finding this a positive experience for your family.

Preps - Raring to Go! 

From the very first school day for Preps last Thursday our new Prep cohort have taken to the learning and social opportunities with enthusiasm. It was great to catch up with many parents for a Welcome to FWPS afternoon tea hosted by our marvellous Parents’ Association just prior to parents and carers collecting the children from their first (shortened) school day. The next day was a full school day and a weekend rest may then have been appreciated. This week and for the remainder of the month, each week will be broken by Wednesday assessment days. This is a golden opportunity for class teachers to assess each child’s current capacity for learning 1:1. It also provides the children with a day of rest mid week as they develop the resilience for full school weeks. While attending assembly and receiving Pupil of the Week awards are still several weeks away, Karri and the Prep team will have some specific Prep newsletters to share with you over the initial few weeks. A big appreciation to Karri and the prep team for all they have done to ensure a most magnificent transition and a big thanks to the parents and carers for the enthusiasm and support that has been universally demonstrated.

School Facilities Update

Of course, our major focus has been preparing for the wonderful - and substantial - Eagle Building. Considerable work has gone into ensuring classes ran smoothly from the outset. While we are still in the process of fully fitting out our STEM (Food Tech) room, a supplier's generous donation of lab coats has been a most welcome and unexpected addition.

Planning for this new building had its genesis over a decade ago, so it was important to ensure we were well placed to address any anticipated funding shortfall. We did not want to miss this ‘once in a generation’ opportunity to provide the very best facilities we could afford and that our children deserve. To this end, School Council prudently set aside significant additional funding.

One of the most satisfying aspects of the project has been the exceptional value achieved through the build. In short, because construction encountered so few issues, and thanks to the outstanding work of Bowden Constructions and their design, logistics and construction partners, the building was completed on time and within budget. Across dozens of construction meetings, we looked for opportunities to maximise value. We were presented with a long list of ‘tender options’ and, while we initially approached this with some scepticism, over time each was carefully considered and ultimately approved.

These additional inclusions comprised ducted and split-system reverse-cycle air conditioning to the music studio, music and Food Tech (STEM) classrooms, two teacher offices and the meeting room; a large (and very expensive) retractable net to divide the court and enable multiple PE lessons (designed to be winched into the roof space when not in use) and full-length bench seating constructed from the same spotted gum timber used in the floating flooring.

Our request to ‘future-proof’ the building for eventual solar installation evolved from providing the necessary electrical infrastructure to, late in the project, the installation of a 36kW solar system. Additional late inclusions were giant ceiling fans, provision for a sliding car-park gate to enhance student security, and a concrete slab between the PE storeroom and Emu Corner to allow for the future construction of a small storage shed for large, occasionally used items such as high-jump crash mats. The single greatest cost borne by our school was the inclusion of two large, impact-tolerant AV screens, which will feature prominently in assemblies, presentations and special events, including our annual graduation - an event we now look forward to hosting in this space each year.

Finally, we love that when we look out the STEM window, the once practical but unattractive machinery and storage containers have been transformed in just a few days into something truly special. Our thanks to Shannon and her helpers from Hey! Nice Murals for this marvellous artistic addition.

Upcoming Works

We are excited to announce our plans for continued improvements this year. Budget set aside and not required for Eagle Building overruns will now be directed towards a number of exciting projects. While replacing the surface of the outdoor basketball court has long been on our agenda, we plan to precede this by a redevelopment around the gazebo area. We will remove scoria (which always finds itself on the basketball court) with hard paving, seating and shade options. We will remove the problematic olive trees and add some more suitable indigenous plants. The gazebo itself will be spruced up and perhaps most importantly, the area on the eastern side will be transformed into an area for sand and water play. We have engaged Landscape Architect, Simon Ellis to continue the works he created as part of the Eagle Building project to plan and manage this project. We are hopeful that work may begin during this first term.   

Once completed we will then return to the basketball court surface replacement priority.

These works may need to be completed over a term break, so I anticipate the earliest opportunity will be mid year. In addition to the above, we see a requirement to provide shade solutions to the Platypus/Lorikeet playground due to the removal of the two old gum trees last year. We will also consider the practicality of providing a new piece of playground equipment within this area. Ideas will be presented to our JSC for feedback. I look forward to providing regular updates throughout the year.

Year 6 Rugby Tops and Graduation Tshirts 

Each year our year 5s love making decisions on their year 6 graduation shirt. Last year with the bottle green design facing some competition with our amended uniform colour choices we responded to student feedback by also providing the option of a graduation year rugby top. They were distributed today and when Jesse and Audrey popped into the office I took the opportunity to snap this terrific picture. They look great!

We certainly appreciate the work of Zowi and the office team for all the work in liaising with parents and PSW in ensuring the correct order was delivered to school within a week of the start of the school year.  Outstanding!

Coming Up

Year 4 - 6 Swim Trials will be held on Friday, 6th February

A team of approximately 50 year 4, 5 and 6 students are looking forward to swim trials tomorrow as they vie to make the first of our sporting teams for 2026. This is an event that encourages the participation of competent and confident swimmers who will have the opportunity to compete in up to four events in all four swim disciplines (freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly).  Boys/girls events will be held for 9/10, 11 and 12 year age groups as per School Sports Victoria guidelines. An appreciation to our Specialist Team Leader Stratos for organising the event. Strat will be accompanied by Monica and Alex from the year 6 and 5 teams. Their grades will be backfilled into their teams for the time they are attending. We wish all our participants the very best of luck. I expect that there will be a report for assembly.

First Friday Assembly 

Our first assembly for the year will be held from 2:50pm tomorrow (note the later time) in our new Eagle gymnasium and presentation space for students in years 1-6. It will be several weeks until we ask the Preps to join us. This first assembly will be quite a moment as it has been many years since our community has been able to meet comfortably indoors together and for those who have visited will already attest, there is ample room. At this first assembly we will present our School Captains Kyani and Marlo with monogrammed soft shell school jackets courtesy of PSW, our uniform supplier. Of course we will also present our first Pupil of the Week Awards for the year and feature our first grade assembly item, showcasing 6MT. I understand that the grade is keen to be the first class to prepare a video to use on our 2 large video screens. As with previous practice, we will open the gates after recess for parents/carers to attend and there is no requirement to sign in. We have permanent seating in place with the inclusion of the full length bench seating on the western side of the gymnasium.

Meet the Teacher Information Sharing Forums 

The annual opportunity for parents/carers to meet with their child’s class teacher will be held after school over the next 2 weeks Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. A Compass post was sent this morning, so please ensure you secure a booking for either a face to face or online chat. We really appreciate the opportunity at the beginning of the year to meet for the purpose of supporting your child’s learning and social development.

TheirCare Program Relocation Rescheduled 

The plan to move our TheirCare OSHC program back to Emu Corner hit a snag this week due to staffing unavailability. No matter, it just may have provided us with a window of time to get the interior painted before the bump in, now scheduled for between morning and afternoon service next Tuesday. We love finding unexpected opportunities for improvement!

Inform and Empower Cyber Safety Program

Safer Internet Day

Next Tuesday is Safer Internet Day. We will focus on this as a lead into our Inform and Empower Cyber Safety program. It may be a positive prompt for a at home chat about safe use of the internet.

School Council Invitation Update 

We appreciate the interest and feel confident that we will be able to form our parent membership based on conversations held over the last few days. I will keep you informed.

West Footscray Roosters 

I had a chat this week to Scott Kemp, former parent who is putting in the effort to encourage the development of 2 adolescent girls’ forty teams this year. A poster is included in this newsletter and flyers will be available in the age relevant classrooms after assembly on Friday.

Best regards,

Brendan

Repeated Messages

Photographing, Filming and Recording Students

Our annual reminder that if you wish to adjust your current level of permission for photographing, filming or recording of your child to contact the office. Please see the Policy page on our school website for more information: 

https://www.fwps.vic.edu.au/page/222/Policies-and-Child-Safe-Standards

Annual Privacy Reminder

Our school collects and uses student and parent personal information for standard school functions or where permitted by law, as stated in the Schools’ privacy policy and the Schools’ privacy collection notice.

Our Photographing, Filming and Recording Students policy, available on the Policies page on our website, https://www.fwps.vic.edu.au/page/222/Policies-and-Child-Safe-Standards, describes how we collect and use photographs, video and recordings of students. The policy also explains when parent consent is required and how it can be provided and withdrawn.

We ask parents to also review the guidance we provide on how we use the Google Suite (G Suite Information for Parents & Guardians) safely at the school and what parents can do to further protect their child’s information. If after reviewing the guidance, you have any questions or concerns regarding your child using Microsoft 365/Google Workspace for Education, please contact the school.

For more information about privacy, refer to: Schools’ privacy policy: information for parents. This information is also available in eleven community languages: Amharic, Arabic, Chinese, Dari, Gujarati, Mandarin, Somali, Sudanese, Turkish, Urdu and Vietnamese.

Camps, Sports and Excursion Fund Applications for families.

Please also make sure you look at the flyer in the newsletter regarding Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund applications for 2026. Applications close in June and are a great help for families.