Principal's Report

Final Newsletter for 2024 - Thursday, 19th December

School will be dismissed at 1:20pm with a final assembly tomorrow at 12:50pm on the Bilby green shade sail.  More details below. 

• Appreciations 
  • End of year acknowledgment
  • At last week’s assembly 
  • Prep Wildlife Xposure Incursion
  • Thanks from The Salvation Army
  • Grade 6 Graduation evening
  • Grade 6 Graduation Awards
  • Annual Environment and Marrung awards
  • Appreciations to the staff team
  • Thank you Stalinka
  • Staff who are leaving FWPS
  • Students/families leaving FWPS
  • FWPS Grade 2 Families Donation
• News
  • Assembly tomorrow
  • School concludes at 1:20pm tomorrow, Friday 20th December
  • New building and repair works set to commence during the January holidays
  • Their Care changes due to building works
  • Lunch service (canteen) in 2025
• Repeated (and updated) messages

Appreciations 

End of Year Acknowledgement

As we prepare for our final day of the school year, it is an ideal time to reflect on the many positive experiences we have shared as a student, staff and parent/carer community.  From first classes, a packed curriculum program, camps, incursions, excursions, swimming, Aths day, swim programs, interschool sport, introduction to the Berry Street Model, transition programs for new preps and soon to be year 7s - the list goes on.

Term 4 is always a busy one and can test us all, as we strive to find the energy to manage the many elements that need to be finalised. We have many reasons to be grateful this year. Our staff team welcomed our newest members, and as became evident, they quickly integrated into the positive culture that has been built over many years. We have already had significant interaction with new staff and can sense new connections developing already. This week has been a major one for our grade 6 cohort and they dazzled us at graduation and relaxed harmoniously at Picnic in the Park yesterday. They have one final moment to mark their moving on and that is a wonderful final celebration as we wave them goodbye at the conclusion of our final assembly. 

At graduation I acknowledged my outstanding principal class colleagues, Liz and Carolyn, our School Improvement and Wellbeing team, Lisa, Libby, Towela, Karri, Dan, Medha and Monica as well as the wonderful grade 6 and specialist teaching teams. This broader forum requires the addition of our whole teaching team, office and classroom based education support team, as well as ancillary staff members. Last week we had the pleasure of welcoming available parent and community volunteers for our annual appreciation morning tea and this highlighted the need an active primary school has in welcoming our parents and carers to assist in a myriad of ways.  Through our Parents’ Association the cherry on top has been provided. Think second hand uniforms, Mothers’, Fathers’ /Special persons’ stalls and the Halloween Disco. 

I would like to specifically acknowledge the work our School Council does in partnership with our leadership team. A particular appreciation to president Andrew Newman for the support, understanding and counsel he provides. 

Schools by nature are people places and we exist for one purpose. Our students provide us a continuous reason and moral duty for the work we do collaboratively. May all our staff, student and parent/carer community have time for rest and relaxation as we wind down prior to an exciting new school year, balanced by the challenges our big building project will bring us. 

At Last Week’s Assembly

At last week’s assembly we were delighted to hear reports from the 3 successful grand final teams - Basketball (Girls and Boys) and Bat Tennis.  The team representatives are pictured whilst presenting their reports at last week’s assembly presentation.

Congratulations to Hamish Robbie who was selected as Soundgarage’s Student of the Year.  His prize, a brand new electric guitar.  Congrats Hamish and a big appreciation for the great crew at the Soundgarage.

Congratulations to Oscar Ashley Chiew from 6KR who was presented at assembly with a Visual Art scholarship from Braybrook Secondary College.  Starting scholarships are well sought after, so receipt of the $500 value for school costs is a wonderful beginning for Oscar.

It was our Environment Team (pictured) that took the honours of presenting a final item at our penultimate assembly last week.  They have been a reliable crew that met fortnightly with purpose throughout the year.  They have been wonderfully supported by their conveners, Michael and Michelle.  The final role will be to announce the Chris Goethel award winner at tomorrow’s assembly.

Prep Wildlife Xposure

Thanks to Lauren B for curating the linked video from this fabulous incursion earlier this term. 

Thanks from the Salvos!  

The great support for the Salvation Army/FWPS Christmas Appeal has been outstanding.  Thank you to everyone who contributed with such a positive mindset.

Graduation Evening

Monday’s event was excellent.  Our grade 6 graduation class has been a strong and connected cohort who have managed so very well over the last two years after the challenges of lockdowns. At graduation I spoke of how our values, only recently reviewed and launched, have been evident in the attitudes and dispositions previously established by our senior students. Our event was of course held on an evening of extreme weather, so we were grateful to be able to celebrate graduation at The Quin Auditorium at Caroline Chisholm Catholic College, where the air conditioning was so effective some of us were able to remain comfortable wearing jackets and ties. What a relief!  Our ceremony balanced speeches by staff, student, community and school council representatives, along with dance performances and award presentations. Our students were well prepared and the evening was wonderfully emceed by team members, Mikala and Marshal. The dance performances were a particular highlight, superbly choreographed and prepped by Lauren J. We were all very impressed by the complexity, enthusiasm and quality of the dance performances. Thanks also to Susie B whose creative flair always comes to the fore. Susie worked with all grade 6 students to curate a most wonderful and unique character tableau, pictured below.  It will form a backdrop during tomorrow’s final assembly.

Graduation Awards

Each year at our Grade 6 Graduation we acknowledge student excellence and efforts in literacy, numeracy, in our specialists’ program and our citizenship awards.  We were delighted to provide awards to the following students, who will also be acknowledged at assembly tomorrow.

Russell Ford Classroom Encouragement Awards:

6MP - Rhilee Smythe

6MP - Estelle Hickman

6MA - Jack Burnham

6MA - Olivia Hickman

6MI - Ren Soon

6MI - Archer Campbell

6KR - Ruhiya Tabasssum

6KR - Oscar Ashely Chiew

Specialist Awards:

Physical Education Award - Skye Connerty

Art Award - Clementine Murray

Music Award - Phoenix Gill

Italian Award - Miles Wright 

Performing Arts Award - Arnav Jilla 

Community & Citizenship Awards

The Thelma McAlinden and Phyllis Carson Award - Aaron Wuneh

The Lyn Burnham Peer Support Award - Ayantu Gelan

Dr Moss Cass Award for Community and Integrity 

The next award was presented by our special guest, State Member for Footscray, Katie Hall.  Katie spoke about the great legacy Dr Moss Cass left for the people of the west during an incredible career of service.  This year, the second year it has been awarded, the recipient was Yuna Dao.

Academic Achievement Awards

There are 3 numeracy and 3 literacy awards. Students who are selected for these awards have shown the following qualities:

• Shown academic excellence and consistent and sustained effort
• Shown an ability to work with your teachers and your peers to achieve your personal best
• Displayed a growth mindset by taking on challenges in your stride
• And lastly, consistently demonstrated the School Values

Literacy: The Frank Burtonclay Award - Gretel Kelly

Literacy: The Frederick Mellor Award - Monty De Lacy-Leacey

Literacy: The Caren Taylor Award - Zara Rekhi

Numeracy: The Sylvia McColl Award - Samuel Heddles 

Numeracy: The Paul Bailey Award - Ciaran Welsh

Numeracy: The Jeanette Fielding Award - Samantha Ho 

All Rounder Award

The final, most prestigious award of the ceremony, is the Harold Lunn All Rounder Award. This year two All Rounder award winners were selected as they achieved near the top in both Numeracy and Literacy assessments. In addition to academics, these two students were noticed by their peers for their exemplary citizenship across the school year and have proven to be outstanding members of the school community. 

The Harold Lynn All Rounder Award - Lawrence Ligertwood

The Harold Lynn All Rounder Award - Lawrence Ung

We would like to acknowledge all our grade 6 graduates and will ensure that they receive a rousing send off at tomorrow’s end of term assembly prior to our 1:20pm early finish for the year.

Annual awards for team members in the Environment Team and Marrung Representatives will also be presented at tomorrow’s assembly. We will not list the successful recipients prior to assembly in order to maintain the joy that a wonderful surprise provides. 

Environment Team Chris Goethel Award 2024 (Presented by Michael Padgett and Michelle Metcalf).

Marrung Award (presented by Tess Maddison).

We also wish to again make reference and acknowledge staff and families who are leaving us, in some cases for only a year of leave:

Appreciations to the Staff Team

Over the final fortnight of term we have been very busy preparing for the new school year, with the added complication of preparing for FWPS’ Big Build.  A particular appreciation to Assistant Principal, Liz for her preparation, maintenance staff member, Taleb for the demanding physical work and specialist teachers, Stratos and Jane (with the assistance of the Soundgarage crew) for their work in clearing our the PE storeroom and music classroom.

Thank you Stalinka

We only learned during the week that Stalinka, our afternoon crossing guard on the Argyle Street crossing for the last 20 years, was due to retire tomorrow. No worries, a few words to Susie B and Towela (due to my absence on Wednesday) and a wonderful box of Susie inspired appreciations were created by the marvellous kids in 2BL and presented to a very appreciative and caring member of our community. What a beautiful photograph. 

Staffing Update  

Earlier this term I informed our community that the following staff members will be leaving FWPS to new schools in 2025. To recap they are Michael Padgett (St Kilda PS), Kieran Ryan (Flemington PS), Caitlyn McVilly (Coburg North PS), Jess Smart (Kew PS) and Ryan Cox on 12 months leave to travel.  

I now need to add another name to this list.  It will be sad news for our community to learn that Lauren Jamieson will be leaving to take on an art role at Sunshine Heights PS, which also happens to be where her son started in grade prep this year. I had the unenviable task of supplying a marvellous reference to the new principal team last week! We have wonderful memories of our school’s Wakakirri story performances in past years and the fact that as a class teacher or specialist, full time or part time, Lauren has created wonderful relationships and provided such warmth and care since she joined us as a pre service teacher in 2012. Lauren most recently reminded us what an amazing choreographer Lauren is with the outstanding dance performances of our grade 6 cohort, a highlight at Monday’s graduation event.  All the very best, Lauren. 

We also acknowledge the FWPS families that are leaving us as their last child graduates this year and to families who are moving onto different neighbourhoods and new schools - we thank you for your many contributions and wish you all well. 

News

Assembly

We will hold a final outdoor assembly after recess tomorrow.  School will be dismissed for the January holidays at 1:20pm. TheirCare will run their program from this earlier time on this day. Please ensure you have made arrangements to collect your child at this earlier time.

New building works and repairs due to commence during January

We will have some very significant building and repair works occurring that will start during the school holidays.  Our car park, Gecko building and Emu Corner area will be closed for all but building works, as the project due to take place throughout the year to create our exciting new gymnasium, music, food tech and canteen building gets started.  There is also a project due to start to dig up and replace the stormwater system that runs north/south a few metres to the east of the Wallaby building along the running track next.  We are hopeful that the process to replace this drainage system, as well as a section of the storm water system in front of the school is completed by the time school returns for the 2025 school year. Consequently, there will be reduced yard and facilities space during the construction of the new replacement gymnasium throughout 2025.

Their Care program changes in 2025

Due to the soon to start building works, we have been very busy decanting the Gecko building, using Emu Corner as a storage location and working with our Parents’ Association to empty the PA container, preparing for it to be shifted to the front of the school during the holidays.  These changes have already necessitated the TheirCare program to move into the gallery space in Dingo and this will continue throughout the 2025 school year.  From the week starting, 6th January there will be no access to the school grounds from the school car park.  All access to the TheirCare program now based in Dingo gallery space, will be via the pedestrian gate on Blandford Street. 

Lunch Service (Canteen) in 2025

After some additional work by the School Council this term, we are excited to confirm with our community that our 2025 lunch service (canteen) provider will be TK Tuckshop. 

The service will commence in the second week back in 2025, and will be available to order on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Food is delivered to school before the lunch break and distributed to classrooms. Orders are placed by families through the Spriggy app and can be made up until 8am on the day of service.

Cheers,

Brendan

REPEATED MESSAGES FROM PAST NEWSLETTERS

Leaving FWPS in 2025?

If your family is planning to leave for another school next year, we would really appreciate you emailing us at: footscray.west.ps@education.vic.gov.au using the subject line (above) and letting us know your child’s new school so we can process the transfer.