Message from the 

School Principal

Dear Sacred Heart families,

Today, our sister parish school of St Margaret Mary's Primary School in Spotswood celebrates the feast day of St Margaret Mary. I'd like to take some time in today's newsletter to tell you a little about her and the relationship with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. 

St Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647–1690) was a French nun who had a deep devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. As a young religious sister in the Order of the Visitation, she experienced visions of Jesus, in which she was invited to share in understanding the immense love of His heart for all people. Through these experiences, St Margaret Mary helped spread devotion to the Sacred Heart, reminding people that Jesus’ heart is a symbol of His unconditional love, mercy, compassion and desire for a close relationship with each of us.

Her life and mission are closely connected to our identity at Sacred Heart Primary School. The Sacred Heart invites us to reflect on how we can share Christ’s love in our daily lives through kindness, forgiveness, respect and care for others, particularly those who are vulnerable or in need. St Margaret Mary’s example reminds us that we are called not only to receive Jesus’ love, but to make it visible in the way we live and learn together.

The relationship between St Margaret Mary's Primary School and Sacred Heart Primary School is one that is deeply significant in both the history of our schools and parish, as well as our lived experience today. Ironically, Colleen McCambridge, Principal of St Margaret Mary's Primary School and I were in the same year at Mercy Teachers College (now ACU) in the 1980's and knew each other well. It is wonderful that we are both blessed to be leading the two schools of St Joseph's parish together. Through both our professional partnership and personal friendship, Colleen and I share a strong commitment to strength of the partnership between the two schools and also with the parish of St Joseph - a partnership and bond that will continue in the years to come. 

In recognition of their special day, Sacred Heart school community sent a beautiful arrangement of flowers from In the Bunch to SMM school community. We wish SMM are a wonderful celebration on their special feast day. 

Congratulations to Fr Binh

Most of you will remember Fr Binh Le, who was the Parish Priest of St Joseph's Parish for seven years until 2024. Fr Binh served the parish and parish schools with kindness, devotion, a deep spirituality and strong presence. After leaving our parish, Fr Binh was appointed to Holy Trinity Catholic Parish. 

Yesterday, it was announced by Archbishop Peter Comensoli that Fr Binh  has generously accepted his invitation to succeed Fr Tony Kerin and will commence as Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia on 1 February 2027, for a term of six years.

We wish Fr Binh our heartfelt congratulations on his new appointment and ministry. We know he will be an outstanding spiritual leader in his new role. 

And in the words of Archbishop Comensoli:

May the Holy Spirit guide and strengthen him, and may our Blessed Mother watch over him always.

School Fees & Levies 2027

Today, all families will receive a letter providing information about the school fees and levies for 2027. The biggest change families will notice is a shift from a family fee model to a tiered family fee structure. As communicated in earlier newsletters, all Catholic schools in the Melbourne Archdiocese who were not already using this model will do so from the start of the 2027 school year. 

Our move to a tiered structure means that the fee will be based on the number of children a family has enrolled, with reduced additional amounts for siblings. This approach helps us share the cost of providing a quality education more fairly across our community, while ensuring we can continue to invest in the resources and programs that support every child to learn and flourish. 

As Principal of Sacred Heart, I am deeply committed to making decisions that support the long-term strength of our school while remaining mindful of the needs of our families. I also recognise that every family's situation is different and I warmly encourage any family experiencing financial difficulty to speak with me privately.

Thank you for the trust you place in us and for the care, generosity and partnership you bring to our school community. Together, we will continue to create a place where every child is known, valued and supported to reach their full potential.

Please find attached below of copy of the letter sent digitally to families today.

Guess who met the Prime Minister!

The week before holidays, I went to Canberra with my grandparents and my cousin. We did many exciting things, my favourite of which was going to Parliament House. My great aunt, Joanne Ryan, works as the Chief Whip and is the member of parliament for Lalor. She asked the Prime Minister if we could see him and have a chat. As soon as I heard this I started working on a gift. I made a mosaic of  Australia. We had arranged to meet him on Wednesday, but plans were changed and we met him on Thursday. When we finally met I gave him his gift and had a little chat, before he had to go to a party vote. We had an amazing time in the capital city of Australia.

Alexander Hudson (Year 4L)

Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy this beautiful warmer weather.

Yours in faith,

Kaylene

Kaylene Carlin

SCHOOL PRINCIPAL

principal@shnewport.catholic.edu.au