Western Heights College Newsletter

PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

Principal’s Newsletter Report 2/5/25

It’s been a terrific start to term 2 for our Western Heights College Community. 

 

I was truly proud of our college community on ANZAC Eve as we paused as a school to reflect and commemorate ANZAC Day.  Our student leaders and College Captains led a very moving service as we reflected on what ANZAC spirit means to us as a school community. ANZAC spirit encompasses the values of courage, integrity, loyalty and teamwork – 4 values very closely aligned with our values here at Western Heights College. During the assembly the students were asked how they could show ANZAC spirit every day, here at WHC by trying to do their best at school, home and with their learning. By taking pride in everything they do and never giving up, even if the task is difficult or challenging. By showing courage and learning from mistakes and standing up for yourself and others by always saying no to bullying or from being a bystander. 

 

ANZAC Day is an important day on our annual calendar and at Western Heights College and we will always stop to remember the significance of the day and the ANZAC spirit that embodies it so deeply.

 

Election Day BBQ

Thank-you to our parents and students who conducted a BBQ fundraiser and cake stall on Saturday to raise money for the Netball NZ Tour. 

 

China Tour

18 students and 3 staff recently returned from 2 and half weeks in China experiencing a trip of a lifetime. It was a very successful tour with the students and staff enjoying the chance to immerse themselves in the Chinese culture, sight see, and visit our sister school. We thank Alvin Ang, Da Li and Ricki O’Shannessy for supporting the tour.

 

Senior Art Enrichment Tour - Bundanon

Last week we joined Belmont HS to participate in our inaugural Senior Years Art and Design Enrichment Tour to Sydney at the Boyd Education Centre at Bundanon, Riversdale in New South Wales. The students and staff experienced a profound, immersive experience of creativity and exploration of their own personal artistic practice. Through firsthand visits to studios of some of Australia’s most distinguished artists, students learnt about the creative practice of these artists, and the role, value and contribution of the visual arts in Australian history. At Bundanon, students engaged in the art education centre’s rich sequence of art making workshops in their ‘Biophilia: In the field’ program. Throughout the tour, students expanded on their individual understanding of First Nations and Australian art history.

 

A big thank-you to Allesha Fecondo and Martin West for supporting the opportunity for our students.

 

Good Luck

Good luck to Arlo Shawcross (Year 8) who will be representing Australia at an ITF Wheel Chair Tennis Tournament in Istanbul Turkey. Arlo is currently number 13 in the world in his age group and we wish him well with his participation.

 

Learning Conversations Attendance

It was pleasing to see so many of our families use this event to reinforce the partnership we share in forming successful learning pathways for our students. From my observations and feedback provided throughout the sessions, the interviews and conversations were valued by parents and students and the mood was very positive. Thank-you for your attendance.

 

Attitudes to School Survey (AtoSS)

We value student voice to improving student engagement, wellbeing and quality instruction and are conducting a survey to find out what your child thinks of Western Heights College. The AtoSS is an annual student survey offered by the Department of Education to assist schools to gain an understanding of students' perceptions and experience of school. Students will be asked about their thoughts and feelings in relation to their school, their learning, peer relationships, resilience, bullying, health and wellbeing, physical activity, and life in general. This survey has been running for nearly 20 years and is invaluable in helping schools understand student views to plan programs and activities to improve your child's schooling experience. The survey responses also help the Department of Education understand how student’s learning experiences can be improved.

 

Your child will be invited to complete the survey online during class time using a purpose built secure online survey tool in the next few weeks. It is important to note that we are not in any way “testing” your child. Please note:

  • Student participation in the survey is voluntary and students may withdraw at any time.

  • The survey will take around 20-45 minutes to complete.

Your child will be provided with a unique login to complete the survey from their teacher. The student login is an assigned identifier that may be used to link data for statistical and research purposes only. Personally identifiable data will not be recorded in the survey response file to ensure the confidentiality of your child’s responses is protected at all times.

 

The survey results will be reported back to the school in aggregate form throughout the survey period. All survey data that is made available in reports are for groups of students only so that no individual student can be identified. 

 

We annually share these results to students, parents and each year’s annual report.

 

Congratulations to our National Champions

A big congratulations to Zahlie Snijders on winning gold in the U15 Girls 200m Freestyle at the Australian Age Swimming Championships during the school holidays. Your hard work, dedication and passion continue to inspire us all – well done Tahlie.

 

A big congratulations also to Tadgh and Zander Bailey on winning the Boys Double Scull A Final in the Australian Rowing Championship in Tasmania. A wonderful effort, and we are so proud of the students.

 

Have a great week,

Fiona Taylor

College Principal

Child Safety at WHC

Western Heights College is a child safe organisation committed to protecting students from all forms of abuse. Our College has stringent protocols in place and endeavours at all times to be fully compliant with the Child Safe Standards set out under Ministerial Order 870.

 

Our College has the following documents and policies in place to achieve compliance with the Standards. All of these documents are available for downloading on our website.

  1. Commitment to Child Safety

  2. Child Safety Policy

  3. Child Safety Code of Conduct

  4. Child Protection Policy and Procedures

Annual Privacy Policy Reminder for 2025

Our school collects, uses, discloses, and stores student and parent personal information for standard school functions or where permitted by law, as stated in the Schools’ Privacy Policy (found on the college's webpage).

 

Please take time to remind yourself of our school’s collection notice, found on our website. For more information about privacy, refer to: Schools’ Privacy Policy — information for parents and carers on the webpage. This information is also available in nine community languages:

 

          * Amharic

          * Arabic

          * Dari

          * Gujarati

          * Mandarin

          * Somali

          * Sudanese

          * Turkish

          * Urdu

          * Vietnamese