School Council 

School Council Newsletter Report - 16 April 2024

It’s been a while since our last meeting - but being the first of the year it was a big one, more so as it followed on from the Community Picnic and a very busy March at WVPS.

Thursday 14 March was the first meeting with our newly elected Councillors (who just happen to be our trusty old councillors).  Chris, Uday and myself are back for another 2 years as parent members, with Sal Farfalla continuing on as the department member.  

We began the meeting with the presentation of the 2024 Annual Report.  Mrs Seneviratne presented the Report, highlighting key areas of performance, achievement, engagement and wellbeing.  In this report, the academic performance of students at WVPS is compared to schools with similar demographics, statewide performance as well as previous WVPS data.

 Engagement is quantified through student absence, wellbeing is measured through the Attitudes to School Survey.  These and other tools help define and prioritise the schools gaps and goals, setting targets and the strategies needed to achieve them.   

Next on the agenda was the annual election of office bearers.  There are a number of roles and responsibilities assigned to the School Council and rules that govern how it operates. School Council must consist of five elected parent members, three elected Department members and one community member, with Department employees being the minority at all meetings.  The President of the School Council cannot be a Department employee and the Executive Officer will always be the school principal.

The President presides over the School Council meeting, so our first order of business was the election of office bearers.  I am happy to be continuing on with the role of President for another year, with Chris Sutcliffe as Vice President. David Sivaraj will remain the Convenor of the Finance Committee and Grace Alfon the Minute Secretary.

Following the formalities, we moved on to review incoming correspondence and the Principal’s Report.  We were updated on the Foundation Enrolment Policy with enrollments being opened in Term 2 - if you do have a child starting next year, please ensure you complete and return the enrolment application by Friday 26 July.  We also learned about Protective Intervention Training which will help school staff prevent, de-escalate and manage challenging behaviours while keeping both staff and students safe.

We heard all about the newly elected Junior School Council and we wish them well on their leadership journey. We hope to have them join one of our upcoming meetings to learn about their ideas and plans for WVPS in 2024.

Finally, the best part of these meetings is when we get to review and endorse fun things like the Grade 4 Camp to Lady Northcote.  There are some great activities planned and we know the kids will have a great time.  

Our next meeting is Thursday 16 May 2024, this will be held at the school and all are welcome to attend. 

Sharon Gatt – School Council President