Principal's Report

 Principal’s Report 9th December

Welcome to the final newsletter for 2022, and what a year it has been! Many I have spoken to consider this a more difficult year in schools than 2020 or 2021. Maybe the memories of how difficult those years were, have faded but, to some degree, I agree. We all thought, going into 2022, that COVID was gone, and that we would be able to get back to “normal”. That, as we found out, was far from the truth. COVID was with us all year and continues to be a factor in all our lives, particularly in schools. I think this has taken a mental toll on all of us that remains with us now as we crawl towards the end of the school year. Despite all of this the staff of the school and our wonderful community have soldiered on, doing the very best we can for our children. Absences, illness, split grades and general uncertainty have constantly interrupted the flow of teaching and learning in our schools. However, our staff and our students have persisted and worked hard throughout all of this. I congratulate everyone across our whole learning community for the commitment and hard work that has characterised 2022. Everyone deserves and wonderful holiday break so that we can return reinvigorated and refreshed, ready for whatever 2023 will bring.

Staffing 2023

You will have heard in the media about the teacher shortage that has increasingly plagued us this year. This is a massive problem across our state and across our nation, that is impacting schools significantly. Last week, we finalised our teacher recruitment process and class placement for 2023. We are fortunate indeed, that we have managed to fill every vacancy in our school with quality staff. Many other schools I know, are not so fortunate, with vacancies that will linger over the holiday break. Lyndhurst is a school where teachers love to teach and I am sure that this has been a factor in us retaining and recruiting enough staff to fill our 2023 classes. However, the teacher shortage is not going away and will still be an issue with which we must deal in 2023 and beyond. 

Summer Celebration Concert

Happily, we managed to squeeze in our Summer Celebration Concert between the rain and wind we have been experiencing lately. We ended up packing up in a little bit of drizzle, but luckily it was before the downpour that arrived later on Wednesday evening. It was a fantastic event with the children performing wonderfully on the night. I want to thank our hard-working music teachers for the incredible effort they put into getting the concert up in such a short time. Of course, that would not have been possible without the support of all of the junior school staff and many others across our school, who contributed to the success of the event. It is so lovely to see events like this come back into our schools after so long away.

One Big Concern

One dampener on the event was certainly the selfishness of poor behaviour of a very small number of our community members during the night. Those who were at the last concert we had, will remember that we had similar issues then. With the oval out of action, we moved the event to a location that, I think worked better for all. We clearly set up the area with markers and signs indicating where parents and family members could go and where they could not go. We also had an area specifically for students to maintain their enjoyment of the night and their safety. The vast majority of parents were respectful of this. We set up the area to give everyone the best opportunity to see their children on stage. We set up stage-side areas for parents and carers to come up and get close shots of their children on stage and, as I said, the vast majority of people respected this and used those areas appropriately. Unfortunately, some members of our community were totally disrespectful of the arrangements. 

Many people stood up in front of others, phone in hand, to video the whole performance, ignoring that fact that they were standing in front of hundreds of others who also wanted to enjoy the performance but couldn't. One young couple took chairs from the marked areas and moved right in front of others who were doing the right thing. They were rude and angry when I asked them to move. Many staff had to ask parents to move out of restricted areas which were in place to protect thousands of dollars worth of equipment and our students. One man, who I think must have been a grandfather, physically threatened me personally for respectfully asking him to move. In the middle of a children’s concert, he was swearing and yelling and threatening. Even after I asked him to move and stated that I would call the police, he continued to threaten and challenge me. What disgraceful behaviour at a school event! If I knew who he was, I would have instituted the trespass law and banned him from entering school grounds again. 

Again, I thank the vast majority of community members who respected our arrangements and simply enjoyed a wonderful evening. It is such a pity that some spoiled the night for me and many of my staff with their unacceptable behaviour.

Student Leaders 2022

We have almost completed the selection of our senior student leaders for 2023 and they will be announced and presented with their blazers at the final assembly on Friday. This process is a constant reminder about the quality of students we have here at Lyndhurst. So many children were willing to put their hand up for consideration and the speeches as part of that project get better every year!

Year 6 Big Day Out and Year 3 Camp

Our Year 6’s and our Year 3’s head off on Monday for their Big Day Out and camp. Let’s hope the weather is kind so that they can fully enjoy their end-of-year experience.

Graduation

We are all so excited about the upcoming graduation night, especially as parents will be joining us again after so long. It is always an incredibly emotional and gratifying event to celebrate their primary years and their achievements over the past seven years. It is also a wonderful way for us to farewell our year 6 students and wish them well in the next phase of their lives in secondary school.

End of Year

As we end 2023, can I finally wish all of our families and wonderful summer break, filled with family and friends and joy. Best wishes to those who are leaving our school in 2023, a big welcome to those who are joining us for the first time in 2023 and I look forward to seeing everyone in 2023!

Greg Lacey

Principal