Welcome back to Greensborough College for 2022. I would like to extend a very warm welcome to our new students and their families, in particular our Year 7 students.

It certainly has been an interesting and busy start to the new school year. As you know, we are managing the impact of COVID-19 once again. We have installed 57 Air purifiers, and distributed over 100 packets of Rapid Antigen Tests to students and staff over the past three weeks. We have been communicating to families about positive cases on site, each day via Compass and we have been recording these for the Department on a daily basis as well. A whole new line of work created by the pandemic! However, I am really proud of how our school community has responded, the way the staff has been adaptable and the students have shown pro-social attitudes and behaviours in their response to surveillance testing and community health.

We also managed to hold a very successful Pool Party on day three of the school year, with two thirds of the students participating on the day.

The way we have started the year augurs well for a successful 2022 at Greensborough College!

Following a year when we spent much of the year working and learning from home the Education Department has prioritised the following for all government schools:

Learning – Support both those who need scaffolding and those who have thrived to continue to extend their learning, especially in numeracy.

This will be achieved through the Tutor Learning Initiative and the Middle Years Learning Initiative which has funded four teachers to deliver the program. We will also be focusing on building teacher capability in differentiation and modification.

Wellbeing - Effectively mobilise available resources to support students' wellbeing and mental health, especially the most vulnerable. This will be achieved through the embedding of the School Wide Positive Behaviour Support Framework, Respectful Relationships and more resourcing in sub schools and the wellbeing team.

These priorities are documented in our Annual Implementation Plan for 2022. We also have a school-based priority:

Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting

The key actions are to:

Continue to Review and Evaluate the curriculum program and develop a curriculum map 

Focus on Formative Assessment throughout the school through school-wide use of Scope and Sequence documents

Use curriculum documents as living documents- teachers will use and refine documents regularly

Implement the new Assessment and Reporting policy 

Fully implement the VCE Tool Box of Strategies to improve VCE outcomes

New Staff

This year we welcomed the following new staff members to our team:

Brinnah Kavanagh - Italian/Humanities

Sarah Fennell - ADP Coordinator/PE/Health

Tess Diaz - Art

Nicole Chen - Instrumental Music

Robyn Marrett - Mental Health Practioner

Building Program

The handover of the new buildings was finalised on Thursday 27th January. We have all settled into our new spaces and students have had classes from day one in the new classrooms.

It has taken a tremendous effort by all of the staff to move out and in to the buildings from the end of term 4 through to the first weeks of school. I want to acknowledge and thank all of our staff for the extra efforts and work they have put in to make sure we all started the year on a positive note. In particular, Mal Williams, our groundskeeper, has been amazing (as always).

What’s next? The demolition of the old buildings will be completed by the end of term 1. Landscaping of the grounds is continuing, the Japanese garden has been protected and will be renovated, the time capsule has been saved (1984) and will be relocated. The outdoor furniture for students has arrived and will be installed in places of their choice and the shade sails will be installed soon, creating an outdoor classroom.

It is such an exciting time and we are looking forward to showcasing our school, students and staff on upcoming tours and the Explore evening on Wednesday 30th March.

Child Safe Standards: Our commitment to child safety

Greensborough College is committed to child safety. As a community, we want children and young people to be safe, happy and empowered. We support and respect all children and young people, as well as our staff and volunteers. We are committed to the safety, participation and empowerment of all children and young people. There is zero tolerance of child abuse, and all allegations and safety concerns will be treated very seriously and consistently with our robust policies and procedures. We meet our legal and moral obligations to contact authorities when we are worried about a child’s safety, which we follow rigorously.

You will find the following policies on our website, http://greensc.vic.edu.au/ and I encourage parents/carers to become familiar with them.

Child Safety Policy

Child Safe Code of Conduct Policy

Child Safe Standards Duty of Care Policy

Visitors Policy

We ask families to support the College and our child safety practices by doing the following:

When visiting the College, all parents, carers and visitors to the College are required to report to Administration (Nepean Street entry) and to sign in and out. The Visitors Policy explains this procedure further. Please follow Covid-Safe guidelines as required.

When dropping off students, parents/carers are required to do this outside the school grounds on the street kerb. Please do not drop off in the school car parks as this may cause a traffic and safety issue. The car park at the school is for Staff Only. The car park at the Sports Precinct is for Staff and Visitor during the school day.

College Uniform

All students are required to wear the new school uniform – both the academic and sports uniform. The Uniform Policy, as endorsed by School Council last year, can be found on our website. I have also referenced it in a number of Compass Newsfeed Posts recently. We have provided visuals of the uniform that is to be worn and the accessories that are accepted.

Please note that a Uniform Policy states what is to be worn. It cannot list every item NOT to be worn. We will continue to have high expectations around the implementation of the Uniform Policy and we thank you for your support with our policies and procedures.

Attendance

A key priority for the College is to improve the attendance rate of all students across all year levels. High levels of attendance at school equates to greater positive outcomes for students and adults in life. The slides below highlight the importance of daily attendance and that absence from school should only be for illness.

We are looking forward to a full year at school, learning and playing in our wonderful spaces and facilities. As we open the school up for parent and community events later this term please make sure you drop by, participate in our programs and take a tour.

Pauline Barker

Principal

Camps, Sport, Excursions, Fund (CSEF)

Financial Assistance Information for Parents