Principal's Message
Dear parents and carers
Looking at the school calendar earlier this morning, it’s hard to believe that we only have 4 weeks of Term 4 remaining until the school holidays. I overheard someone saying that there are only 37 days until Christmas. Scary thought!
Last Friday evening the school was a buzz of excitement and an explosion of colour as the P&F hosted this years School Colour Explosion. What an incredible event! Children arrived at school is a sea of 'dry' white shirts, however, being dry was short lived as the students made their way through the water course being covered in powdered rainbows. While drying off at the end of the evening, parents were able to treat their families to a dinner of sausages, hot dogs, hot chips and a range of cool drinks. A big thank you to the P&F and the many helpers on the Thursday and Friday evening to ensure the night was a success. Thank you also to all the students for their fundraising efforts. Although the final numbers are still being calculated, early indications were that the Colour Run has resulted in a considerable amount of money being raised for the school. A special congratulations to Blake Young and Zac Whitely for raising in excess of $1000 each, along with Year 1L for raising a combined $3140 as a class. Incredible effort all round.
Over the past 12 months, the school has been subjected to several acts of vandalism and minor break-ins. As a result of these incidents, the decision has been made by the Catholic Schools Office, along with the support of the St Philomena's School Advisory Council, to upgrade our security system to include the installation of strategically positioned video cameras around the school. The purpose of the installation of 'video only' surveillance cameras is to act as a further deterrent to any intruders illegally gaining access to our school grounds and buildings. Along with the security cameras, a Video Intercom Entry gate will also be installed at the Boston Street entry to provide increased security for our students during the school day. The plan is for the double gates at the Boston Street entry to be closed from 9am until 3pm. All visitors to the school will be required to enter via the new Video Intercom Gate (located to the right of the double gates) before proceeding to the main office. We have been advised that Tuesday 6th December has been set for the installation of these security upgrades to the school. Testing on the new gate will need to be conducted before a full implementation will occur. Further information regarding the new gates use will be communicated via Compass.
Many of our families would be aware that the school canteen suffered considerable damage during the last flood resulting in a complete loss of all electrical equipment including freezers, fridges and ovens. Although Cowan's Restoration have been working around the clock to dry the canteen, it may take some time before the electrical equipment to be replaced and installed. A fully functioning canteen may not be available until the beginning of Term 1, 2023. Every attempt is being made to try and provide a canteen option to our families (with a limited menu) to minimise the impact on families and reduce the need for families to bring food from outside vendors. Cowan's Restoration have advised the school that the canteen will be available for use from Monday 21st November in a limited capacity. Currently, we are looking into the hire of a cold room to store refrigerated items. All going well, the school will be able to provide a limited canteen menu for families starting Tuesday 22nd November. Information regarding the canteen operation and menu will be communicated with families on Monday 21st November on Compass. From Tuesday 22nd November, parents are asked not to provide food for their children from take-out vendors. I would like to thank our families for their patience during this time and look forward to their continued support as we work to restore our canteen to a fully operational status.
We look forward to welcoming our Year 10 students back next week after a week away on excursion to Sydney. From all accounts, the students, along with Mr Clark and Mrs Powell have had a wonderful week away enjoying the many attractions and sights Sydney has on offer.
Have a wonderful and safe weekend.
God Bless,
Jamie McDowall