Noticeboard

Annual privacy reminder for our school community

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.

Please take time to read our school’s collection notice, found on our website Policies page  where both the School’s Privacy Policy and Privacy Collection Notice are located. 

We ask parents to also review the guidance we provide on how we use Compass /Google Workspace for Education safely at the school and what parents can do to further protect their child’s information. If after reviewing the guidance, you have any questions or concerns regarding your child using [Compass/Google Workspace for Education], please contact the school. For more information about privacy, refer to: Schools’ Privacy Policy — information for parents. This information is also available in ten community languages (Amharic, Arabic, Dari, Gujarati, Mandarin, Somali, Sudanese, Turkish, Urdu and Vietnamese 

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Pages/Schools-Privacy-Policy-information-for-parents.aspx

Immunisations

Kingston Council has provided two updates on the immunisations program available at MGSC. 

Year 7 immunications

The HPV program has changed from a two dose program to a single dose.  Year 7 immunisation day is scheduled for Monday 27 February. There will not be a second date as previously planned.  The immunications cards that have been distributed to all year 7 students are still valid and parents still need to complete them and sign for either yes or no as usual.  For further information please read the attached document.

Families are reminded to return their signed cards as soon as possible to either the General Office OR First Aid Office. 

Missed vaccinations at Year 7 or Year 10

Secondary school immunisations are usually provided for students in Year 7 and Year 10. Due to interruptions to school-based learning in 2020 and 2021, some students who are now in years 9-12 may need to complete their vaccine program this year to ensure they are protected. Kinston Council has provided information if this situations applies to our families.

Single-use plastics ban

Single-use plastics make up a third of the litter in our environment and are difficult and costly to clean up. They pollute the environment, harming wildlife and contaminating our food and water. They are also a poor use of resources – they are often used for only a few minutes and generate significant waste that is not recyclable.  Single-use plastics can often easily be replaced with reusable products. 

Under new regulations, from 1 February 2023, Victorian businesses and organisations (including schools) will not be able to sell, supply or provide a number of single-use plastic items. The ban applies to the following single-use plastic items made from conventional, degradable or compostable plastics:

• Drinking straws
• Cutlery including knives, forks, spoons, chopsticks, sporks, splades, food picks and sporks
• Plates
• Drink stirrers and sticks
• Cotton bud sticksThe ban also applies to:
• Food service items and drink containers made from expanded polystyrene. This includes expanded polystyrene plates, cups, bowls, clam shells and any cover or lid that is also made from expanded polystyrene.

Mentone Girls’ Secondary College will be implementing the Victorian government’s single-use plastics ban in the items we use as a school community including the canteen, catering at fundraising events, classroom and staffroom activities and other school events. We will not be using any banned single-use plastic items from 1 February 2023.

Exceptions to the ban

People who need single-use plastic drinking straws due to a disability or for a medical need will still be able to bring these to school and use these items. If your child needs to continue using single-use plastic drinking straws because of a disability or medical need, please let our First Aid staff know and we will ensure that there is a back-up supply available for your child’s use at future school activities.   

The Victorian government has produced a useful Fact Sheet explaining which items are banned and which are not, including information about exemptions. 

Student lunches and snacks from home

Offences relating to the ban do not apply to private or domestic activities at home, e.g. individual families’ decisions about lunch packaging. The intention of the government’s new regulations is to remove these items from the supply chain prior to reaching the customer. 

At Mentone Girls’ Secondary College we encourage families to refrain from using single use plastics in food brought from home.