Principal News

Dear Members of the St Raphael’s school community,

As we return from yet another lockdown, we keep the people of Sydney in our thoughts and prayers as they endure escalating daily cases, ongoing lockdowns, hospitalisations and the uncertainty of when lockdown restrictions will end. 

As Melburnians, we are all too familiar with extended lockdowns. So I thought it is an opportune moment to reflect on the positive situation Victorians find ourselves in, where we can have the children back enjoying face-to-face learning. Furthermore, the hope of restrictions being lifted in the not too distant future brings great optimism where we can once again be reunited with our family and friends. 

Now more than ever, it is important that, as adults, we remain optimistic for the children's sake. Better days are on the way, and we will come through this difficult period if we all stay positive and connected. 

I am so pleased that the children have settled back into the routines of on-site schooling and have enjoyed being back with their peers and teachers. However, we acknowledge that some of the children will struggle with this transition. Therefore, we urge all parents to reach out to the school to assist you and your children with these ongoing interruptions to their regular school routines.

We had a fabulous day last Friday with our Fun Friday Olympics to celebrate the Olympic Games and help the children have fun and reconnect. 

Our Year 5/6 Boys Soccer team had a great 2-0 victory in their divisional final yesterday and will now move on to the regional finals, which is a great achievement. 

And, our children in Year 3/4 attended the school camp at Camp Wyuna, Queenscliff, on Monday and Tuesday. The children had a wonderful time engaging with each other and participating in many outdoor, nature-based activities. There were lots of smiling faces when they returned, and they thoroughly enjoyed the experience. A big thank you to our parent volunteers, Gillian Molloy and Rob Seddon, and our Year 3/4 teachers who coordinated the school camp and ensured the safety of all children during this time. Camps are a fantastic opportunity for children to experience independence, develop resilience and experience the great outdoors. 

School Enrolment Agreement

St Raphael’s School is a community that exemplifies the Gospel values of love, forgiveness, justice and truth. The School community recognises that everyone has the right to be respected, feel safe, and be safe. In this regard, they understand their rights and acknowledge their obligation to behave responsibly.  

We acknowledge that every person at the School has a right to feel safe, to be happy and to learn; therefore, we aim to:

a) promote the values of honesty, fairness and respect for others

b) acknowledge the worth of all members of the community and their right to work and learn in a positive environment

c) maintain good order and harmony

d) affirm cooperation as well as responsible independence in learning

e) foster self-discipline and develop responsibility for one’s behaviour.

At the beginning of this year, the governance of all Catholic parish primary schools in the Archdiocese of Melbourne now comes under the auspices of Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS). 

One of the many governance changes includes updating the St Raphael's School Enrolment Agreement for all children currently enrolled in the school. 

I encourage all parents to take the time to read this agreement, particularly the Acceptance of Enrolment details on Page 7. 

As you will note, there are some serious consequences for failure to comply with MACS' and the School’s Policies and Procedures.

Parent Protocol Policy and Email Communication  Guidelines

In addition to this updated MACS Enrolment Agreement, I wish to reiterate the obligation on all school community members, including parents, to ensure that all communications and correspondence are conducted respectfully and positively and following the School’s Parent Protocol Policy and Parent Email Communications Guidelines.

School Closure Day

A reminder that we have an upcoming school closure day on Tuesday 17th August. Our staff will be working on our revised Vision and Mission Statement and preparing for our quadrennial school review, which will take place in early Term One 2022.

Our school is also in the process of transferring to Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic School’s Integrated Catholic Online Network (ICON). This is a significant administrative and academic undertaking for our school.

Parent Volunteers and Parent Induction Training Sessions

With all of the recent disruption and restrictions, coordinating parent volunteers on-site has been extremely difficult. However, we hope that restrictions will be eased in the coming days, and we can finally welcome parent volunteers back to assist in the learning spaces. Your children's homeroom teachers will be in touch in the coming days with you to confirm your availability from (hopefully) next Wednesday onwards.

For those parents who have not completed the Parent Indication Training Session, we will be holding two additional sessions in Week 6 on Monday 16 August from 9 - 9:30 am and Thursday 19 August from 3 - 3:30 pm. Both sessions will be conducted in the staffroom.

In line with our school's Child Safe Policy and Parent Protocol Policy, all parent volunteers must attend this session before participating in any work assisting with classroom activities, camps or excursions.

Parade College Soccer Academy

Parade College has recently announced the launch of the first Manchester City Football School in Australia. Manchester City is one of the English Premier League's major clubs, and this is an amazing global partnership and a wonderful opportunity for the boys at Parade College. 

The Principal of Parade College, Mr Andy Kuppe, rang me this morning to discuss the exciting new partnership and the arrangements they have in place with Manchester City.

As one of the major feeder primary schools to Parade College, Mr Kuppe is extremely supportive of St Raphael's and is keen to continue to support our school with ongoing access to Parade College's world-class facilities and opportunities for our primary school-aged children. 

We look forward to offering our boys this great pathway and hope that our girls will get similar opportunities in the not too distant future.

For further information http://mancity.parade.vic.edu.au/

School Fees

A reminder that school fees are due and must be paid in full by the end of this term (Friday 17th September). As always, if anyone is experiencing financial difficulties, I urge you to reach out to the school to discuss alternative payment arrangements and support.