General Information

School Administration Details

School Contacts

School Hours

Please note: All students must be collected from the school grounds at 3:30 pm and by 3.45 pm. Students who are not collected by this time will be placed in TheirCare. Please ensure you register your child for this service.

Term Dates 2024

Please note: children are dismissed at 2.30pm on the last day of each term and 1.30pm on the last day of the year. 

Assembly

The whole school assembly takes part on a Friday afternoon led by the Year 6 School Leaders at 2:45pm, at which time various announcements are made, awards presented etc. Assemblies are held on the basketball courts, weather permitted or in the hall and parents are invited to attend.

After School Hours Care

TheirCare delivers high quality Outside School Hours Care (OSHC). They exist to enrich communities. TheirCare Educators are qualified, caring, open and engaged. TheirCare understand Aussie families and are here for you and your family, all year round, before and after school as well as during school holidays. TheirCare operates in the school hall from 7am to 8.45am and 3.30pm to 6.15pm. Enrolling with TheirCare is easy and completely free. Just head to their website at https://theircare.com.au/

Book Club 

Children will be given the opportunity to purchase books through the Scholastic Book Club. Catalogue links will be emailed, there are two per term. Orders can be placed online via the Scholastic Book Club Loop. Book orders are shipped to school within a few weeks and given to students to take home.

Camps Program

Toorak Primary School prides itself on providing a quality camp like experience for our children from Foundation through to grade 6.  Our camps teach independence, resilience and team work. Most of all the children have a huge amount of fun!

In 2023, our students will attend the following camps -

Class Representatives

Class representatives act as a link between the class teacher and families.  Their role  includes welcoming new families, organising social activities, contacting parents to assist on excursions, developing a parental ‘help roster’ for class activities and generally assisting with communication between the school and home. Please click here for more information.

Curriculum/ Pupil Free Days

The Department of Education and Training deems a number of Curriculum and Pupil Free days per year to be allocated as days where children are not required at school. These days are used for professional development sessions, policy planning days and parent reporting. Please click here to stay updated with our scheduled Curriculum days.

Fathering Project

The Fathering Project is an initiative to facilitate bringing our school community members together, in this case Dads and father figures with their children. We have Dads and kids OR Dads only events each term organised by a team of TPS Dads. 

Join the Dads Group - Stay connected to this project and access the online portal for heaps of free content to support Dads

Healthy Food

Children eat lunch under the supervision of their teachers. Toorak PS has a Healthy Foods Policy so we encourage students to bring along healthy lunches and snacks. ‘Nude food’ is encouraged i.e. food that is not pre-packaged. Fruit and vegetables are highly recommended. Lollies, sweets, and soft drinks are discouraged.

House System

When your child commences at Toorak PS, he/she will be placed in one of four ‘houses’ – Hinkler (yellow), Kingsford (red), Monash (green), and Nelson (blue). The ‘houses’ are involved in a variety of activities, during the year, focused on developing leadership and teamwork skills. Members of one family are allocated to the same house. House polo tops can be purchased as part of the uniform. Students are invited to wear their house coloured top on Friday's and to house sporting events.

Extra Curricula Activities

We offer a variety of extra curricula activities for our students; the majority of which operate after school. 

Library

The modern computerised library has an extensive selection of books. All classes are timetabled for library sessions.  Students in Foundation to grade 2 are expected to use a library bag when borrowing books and all students are expected to return books promptly by the due date.  Payment is expected for any lost or damaged books.

Lunch Arrangements

Students eat their lunch in their rooms from 11 a.m. to 11.15 a.m. and then break outside from 11.15 a.m. to 12 p.m. Please provide a lunchbox and drink bottle which your child can open and close by themselves. Please no sweet drinks. As lunch is quite early in the day, it is advised that students bring a substantial afternoon tea. Please wrap play lunch separately and make your child aware of the difference between this and lunch. 

TPS embraces the nude food revolution and encourages children to bring a rubbish-free food to school. 'Nude food’ is food that comes to school without disposable packaging – extra plastic bags, paper bags, wrappings, plastic water bottles, or cling wraps. You can do your bit to reduce waste by packing a school lunch without including any extra packaging or juice packs.

Please do not send food that requires heating.  Alternatively, students may order their lunch from Classroom Cuisine. Classroom Cuisine lunch orders are available on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Your child’s lunch will be delivered to his/her classroom. 

Birthdays and special occasions can be celebrated in class however please ensure that any food brought to class for sharing (birthday cakes etc) is labelled with the ingredients fully listed and this list is provided to the classroom teacher. We regret that food without the list will not be shared as we have children with severe allergies in our school. We also ask you notify the classroom teacher via Compass email of your intent to deliver birthday/special occasion food.

TPS is an allergy-aware school, so does not ban any foods. This is in accordance with DET guidelines. However, we do ask that parents refrain from packing certain foods if they have a child in their year level with anaphylaxis. Students are strictly not to share food with their peers.

Netbook Program Grade 3 to 6

Toorak Primary School is committed to maintaining excellent outcomes in teaching and learning. Portable ICT devices enhance teaching and learning. Placing the technology of choice into the hands of our students provides opportunity to individualise learning, increases independence and promotes self-initiated learning within and beyond the classroom.

When your child reaches grade 3, he/she will be encouraged to participate in our  BYOD Netbook Program.  Netbooks are available for purchase through Learning with 

Technologies. Please click here to view the BYOD parent handbook.

Parental Concerns

The Department of Education and Training is committed to treating everyone with dignity and respect and encourages good communication between parents and schools. Schools need to know if you have any concerns about your child’s education. 

Teaching and learning works best when parents and teachers talk to each other and work together to solve any problems. 

Your child’s classroom teacher should be your first point of contact regarding a concern or a question. Remember, it is better to discuss a problem when it is first detected rather than allow it to become a major problem. If your concerns are not addressed please reach out to your child's year-level leader and then contact the office for guidance.

• The school should always be your first point of contact.
•  Talk about the problem with your child’s teacher/s by telephone or organise a face to face meeting. Most problems can be solved this way. 
• Plan what you will say, so you can clearly explain what the issue is 
• Have some ideas about how the problem could be solved 
• If you still have a concern after talking to your child’s teacher/s you may want to speak to the team leader of the year level cohort (listed on our website), Assistant Principal or Principal (any appointment to speak with school staff about a complaint should be arranged through the school office) 
• If the matter is not resolved by speaking to the Assistant Principal or Principal at school you can contact the Community Liaison Officer at the DET’s South Eastern Regional Office who will assist you and the school to find a solution. For more information, please see the school’s Raising Concerns and Complaints Policy on the school’s website.

Parent Helpers

We enjoy having our parents assist in the classroom and joining us on excursions. To be a parent volunteer in your child's classroom, you will need to have a Working with Children Check. Click here to apply for a WWCC. Please report to the office to sign in prior to helping in the classroom.

As a parent, your role could be to:

• help out in the classroom where possible
• support your child’s year level special events
• be rostered to assist small groups during the literacy/numeracy block
• hear children read
• hang up displays or other tasks as required by the teacher
• change take home reading books
• help with excursions and incursions, special class events if required

Please consider this as a valuable opportunity to work in partnership with your child’s school.

School Communication 

Compass

Compass is Toorak Primary School's main form of communication with parents.

COMPASS will enable you to:

• Access classroom newsletters, timetables, homework, and semester reports
• Access your child’s attendance data and enter absences
• Provide parental consent and make school payments
• Make appointments for Parent/Student/Teacher conferences
• View school events through our Compass calendar
• Email your child’s classroom teacher
• Receive newsfeeds
• Access important school information  

Please click here for the Compass parent guide.

Your Compass login is emailed to you prior to your child commencing at Toorak Primary School. Please contact the office if you require assistance.

School Newsletter

Every second Wednesday, the TPS school

newsletter is emailed to parents via Compass. On alternate Wednesdays, a news update is emailed to keep you informed.

Click here to view our archived newsletters.

School Website

Parent information and event dates for parents is also detailed on our school website at 

www.toorakps.vic.edu.au 

Term Newsletters

Each term, classroom teachers provide a fortnightly overview for parents regarding the curriculum topics being undertaken, timetable, special activities, and homework expectations. This is to keep parents informed, to strengthen the home/school partnership, and to enable parents to discuss what their children are learning. The newsletters are emailed via Compass. A copy of the newsletters are stored under Compass School Resources.

School Photos

School photographs are taken each year. Parents will be notified in advance of the date and all parents will be able to order a photo pack. A whole school photo is also taken at this time. There is no obligation to purchase photographs.

Swimming

A Swimming Program is conducted at each level of the school at a local swim school. All children are involved in the program provided by qualified swimming instructors supported by the class teachers. Parents are welcome to attend sessions. A Year 3-6 school Swimming Carnival occurs each year.

Uniform

All children from Foundation to Year 6 are required to wear the official school uniform. Wearing our school uniform -

• promotes equality amongst all students.
• further develops a sense of pride in, and identification with our school.
• provides a uniform that is practical, comfortable, attractive and affordable
• maintains and enhances the positive image of the school in the community.

Clearly Marked Clothing

Please ensure your child’s clothing is clearly marked with his/her name so items can be returned to them.

Footwear

Parents are requested to ensure that students wear appropriate footwear. Students are required to wear black school shoes as part of the school uniform and to wear runners on PE days. Shoes may be ‘traditional style’ or ‘runner style’ however they must be 100% black and free from different coloured logos/branding. Students are to wear navy or white socks.

How to Order Uniform

State Schools’ Relief is the proud uniform supplier for Toorak Primary School. Please click on the link https://ssr-online-store.myshopify.com/collections/toorak-ps-uniform

to purchase uniform.

Lost Property

If your child has lost any belongings, they will be placed in lost property located at the top of the ramp of the old administration building. At the end of each term, named items will be returned to students. Any items not named and in good condition will be laundered and placed in our second hand uniform stall.

Other

• Stud earrings or sleepers are the only permissible earrings and must only be worn in the ears. 
• Watches are acceptable. 
• Jewellery such as necklaces, bracelets or any other items are not permitted as they provide a catch or tangle hazard. 
•  Extreme hair colours (e.g. green, pink or purple rinses) and/or extreme hairstyles (e.g. spikes or Mohawks) are not permitted, unless as part of a school event (e.g. House colours at Carnivals, Crazy Hair Day Fundraisers, etc.). 
• Hair below the shoulder must be tied back off the face. 
• Headbands and hair ties must be in school colours.
• Cosmetics, including nail polish, are not to be worn at school.

School Hat - No Hat, No Play

As part of the school uniform, all children must wear a Toorak Primary School hat from the 1st September until ANZAC day the following year. If your child does not wear a hat during this time, they will be required to play in a designated shade area.

Secondhand Uniform

The Parents & Friends Association also sells quality second-hand uniform items, which have been kindly donated by families during the school term.

Riding Of Bicycles/Scooters

Students are permitted to bring bikes/scooters to school providing:

• they are  walked in the school ground
• an approved helmet is worn
• students under 9 years ride under the supervision of an adult

Provision can be made for bikes/scooters to be placed in one of two bike racks located on the school grounds.  For security reasons, it is advisable to provide a lock for bikes. 

Students and parents/carers will be reminded that School crossings are legally operational only if the school crossing flags are displayed and that if cycling or scootering they are required to wheel their bicycle/scooter over the crossing.

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