Need to know

Pupil Free Day 

The Department of Education awards teachers 1 day per term free of classes to undertake work related to their classroom duties.   Normally this looks like your child's teacher being covered for their classes on a single day.However, we have been instructed that this term teachers need to take a common "Professional Practice Day" (PPD).This is most likely as we were not given funding for the Professional Practice Days this term as our industrial agreement had expired.We will hold the common PPD on FRIDAY 10TH JUNE, thus this will be a PUPIL FREE DAY.  Having examined the timetable and the calendar for the remainder of the term, this day will cause the least disruption to programs.

Parent Payments (a repeat of the Compass feed)

As many of you are aware, there have been changes to the Department of Education’s Parent Payment Policy this year. Schools are no longer able to require parents to pay “levies” or “fees” for subjects and electives.  We are able to invite you to do so. Parents are also invited to pay for activities that are a part of the curriculum, but cannot be required to do so.   

For example, in VCE Theatre Studies, students are required to view a number of external theatre performances.   We cannot require parents to pay for these excursions, meaning the College has to pay for them if parents decline to do so. In schools that run subjects like VCE Outdoor Education, parents can not be required to pay for the camps that are a mandatory part of the curriculum.  The College has to fund them if parents decline to do so. Yes, technically government education is “free”.  

Realistically, without financial participation by families, schools are not funded sufficiently to provide the programs to the standard that students and parents would expect.

Unsurprisingly, this new policy has resulted in less than 37% of St Helena parents choosing to pay the charges for subjects.

What does this mean at St Helena?

• Learning programs will be budgeted according to the base level of funding provided by DET.

What does this look like?

For example: 

• Food technology students cooking 1 week out of 3.
• Basic materials for students to use in Visual Arts subjects.
• Design and technology students restricted to creating basic models.
• A limit on resources that teachers may print for students.
• Less “hands on” learning.

What are the long term implications?

• We will  have to assess whether we can afford to offer a number of electives and subjects that are costly to run.  This will result in reduced subject offerings for students.
• Unfortunately it is likely that the subjects that will take the biggest brunt of these cuts will be the ones that students often find most engaging. 
• The College’s ability to keep our learning programs current and innovative will decline.  For example, in recent years we have purchased 3D printers for our students to use in Technology subjects.  It is unlikely we will be able to afford such capital items to enhance student learning experiences in the future. 

Can money be taken from other areas in the school budget?

The school budget is provided in 2 ways:

1. Credit budget.    This budget covers staff salaries, and is administered centrally by DET.   The College does not see this money.  
2. Cash budget.   This  money is given to the College for all other expenses:   coverage of teachers out of class due to illness or running activites/excursions/camps, electricity, gas, water, phones, internet, maintenance, furniture, professional development, government compliance (testing and tagging, fire hydrant checks etc etc), first aid, school sport, memberships (Teacher Learning Network, School Sport Victoria, Debating Association of Victoria, etc etc), library materials, purchase and maintenance of laptops for CRT and loan use,  leasing of IT equipment, local employment (groundsperson, first aid officer, maintenance assistant), software, classroom consumables and materials etc etc.

 We run a very tight cash budget. There is no area of the budget we could take from to give to classroom materials. 

To further complicate things, the timing of the implementation of the Parent Payment Policy coincides with a new industrial Agreement for teachers, to commence in 2023.

The new Agreement requires schools to compensate teachers for the unpaid hours they contribute to camps, school productions, information evenings, etc.  This is a very welcome and long overdue recognition of the work of our profession, but the time-in-lieu for teachers IS NOT FUNDED.

This means, for example, that three teachers taking 30 students on a band camp for three days would be owed a total of approximately 60 hours or 48 lessons.   It would cost the school cash budget $3,600 to cover classes to enable the teachers to take the time-in-lieu accrued by attending the camp. 

Our teachers contribute hours and hours unpaid to:  school play, school production, camps and interstate/international tours, VCE information nights, parent forums, sporting practice, debating competitions, professional development out of hours, Year 7 parent barbecue, Year 7 Information Evening, parent meetings that parents request outside paid hours, music concerts, etc etc.    All of this would need to be converted to time-in-lieu. The potential cost of staffing these activities is beyond our scope. 

Taking the Parent Payment Policy and Time-in-Lieu requirement together puts many of the programs St Helena is proud to offer our students at risk.

If you have made your financial contribution, I thank you.

If you have not, I invite you to reconsider your decision. 

It is our students who will suffer as a result of cuts to our programs. 

If you would like further information, contact me at AskLeadership@sthelena.vic.edu.au     Please leave your phone number if you would like a call.

Click here for information regarding how to make part payments, instalment payments and payments in full on Compass. 

Would you like to work in a school?

The Department of Education is offering free training to people who would like to work as Education Support Staff in schools.   The system is experiencing a dire shortage of workers. Casual relief work is offered in the first instance, with many casual positions leading to permanent employment. Numbers are needed for the program to run.

Education Support Staff Relief Training Program.

The close off date for applicants has been extended until the 31st May 2022. 

This program is planned to commence at the start of third term 2022 at the Ballarat, Aberfeldie, Forest Hill and Geelong training centres. Participants do not need to live in these areas but must be willing to travel to attend the Hub days at a training centre. The number of days of attendance depends on the participants skill level, but can be up to eight days. 

The program is a blend of self paced learning, online learning and face to face learning at the training centres. The only cost involved is for a criminal record check and the working with children check when they select employee. 

I have attached the expression of interest form. The participants must have a referral from our school. This program is open to anyone we are willing to recommend and provide a reference for! There will be an interview process before applicants are accepted into the program.   There is a requirement for a 70 hour volunteer work experience placement which you do not have to do at St Helena.  

ES_Relief_Trainee_Exp_of_Interest_2022.pdf

Proposed Agenda 2022

# Attendance at Hub Days is strongly recommended, they commence at 9.30am with a flexible finish time dependent on participant need.

@ Not compulsory

Tracksuit Pants

Thank you to parents who raised the issue of the fit of these pants.  Bob Stewart’s Head Office are addressing this as a priority. 

A change to a more "relaxed" elastic will happen fairly quickly and this will help with getting a correct fit. Students will not need to upsize to get a comfortable fit around the waist and therefore the length of the trackpant should be ok. 

Combination Locks

We are still unable to source the school combination locks for students to put on their lockers.  Supply has been compromised by the Covid lockdowns in China. There are none in the country currently.   We advise students to purchase keyed padlocks and use them in the meantime.  The school cannot take responsibility for goods taken/lost from lockers if they are not secured.