Newsletter 24/02/2025: Term 1, Week 5

From the Principal

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

As we approach the season of Lent, it invites us to pause and reflect on how we can grow in kindness, generosity and compassion. This sacred time calls us to look beyond ourselves and recognise the needs of others. Whether it’s lending a helping hand, showing care for those who are struggling, or sharing what we have, Lent offers us an opportunity to live out the values we hold dear as a school community. Let us walk together in faith and love, supporting one another in acts of service as we prepare for the joy of Easter.

Congratulations Mercy House for am amazing Swimming Carnival victory. It was great to witness such positive house spirit and eagerness to participate. In 2026 St Patrick's Staff will be seeking a qualified swimming coach to reclaim the Teacher Race title from the school leaders and possibly some parents may join the race.

Have an enjoyable week,

Darren Lloyd

Week 5 Prayer

CATHOLIC SCHOOL CULTURE

Parish Bulletin

LEARNING AND TEACHING

School Closure Days

These are our known Closure Days, which will mean that students are not required to attend school on these days.

• April 22nd (ReLATE)
• April 23rd (Positive Behaviour)
• April 24th (DOBCEL)
  
• July 4th (ReLATE)
• September 19th (Structured Literacy)

The first week of term two contains two public holidays - Easter Monday and ANZAC Day (Friday). With the support of our governing body, DOBCEL, Tuesday 22nd April, Wednesday 23rd April and Thursday 24th April will be student free days. St. Patrick’s staff will be participating in collaborative professional learning days with St. Colman's Mortlake, St Mary’s Ararat and St Thomas’ Terang as well as all schools in the Southern Zone of the Diocese of Ballarat. The focus for these professional learning days will include ReLATE and  Strengthening our Universal practices in School Wide Positive Behaviours

This creates a three week break, inclusive of Easter, for our students at the end of Term 1.

I understand that this extended time off can require careful planning for families. I am hopeful that by providing you with advanced notice, you will have ample time to make any necessary arrangements, whether it be coordinating childcare, planning family activities, or simply enjoying some time together. TheirCare is open for bookings on these school closure days. We note that although TheirCare is open for late bookings they have in the past not ran on the day if there are no bookings for the school closure day. 

I appreciate your understanding and support as we work to ensure the best possible educational environment for our students. As always, please get in touch if you would like to chat about this further.

Foundation Rest Days

We encourage families to take the opportunity to ensure these days are restful days for their children to avoid the physical demands of beginning school life. 

The foundation students have the remaining days off in term 1 as part of their transition to school:

Week 5 - Wednesday, 26th February 2025

Week 6 - Wednesday, 5th March 2025

From Week 7 onwards foundation students will attend the whole week. 

PAM Accounts

Can all parents/guardians please log onto PAM and complete all the connect fields required for 2025 for your child/ren.

Swimming Carnival

Last Wednesday we held our annual Swimming Sports.

Our Swimming carnival was a great success. The overall winners were Mercy house.

 Congratulations to the following students who were our age champions.

9 year old              Female - Sophie W                         Male - Quinn P

10 year old            Female - Ruby G                             Male - Joshua Mc

11 year old             Female - Emma L                           Male - William S

12 year old            Female - Essi M                               Male - Liam P

Mercy Captains & Age Group Champions

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WELLBEING

LEADERSHIP AND STEWARDSHIP

Family Assistance Scheme

Family Assistance Scheme ~ are you eligible?

The Family Assistance Scheme introduced by the Catholic Diocese which reduces your Tuition fee to $520 will continue this year. To be eligible you must produce a Commonwealth Health Care Card to the office (which we are required to photocopy) and complete an application form. This needs to be done by Friday 28th of February at the latest as no late applications are accepted.

If you received this last year, we do not require to see your HCC again, your details will roll over.

Conveyance Allowance

There is funding available for families if you have to travel more than 4.8km to pick-up or drop off students at Contract or College Bus pick-up points. Parents should apply for the reimbursement applicable through the Private Car Conveyance Allowance Application.

Please contact the office if you think you may be eligible.

School Fees

Our preferred options for payment of school fees are an upfront payment or for families to set up a direct debit through the school.  Direct debits can be done weekly, fortnightly or monthly.  Please contact the office to arrange this.

School fees are payable by the end of October each year.

School Hat Reminder

This is a friendly reminder to send your child with their named school hat to school during Term 1 as the weather is warm and the children are not allowed outside without one.

Zooper Dooper Sales

Throughout Term 1 the Student Representative Council will be selling Zooper Doopers to raise money for the school.

These will only be sold at second lunch.

The cost will be 50 cents each.

Upcoming Events

Some important dates for your calendar for Term 1.

Friday 28/02                         Division Swimming

Mon-Fri 03/03/-07/03    Dental Van visiting for the week

Monday 10/03                      Labour Day Public Holiday

Tuesday 11/03                       Athletics Carnival

Friday 21/03                          St Patrick's Day Celebration

Wed-Fri 26/3-28/3           Grade 5 Portsea Camp

Wednesday 26/03               MRC Open Day

Friday 28/03                         MRC Taster Day

Tuesday 01/04                      District Athletics

Friday 04/04                         Last Day of Term - early finish

Noone's Uniform

Noone's have stock of our new uniform available for purchase. Please note that some of the items in some sizes are on back order!

The shop is located in the Mercy Regional College building.

In Term 1 the uniform shop is open on the following days -

Monday 12.00pm - 4.00pm, Tuesday 8.00am - 12.00pm & Thursday 8.00am - 12.00pm

Canteen

The canteen will continue to be closed on a Monday this year.

The canteen will be open to students every Friday at first lunch.

We still strongly encourage parents & students to order lunch through the Spriggy app, however students will also be permitted to purchase extra snacks using cash each Friday during their break.

Please download the Spriggy App and make your orders through there. Please make sure that you choose the right classroom for your child/ren.

The menu for 2025 is below.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

RSL ANZAC Day Colouring Competition

RSL Australia is running a National Colouring Competition for primary school children in the lead up to ANZAC Day. Entries are judged for Victoria with the winner being entered into the National competition. If your child wishes to participate in this colouring competition, please print the image with the form on the back and fill out the details, including the parent permission section. Colourings that don't have parent permission for this competition will be displayed at the RSL Hall in Camperdown on ANZAC Day. Please hand in entries to Tracy Hickey or the school office by Tuesday 25th of March (this allows entries to reach Melbourne by the deadline date). 

Birthdays

Happy Birthday to the following students who will celebrate their birthday this week.

Jobe K, Austin L, Alice D & Roy T

TheirCare

Theircare has now commenced at St Patrick's School and it's not too late to enrol.

We are excited to announce that we have now partnered with an independent Outside of School Hours Care (OSHC) provider called TheirCare.

TheirCare provides a stimulating and safe environment for all children. During sessions, children develop life-skills, friendships, confidence, and creativity through play-based programs.

For further information, visit www.theircare.com.au or call our support office on 1300 072 410

Community Events

Simpson Netball

NAB Bank

Cobden FNC - Juniors

Thank you to the sponsors of our raffle!