St Paul's Newsletter: Thursday 25 February 2021
2021 St Paul's Newsletter - Term 1, Week 5
From the Principal
Dear Families,
Prayer Gathering Assembly - Tuesday: Parents Welcome
Last Tuesday we had a most positive and vibrant Prayer Gathering Assembly where we recognised many students for their achievements and leadership. If you were not able to get along last Tuesday, but would like to see your child receive their award, I do have some footage of the assembly. Please call me on 97567201 and I can organise for you to see the footage.
This Tuesday 2 March we will hold our next Prayer Gathering Assembly at 2:10pm. In order to allow parents to attend on Tuesday, weather permitting, we will hold our Prayer Gathering Assembly outside. If the weather is cold/wet we will need to move into the Church and in that case, we can not have guests. An app notification will be sent out by 12:00pm if we need to move into the Church.
eMail Issues
When a St Paul's staff member, mainly myself or Helen, send an email to the whole school, we use a database/group address to send it - families@spmonbulk.catholic.
When we send an email to the family database from office@spmonbulk.
My address has an issue! The issue is not with any of our families, it is an issue with the system and I wish to apologise for any inconvenience this has caused. We have now found a solution to the problem and I thank you for your patience.
***Can I ask that all parents please ensure you have downloaded our school app - instructions are further down in this newsletter. This will ensure you do not miss important communications.
Open Days
You may have friends or family considering schools for 2022. Our Open Day School Tours will be held on:
Tuesday 16 March 9:30
Wednesday 25 March 9:30
Tuesday 4 May 9:30
We are also offering our "Ready, Set, Prep" program, open to all 3yo, 4yo and 5yo pre school children. Details are below.
Please spread the word!
Change of Date: Term 2 School Closure Day
In previous communications, we announced two School Closure Days in Term 2 for Professional Learning. These dates were 20 and 21 May. For a number of reasons, these dates have now changed.
The Term 2 School Closure Day will be a single day, held on Friday 28 May - not 20/21 May. School will be open for students on 20 and 21 May, but will be closed for students on 28 May. The St Paul's staff will be engaged in a Faith Development Day at the Mary Mackillop Heritage Centre. The focus of the day will be: "Mary - A Significant Australian".
School Advisory Board
Last night, 24 February, the School Advisory Board met for the first time
this year. While the provision of a school environment that supports the Catholic ethos is largely
the responsibility of the parish priest, principal and school staff, the School Advisory
Board plays a significant role in supporting the spiritual and educational welfare of
students. They do this through their contribution to the development of school plans
and policies and their participation in activities that uphold the mission of Catholic
education as expressed in the vision of the school.
The specific functions of the Board include:
- promoting and supporting the Catholic ethos of the school
- supporting the Religious Education and Sacramental programs
- involvement in policy review and development
- contributing to setting objectives for the school year
- engaging in local promotion of the school
- communicating with parents and the school’s parent groups
The next planned meeting, the AGM (Annual General Meeting), is scheduled for
Wednesday 19 March at 7:00pm. The AGM is an open meeting. The AGM provides the opportunity
for some current members to stand down while enabling new members to join.
The current board members are Sally Zylinski, Cara Kirby, Troy Czaja, Mariske De Wit, Mary Larkin, Fr Cruz, Stephenie Peels and Michael Watt.
NOMINATIONS WELCOME
We are currently recruiting for the School Advisory Board! The School Advisory Board constitution allows for up to 10 elected parent members. Each parent member commits to a two year term, with an option for a further two years. If you are interested in joining our School Advisory Board, we would be most grateful to accept your nomination. We meet twice per term and all SAB Meeting dates are on our school calendar.
Please CLICK HERE to put your name forward via our nomination form. If more than ten parents nominate, an election will take place.
If you have any questions about the School Advisory Board, don’t hesitate to contact myself or any of the other Board members.
Extra Curricula: Swimming
Congratulations to our students who represented St Paul’s yesterday in the SSV
(School Sport Victoria) Mountain Districts Swimming Trials at the Belgrave
Pool. We are very proud of their achievements on the day and Mrs Geoghegan has added some more news on this below.
School Absences
Teaching staff are required to update attendance records twice daily via an electronic
attendance register. Every 24 hours all absences, including reasons for those
absences, are forwarded to the MACS (Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools), who
then relay this information on to DET (Department of Education and Training).
I thank you for your understanding, therefore, that whenever your child/ren are absent, written
communication for their absence must be provided to their class teacher.
Musical Instrument Available
A generous family has kindly donated a small free-standing electronic organ in good working order that they no longer have a use for. If you are interested in this, free of charge to a good home, please contact the office by this Monday.
Kind regards,
Michael Watt
PE News from Mrs Geoghegan
DISTRICT SWIMMING NEWS
We had a glorious, sunny day for the District Swimming at Belgrave Pool. Congratulations to the following students who represented St. Paul's in various swimming events: Zach, Oliver, Clodagh, Ella, Maya, Grace G, Kristian, Mahaliah, Evie, Grace V, Tess, and Antoinette.
All these students gave their best efforts and cheered and encouraged each other during all events. Evie and Grace V also have the opportunity to compete in Division Swimming next Wednesday 3rd March in individual swim events. Congratulations and well done!
School Closure Days:
Please note the following days in your diary. There is NO SCHOOL for students on the following dates:
- TERM 1 - Friday 19 March 2021
- TERM 2 - Friday 28 May 2021
- TERM 3 - TBC
- TERM 4 - TBC
2022 Prep Transition
Spread the word! St Paul's is inviting 3yo, 4yo and 5yo pre-school children to join our "Ready, Set, Prep!" program. Fortnightly, on a Friday, we will run sessions that give children a "taste" of school life. If you know any families with pre-school children, please encourage them to contact us and register for the program.
From the School Office
If you have a Health Care Card please ensure you have provided the school office with a copy to ensure you receive any fee discounts to which you may be entitled.
Fee statements have been emailed to families. If you have not received your statement, or have any queries relating to school fees, please contact the school office. Please note, no Health Care Care discounts or CSEF funding has been applied to accounts at this stage.
If you believe you may be eligible for Conveyance Allowance please contact the school office. (See 'Information for Families' below for details).
Please ensure you have downloaded our school app - SZapp!
OSHClub
Out of School Hours Care: OSH Club
Newsletter
Enrolments, Bookings and Enquiries
Parents will need to enrol with OSHClub. Please visit https://www.oshclub.com.au/ and click on "REGISTER". You will need to enrol with the Monbulk Primary School service.
Uniform Shop
School Uniform Shop
Ross Haywood Sports - Update:
St Paul's Online Uniform Shop
https://www.rhsports.com.au/product/school_wear/st_pauls_monbulk_ps
With lockdown restrictions easing we are happy to announce that the Uniform Shop at 12/100 New St, Ringwood is open for in person purchases with some restrictions.
For the health and safety of both our Customers and Employees, the shop will be open to one family group at a time. Should there already be customers in the store we ask that you wait outside.
The store is now a CASHLESS STORE, EFTPOS transactions will be the only acceptable method of purchase. We have also closed the changerooms and sample sizes will not be able to be tried on by students in the short term.
We have also made some changes in the shop including perspex screens at the registers and hand sanitisers supplied. We ask that parents please apply this as you enter the store.
Online ordering continues as normal with all delivery options available including contactless pick up as previously mentioned.
Please phone the store on 9870 1377 if you have any further queries.
Secondhand Uniform Shop - Now Open
Our secondhand uniform shop is managed by Kylie Storer with items being purchased by gold coin donation. If you are looking for items of secondhand uniform please feel free to text Kylie on 0430 546 611 with your wish list. Kylie will be at school on Friday mornings to fill orders. Items can be sent home via class tubs or collected from the school office.
The secondhand uniform shop welcomes donations of St Paul's current school uniform items which are still in good condition. We do not accept the old St Paul's round neck jumpers, yellow shirts or non-St Paul's items. If you have any current uniform items you no longer need please feel free to leave your donations at the school office.
Community Notices
Information for Families
Below you can find various information including the following:
- Fee Support for Families
- Conveyance Allowance
- Operoo (formerly Care Monkey)
- PTV - School Bus Management System
- CDF Pay - Online School Shop
- NCCD - Nationally Consistent Collection of Data
- Ministerial Order No. 870 - Child Safe Standards
Fee Support for Families
Do you have a valid Concession Card or Health Care Card (HCC)?
If so, you could be entitled to financial support in the form of:
1. Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF)
The CSEF is a state government funded scheme to assist eligible families with payments for their child’s camps, sports, and excursion activities run by their school. To be eligible, parents must hold a valid means-tested concession card, see further information on the flyer below.
- Families who received CSEF support in 2020 do not need to re-apply as the application will remain active for 2021. However, if you have an additional student who has commenced school this year, you will need to contact the office to add them to your application.
- If you have not received CSEF support in the past and are unsure as to whether you qualify please contact the school office to discuss eligibility and/or to request an Application form.
2. Health Care Card Holder Discounts
Please note holders of valid and current Australian Government Health Care/Concession Cards may also be eligible for fee relief of $500 towards school fees/levies for the current year. If you have any queries or feel you may be eligible, please contact the school office.
The Catholic System also provides additional funding to the school, per eligible child. The funds for this additional support are provided by Catholic Education Melbourne and can be used to provide a portion of additional fee relief for eligible families.
Conveyance Allowance
- If you are currently receiving Conveyance Allowance there is no need to re-apply unless you have an additional student who has commenced school this year.
- If you are not sure whether you qualify for Conveyance Allowance but believe you may be eligible please contact the school office to discuss eligibility or to request an Application form.
Operoo (formerly Care Monkey)
Please ensure you login to Operoo to update the Student Profiles for your children—it is essential that we have current medical, contact and family details for all students to ensure our information is always up to date.
School Bus Management System (SBMS)
The school bus is managed by Public Transport Victoria (PTV) via the School Bus Management System (SBMS). If you have any questions or wish to apply for a place on the school bus, please contact PTV on 1800 800 007 or visit the PTV website: schoolbusapplication.ptv.vic.gov.au
CDF Pay - School Payment System
NCCD - Nationally Consistent Collection of Data
