2023 TERM DATES
- Term 1: 27th January - 6th April (2:30pm finish)
- Term 2: 24th April - 23rd June (2:30pm finish)
- Term 3: 10th July - 15th September (2:30pm finish)
- Term 4: 2nd October - 20th December (1:30pm finish)
SCHOOL COUNCIL NOMINATIONS By 4pm on Monday, February 20, I had received the following nominations for the vacant School Council positions in the following categories:-
SCHOOL EMPLOYEE CATEGORY (two vacancies)
- Gillian Nicholls
- Lucy Addati
PARENT CATEGORY (five vacancies)
- David Filcoff
- Michael Parrent
- Kate Cullen
- Jason Hemingway
- Ben Bailey
Accordingly, I declare that these nominations have been successful and the nominees are duly elected to fill the two year vacancies on School Council.
As the number of nominations in both categories equals the number of vacancies, I declare all nominees to be elected to our School Council for 2023.
SCHOOL COUNCIL NEWS The final meeting of the outgoing School Council was held on Tuesday night. Business discussed included the formal approval of our Grade 6, 5 and 4 school camps for 2023, the approval of two of our three pupil free days for this year (Monday, May 8 and Monday, July 10), approval of a range of finance policies and discussion on building works progress.
GRADE 6 HOUSE CAPTAIN BADGE PRESENTATION We were graced with the presence of Joel Carroll, Olympic Hockey Medallist, at Monday’s assembly. Joel was a member of the 2012 Australian Hockey team that won Bronze in a playoff match against England at the London Olympics, and played 105 international games for Australia. It was very kind of him to give up his time to present the 2023 house captains with their badges.
GETTING TO KNOW YOU INTERVIEWS I trust that these went well on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons and evenings this week. As always, if you have other needs or times that you need to meet with your child’s teacher please email and they will try and arrange a mutually convenient time.
DISTRICT SWIMMING Our first interschool event for 2023 takes place next Monday at WaterMarc Greensborough when our school swimming team takes part in the district swimming carnival. I take this opportunity to wish all competitors the best of luck and to thank Lucas Prell and Patrick Walsh in particular for their tireless efforts in planning and organizing this event on behalf of our scshool.
SCHOOL PHOTO DAY A reminder that school photos will be taken next Tuesday, February 28.
FAREWELL LISA MAY Lisa May (0.6 Art) is resigning from the Department of Education (and Viewbank PS) and moving to Queensland at the end of this month. Lisa has been with us for 12 years and her empathetic and friendly manner and undoubted Art talents will be missed by all, but likewise we wish her all the best in this new phase of her life.
SALLY RUDDOCK We wish Sally Ruddock, Grade 1/2R, all the very best for her wedding to Greg this Sunday. Hope it is a perfect day in all regards!
That’s it for me again this week. Have a lovely weekend.
Kind regards,
Bill Kersing
Principal
Parents and Friends We are so grateful to our school community for the support they have shown so far. There are a number of favourite events (e.g. Mother’s Day Stall, Father’s Day Stall and Disco) that are in the process of being organised, as well as potentially a few others. We need to keep these a secret at the moment until details and dates are locked in. That said, if you would like to know what they are, coming along to our P&F Meetings is a great way to stay informed… All fundraising must be approved by School Council, with the School Council having the final say on where these funds are spent.
It is hard to believe now, but 12 months ago we had only 4 people turn up to a meeting. Since then, the P&F has grown substantially. The best thing about this is now jobs are not being left to only a handful of parents – and there are parents who have had experience last year to help guide the way.
A Department of Education requirement for schools who have Parents and Friends Committees for the purpose of fundraising, must hold an Annual General Meeting each year. All positions are to be declared vacant, and nominees will be sought for President, Secretary and Treasurer. Previous holders of these position are more than welcome to nominate. The Annual General Meeting will be held online (via WebEx) on Thursday 9th March. A link to the meeting will be in next week’s Viewbank Voice and also sent via Compass a few days before the meeting.
Have a great weekend.
Patrick
Shared responsibility of members of the school community to behave respectfully Viewbank Primary School prides itself on being a safe, inclusive and respectful school setting. Positive school environments are important because everyone has the right to be safe and play a shared role in being respectful. Everyone at Viewbank, particularly staff and parents/carers, play a role in making school a better place for learning and work.
Respectful behaviours are important in building strong, healthy and thriving school communities.
School staff in Victorian Government schools have to follow the Respectful Workplaces Policy to build and maintain a respectful workplace, including:
- treating each other with respect and consideration
- being inclusive, valuing others and accepting their differences
- recognising the efforts and achievements of others
- considering our impact on others
- calling out and addressing behaviour that can lead to bullying, harassment and discrimination.
Parents/carers can create a positive environment for learning and work by:
- modelling positive behaviour to their child/children and to the school community
- communicating politely and respectfully with all members of the school community
- working with the school to achieve the best outcomes for their child/children
- communicating constructively with the school
- making use of the expected processes and protocols when raising concerns
- following the school's processes for communication with staff and making complaints
- treating all school staff, students, and other members of the school community with respect.
When this relationship is built on respect and trust, students learn better and feel like they belong in the school. The foundation of a good collaborative relationship is based on:
- open and honest communication
- trust and respect
- working together
- fair and reasonable expectations by all.
Around our school you will see the Respectful School Communities Start with Respectful Behaviour poster, reminding all community members how to help keep our school community safe, supported and respectful.
Respectfully raising complaints at your school The Department supports your right to make a complaint and provides a Parent Complaints Policy to help you do this. Viewbank PS also has a Concerns and Complaints Policy available on the school website. Complaints from parents and carers help the school community by providing feedback to improve how a school operates. Schools welcome complaints from parents and carers if they are communicated in a respectful and constructive way.
Volunteer Induction - Child Safety Standards Thank you to the many parents who attended the Volunteer Induction Sessions held at school over the last week. Please make sure you complete and sign the Child Safety Standards Induction Checklist and return it to the school office along with your Working With Children Card, if you haven’t already done so, so that you will be ready to volunteer throughout the year at different events.
If you were unable to attend either of the sessions you can complete the induction process at home. All the relevant Child Safety documents as well as the Volunteer Induction PowerPoint are available on the school website.
Once you have read and viewed the required material, please complete and sign the Child Safety Standards Induction Checklist and return it to the school office along with your Working With Children Card.
Have a great week.
Gill
EXTRA-CURRICULAR ITEMS & ACTIVITIES (Enhancing and Broadening the Student Experience). The school provides camps, excursions, incursions, and other activities that enhance or broaden the schooling experience, and these are provided on a user-pays basis. Families will be invoiced for these activities via Compass and run on a user-pays basis. We have support for families facing financial hardship to attend these activities. Term 1 charges and permissions are now overdue.
CAMPS, SPORTS AND EXCURSIONS FUND (CSEF) The Government assisted Fund provides payments for eligible students to attend camps, sports, incursions and excursions ($125 per child). Applications for the Governments ‘CSEF Fund’ can be accessed by filling in the application form and returning it to the office with a copy of your current Health Care Card. Families holding a valid means-tested concession card or temporary foster parents are eligible to apply) i.e. a Centrelink Health Care Card or Pension Concession Card or Veteran Affairs Gold Card.
If you applied for the CSEF at your child's school in 2022, you do not need to complete an application form in 2023 unless there has been a change in your family circumstances.
You only need to complete an application form if any of the following changes have occurred:
- new student enrolments; your child has started or changed schools in 2023 or you did not apply in 2022.
- changed family circumstances; such as a change of custody, change of name, concession card number, or new siblings commencing at the school in 2023.
Funds are paid to the school and will be automatically allocated to the Extra-Curricular Items and Activities unless otherwise stated by the parent at the start of the year.
WORKING WITH CHILDREN CHECK (WWCC) A ‘Working with Children Check’ is just one part of creating and maintaining a child-safe environment. It is a requirement that all parents/careers who wish to volunteer or participate in school activities have a current WWCC. https://www.workingwithchildren.vic.gov.au/
Kind regards,
Lucy Addati
Business Manager
Who are we? We are the School Leadership Team – Bill, Gill and Patrick
Between us, we have worked in 22 schools for a combined total of 103 years! This has included 48 years in total as Assistant Principals, Principals (or previous names for these positions such as Head Teacher). Our professional education has included: 1 x Master of Education, 2 x Bachelor of Education, 1 x Bachelor of Economics, 2 x Diploma of Primary Teaching, 1 x Graduate Certificate of Principal Preparation and 1 x Diploma of Community Services. There are also too many to count Department of Education courses.
We have worked as a team since the beginning of Term 4, 2018. There is not much we haven’t seen or dealt with (although we do get surprised from time to time)! If you see us in the yard, please say hello. We are always up for a chat!
On Friday 17th March, we are hosting a Colour Explosion School Run 4 Fun with @AustralianFundraising! 🏃😱
The fundraising portal has now opened at http://www.australianfundraising.com.au/. Make sure you keep an eye out for your child's sponsorship booklet to get started.
Here's to a colourful 2023 🌈! There are many wonderful prizes students can earn through their individual fundraising. We can't wait to fundraise with you 🙌. Stay tuned!
More details will be coming through Compass soon.
Lower Plenty Bakehouse will be providing the school with fundraising Lunch Orders every Thursday. These lunches have been implemented via our Parents and Friends Committee. All money raised will be used towards our major school upgrade.
Our Term 1 Fundraising Lunch Order Dates are:
- Thursday 2nd March (Orders closing on 27th February, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 9th March (Orders closing on 6th March, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 16th March (Orders closing on 13th March, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 23rd March (Orders closing on 20th March, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 30th March (Orders closing on 27th March, 3:00pm)
- Thursday 6th April (Orders closing on 3rd April, 3:00pm)
Orders need to be placed in advance via Compass Canteen. Ordering will close the Monday before the lunch date at 3pm. All of Term 1 lunch dates are now open for orders, and can be placed in advance for the whole term if you choose to do so.
Please see attached a Parent User Guide on how to order via Compass Canteen. Please note a 35 cents order fee will be charged at check out.
Parent assistance is required on Lunch Days from 10:30am to 12:30pm to assist with the packing of our orders. If you are available to assist in anyway can you please email the school at viewbank.ps@education.vic.gov.au so your name can be added to our roster.
Thank you for your support.
ICY POLE FRIDAY Students are able to purchase icy poles over the counter at lunchtime every Friday. All icy poles cost $1.00 each.
Entertainment Book 20% of the membership goes directly to support our fundraising at Viewbank Primary School. https://www.entertainment.com.au/current-promotion
Lunches must be ordered online using the CLASSROOM CUISINE website.
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WEEKLY SECOND HAND UNIFORM SALE - Every Friday 8:45am to 9:15am, next to the music room. Jumpers with the school logo, long and short sleeve school polo tops and school dresses will be $5.00 and all other items $2.00. We are currently asking for donations of any unwanted reusable school uniform items to sell at our stall.
Instrumental Music Enrolments Can all students who would like to join our school instrumental music programs please inform the relevant teacher below of your expression of interest.
SINGING WITH GABRIELLA - Gabriella
- Email: favrettogab@gmail.com
- Phone: 0413 676 733
STRINGS - MR CAI
- Email: cai66@optusnet.com.au
- Phone: 0403 490 078
GUITAR/BASS GUITAR - Alec
- Email: alec.stalder@gmail.com
DRUMS/BEGINNER KEYBOARD - Michael
- Email: michaelfindlaymcnab@gmail.com
- Phone: 0451 394 540
PIANO/KEYBOARD – Tiaryn Griggs
- Email: tiaryngriggs@gmail.com
Our school has partnered with an independent provider called TheirCare to provide exceptional Outside School Hours Care services for our school community.
The program is available for all children at Viewbank Primary School from 6:30am until 9:00am in the morning and from 3:30pm until 6:15pm each school day.
During School Holidays & Pupil Free Days the service will operate from 6:30am until 6:15pm.
Families wishing to use this service can visit the TheirCare website: www.theircare.com.au
Families are eligible for a Government Rebate called the Child Care Subsidy which can reduce the cost per session by up to 85%.
More information can be obtained by contacting the school or ringing TheirCare Support Team on 1300 072 410.
TheirCare provides a stimulating and safe environment for all children. During sessions, children develop life-skills, friendships, confidence and creativity through play-based programs.
A PLUS SCHOOLWEAR Our uniform supplier is A Plus Schoolwear which is located at 41-43 Northern Road Heidelberg West. Open hours are Monday, Wednesday and Friday’s from 9am to 4.30pm (closed on weekend and public holidays).
You can also purchase your uniform online at www.aplusschoolwear.com.au