Our Opening School Mass last Friday was a true celebration of all things that are great about Sacred Heart. We joined together to pray for a safe and productive year where we “live with courage and lead with love”. Our 2021 captains, India Bodycott and Jack Murphy outlined for their peers what this year’s theme means to them and for our school.

“Looking into this new year with all its possibilities, all the leaders and the entire Year 10 class  are excited to leave our footprint on Sacred Heart, we can do this by planning new ideas to improve our school, coming up with fun activities for you all to enjoy, but most importantly doing our best to ensure this year provides our school with opportunities that we missed in 2020. We need to keep building on the strength and the courage that we found last year and turn this into a memorable year for all. We want to build on that foundation like all the leaders who have gone before us. Yes our school is welcoming, but we want to make it more welcoming, as Mrs Trinder always says yes this school is exceptional, yes this school is kind, but we want to make sure that everyone’s experience is that this school is exceptionally kind. Everyone has the right to feel like they belong, everyone has the right to contribute and to have a voice. It is our job to lead, but to also listen, it is our job to work but to welcome, it is our job to be a role model to all and a friend to everyone. Leadership is not wearing a badge but living up to the expectations of the students, our teachers, our parents and ourselves. We want to make a difference. With you by our side. We live with courage and lead with love because it gives everyone the opportunity to feel valued, to feel like they have someone to express their ideas to, to encourage and support them. We look forward to leading you through all that this year has to offer and we promise to lead our school with courage, love, faith and a strong mindset. So our school can be on our guard, stand firm in our faith, be courageous, be strong.”

Last night our very dedicated and enthusiastic P & F met to plan out fundraising options for the year and to continue preparation for the biannual Fete. This is a very important event to help raise valuable funds for resources for our students. It was so impressive to see the energy and generosity of spirit that this small band of parents expressed as they work for the benefit of our students. The Fete night promises to be a whole lot of fun and there are a range of different stalls, activities and food on offer. If you would like to help please contact Nancy Smith and Sharon Williams through the school and they will assign you a job. Keep 12 March free to come together as a community to support our students. The Fete will be held in the COLA on Sutton st and begins at 5. We hope to see you there.

This past week we have had a blitz on attendance and making sure that ours students are given every opportunity to learn. The consistency of being in class every day is very important for students to make connections, learn new skills and content and to consolidate what they have already been taught. Partnerships between school staff and families will mean that attendance problems are detected early and a consistent approach is used to support the child or young person. Regular communication between schools and families during periods of non-attendance helps everyone work together to support the child or young person to return to school. Please contact the school if you think that your child is anxious about attending. It's not unusual for students to sometimes be nervous or worried about going to school. But for some students, this worry can be excessive and can lead to school refusal.  Recognising the signs that a child or young person might be experiencing social or emotional difficulties helps teachers take appropriate action. School refusal can be a flag for anxiety or other mental health issues. Recognising and responding to school refusal means that teachers might pick up on issues that would otherwise be missed. The child or young person and their family can also be referred to other services or professionals who can support them.

A reminder that tonight we will be hosting the Year 7 Information Evening and the Kindergarten Information Evening at 6pm We will also host the Welcome to Sacred Heart BBQ at 6.30pm for all our new families tonight.  This is always a highlight of the calendar because it is a wonderfully informal way to meet new families and for them to be welcomed into our community.

Next week our Year 9 students will depart for the sunny South Coast for the excursion to Tathra that was postponed due to COVID. This will be a fantastic way to start the year and to learn new skills and try different things at Kianinney Camp. Thank you to Ms Buchanan for her organisation and enthusiasm and Mr Mooney and Mr Alderman for volunteering to attend. Our students are usually exceptionally well behaved and appreciative of the experience. Thank you to all the families who have made this experience possible with their support. We pray for safe travels and a memorable experience.

Our Annual Swimming Carnival will be held tomorrow and it promises to be a great success. Thank you to Ms Withers and Ms Van Kerk Oerle for all the additional work that goes into the smooth running of such a large event. We welcome parent spectators but remind them that there are new measures in place to comply with COVID protocols. They will be explained upon entry but essentially Parents must remain in the spectator area and are not permitted in the student zone. Students may move between the two designated areas. We hope you can spend some time with us tomorrow.

Next Monday night there will be an extra special Stage 1 meeting for parents to learn about the new literacy/reading program in our Infants classes. Teachers will outline what is involved, what has changed and how you can support your child. This will be a very informative evening and will hopefully equip our parents with additional skills to support their child with their reading and literacy skills. It will be held on Monday 15 February at 5.30pm in the Breakout space in the Infants building.

Remember: three things in human life are important: the first is to be kind; the second is to be kind; and the third is to be kind. (Henry James)

Mrs Nicky Trinder

Principal