NEWSLETTER 14th March, 2019 Siena Catholic Primary School 150 Eleanor Drive, Lucas Vic 3350 PO Box 4213, Alfredton Vic 3350 Phone: 03 5334 3096 Email: admin@slucas.catholic.edu.au Web: www.slucas.catholic.edu.au Dear Parents, Thank you to those parents who were able to attend our Community Dialogue meeting on Tuesday evening. We will hold one of these meetings each term to share what s happening at our school. Our community groups reported back, and a summary of those reports is listed below: Policy & Building Reference Group Catholic schools in the Diocese of Ballarat will gradually move to a new system of governance with a company known as DOBCEL replacing parish priests as the governing authority. Siena Catholic PS will remain with Fr Justin Driscoll as the governing authority for the time being Construction on our new Administration and Multipurpose space is due to be completed half way through this year. A new classroom block will shortly be going to tender Social & Wellbeing Families had an opportunity to gather and get to know one another at our Opening Mass and picnic. Another opportunity to gather together will happen when we celebrate St Catherine of Siena s feast day on 29 April New members are welcome to join Nicole s group Care packages have been provided to two families A family footy night and our Christmas celebration are also on our 2019 calendar Fund Raising Our first Trivia night is coming up on 30 March, parents are encouraged to get in early to buy their tickets A Hot Cross bun drive will be organised shortly through Baker s Delight Other events planned for 2019 include the Mothers and Fathers day stalls, a school disco, a movie outing, family photos, our Spring Racing carnival walkathon and a Bunnings BBQ. We may also be having a sausage sizzle on election day as Siena is likely to be a polling booth for the Federal election We thank all our parents who assist in these groups and help out when they can. New members are welcome in any of the groups, please let us know if you d like to volunteer in any way. Our next meeting will be on 14th May at 7.00pm. Kind regards, Jo The Siena School Community promotes the safety, wellbeing and inclusion of all children Volunteers must complete the Siena Volunteer Induction Process in order to be a parent helper (must hold a current Working With Children s Check)
DATES TO REMEMBER Please remember to check our website calendar for any updates/changes Term 1 March 22 Incursion - Bully Zero March 30 Siena Trivia Night April 1 SCHOOL CLOSURE DAY April 5 LAST DAY OF TERM, 2.30pm dismissal April 23 First day Term 2 April 24 Siena Athletics Sports Day at Llanberris April 25 ANZAC Day holiday April 26 SCHOOL CLOSURE DAY PROJECT COMPASSION Project Compassion is Caritas Australia's annual Lenten fundraising and awareness-raising appeal. Millions of Australians come together in solidarity with the world's poor to help end poverty, promote justice and uphold dignity. In your child s classroom there are project compassion boxes. For the duration of Lent we invite you to donate any loose change you may have (5 cents are a good one to get rid of). Your generosity is kindly appreciated. Miss Brennan
2020 ENROLMENT Enrolments for next year opened recently: CURRENT FAMILIES If you have another child you wish to enrol at Siena next year (2020) you are asked to complete an enrolment form which can be downloaded from our website. The enrolment form needs to be returned to the office by the end of Term 1 so we know how many places we will have to offer to new families. If you are aware of any families who are interested in joining our school community next year, please pass the information below along to them. PROSPECTIVE NEW FAMILIES An Expression of Interest can be completed online via the link on our website www.slucas.catholic.edu.au and school tour appointments can be made by calling Gen in the office. The tour dates available are are listed below. An Application for Enrolment is also available on our website which can be downloaded, printed off, completed and handed to the office prior to the end of Term 1. Thursday, 7th March @ 2.30pm Wednesday, 13th March @ 2.30pm Friday, 22nd March @ 9.30am SCHOOL FEES Camps, Sports and Excursion Funding (CSEF) and Fee Remission If you are the recipient of a current Health Care Card, you may be entitled to CSEF Funding and/or Fee Remission. If you have not already handed the relevant form in to the school office (forms are available on the website) you will need to do this immediately as applications close soon. You will need to supply a copy of your current Health Care Card. Please note, applications must be re-submitted each year. Fee Payment Plans If you have not already handed your Fee Payment Plan to the office I ask that you do so immediately. This document is required for auditing purposes. There is a copy on the website for you to download and print off if required. VOLUNTEERING at Siena Catholic Primary School We have just updated our procedures for volunteering at our School. Throughout the year we ask for volunteer assistance at various school events e.g. swimming, excursions, sports day etc. In order to volunteer you need to complete our Volunteer Induction on our website. This should take 5-10 minutes. At the end of the Induction you will be asked to forward through a copy of your current Working With Children s Check or follow a link to apply for one as it is mandatory all Volunteers have one. Volunteers are an important part of our School Community and thank all those who volunteer for our School.
When: Where: Free: FREE COMMUNITY EVENT IN LUCAS Friday 22 March, 5:30 7:30pm Grassed area next to the Lucas Community Hub car park. (If inclement weather we will use Lucas Community Hub) BBQ by Alfredton Rotary and Children s activities by Kelly Sports As part of the City of Ballarat s Engaging Communities Program, we would love to hear what community projects or activities you would like to see in Lucas. Come along to our free community event to share your ideas and find out what is already happening in your neighbourhood. We are also encouraging residents to complete a short online survey by 31 March 2019. Please go to mysay.ballarat.vic.gov.au and select Engaged Communities Program Lucas. For more information, contact City of Ballarat Community Development Officer, Belinda on 0417 262 157. AFTER SCHOOL CARE The YMCA Ballarat OSHC team are excited to be offering an engaging program at Lucas Community Hub site. The program supports each student s needs and interests through the information provided from families on enrolment. Educators begin planning from your child s first day of attendance. My Time, Our Place Framework for School Age Care in Australia is the curriculum we implement- targeting five developmental outcomes; identity, community, wellbeing, learning and communication. Our programs utilise indoor and outdoor spaces, along with a combination of flexible and structured components. Children are encouraged to make choices and decisions, approach new experiences with confidence while collaborating with peers and educators. After School Care Hours Monday, Tuesday, Thursday 3:30pm 6:00pm Wednesday, Friday 2:00pm 6:00pm For more information regarding all of the programs offered by YMCA Ballarat please contact, Louise Richardson on 5329 2802 or Louise.Richardson@ymca.org.au