Term 4, Week 4 Newsletter

Principal's Message

Parent Participation- Important Meeting for 2024

The Halloween Disco and the upcoming Fun Run on Friday have highlighted the importance and value of parent involvement at St Finbarr’s. This year was the first year of our Parent Community Group and it is going from strength to strength. We have a group of enthusiastic parents with ideas and energy. What we have learnt this year is the importance of planning ahead and effective communication to ensure all stakeholders have the opportunity to participate. To help us in our planning for next year we are holding a meeting for ALL interested parties after school (3.20pm) on Wednesday 22nd November. We will be seeking nominations for Class Parents as well as social and fundraising events for 2024. We’d love to see you there. We appreciate that this timeframe does not always suit working families however our feedback is that it is still more viable than a night meeting. If you are unable to attend the meeting but would like to have input or nominate for a role in 2024 please contact the school.

Building Plans

Last week I attended a meeting with the architects and project manager from the Catholic Schools Office in regard to our proposed building plans at St Finbarr’s. We are excited to announce that we will be continuing with our vision of creating additional space for 2024. Immediate works planned for the Christmas break involve renovations to the two classrooms underneath the school hall which will ensure the rooms are flood proof and ventilation and natural lighting is greatly improved. As soon as possible we will install three new classrooms which would also allow us to have our library return. The Lismore flood crisis of 2022 and the unexpected increase in building materials post Covid have been the driving force behind the stalling of our plans. I greatly appreciate the patience and understanding of families and the adaptability of staff and students in coping with the situation. More information will be shared when official correspondence is received from the Diocese of Lismore Catholic Schools office.

After School Care

We are aware of several families' needs for After School Care at St Finbarr’s. Previously, having little space available at school has limited our options. With our current new building plans we are excited to be in a position to be seeking providers who may be able to reintroduce After School and Vacation Care. To ensure the service is viable a  survey will be sent to families this week and can be found following this link. Please take the time to complete this short survey which will help us with our planning for 2024.

Canteen Coordinator

It has been wonderful to see the Canteen being utilised this term with such a variety of items on sale and great teamwork and camaraderie amongst the parent community. We are currently seeking expressions of interest from parents / community members who may be interested in taking on a paid position as Canteen Coordinator for 2-3 days each week in 2024. For all enquiries please contact the Principal.

Sweet Treats at School

We are well aware of the negative impacts of overdoing the intake of sugar on children. Post Halloween we often see a downtown in concentration levels and an increase in unsettled behaviour among many children. The Fun Run and Halloween Disco has seen an increase in fundraising activities including bake sales, ice blocks, lolly bags and lollipop lucky dips. As a school, we are now focusing on and promoting a healthier approach to eating at school. This will be on the agenda at our next school assembly next Monday. Year Six parents will be selling ice blocks as a fundraiser for the Year Six Graduation from next week on specified days. There is no obligation for students to purchase these treats and I recommend having a conversation with your child regarding their choices and spending capabilities. We will also be asking students not to bring candy canes as presents or treats as we approach the festive season.

Uniform

For consistency across the school we have begun the process of phasing out white socks worn on sports days. From the commencement of 2024 all students will wear blue socks each day at school even on sports days. We thank you for your support ensuring your children are wearing the correct school uniform.

Parking in Bus Lane

Blanches bus company has contacted the school and has asked us to remind parents to not park in the bus lane when they are collecting students from school. Please use the parent pick up line and keep this lane free at all times for buses.

No Assembly this week
Due to the colour fun run this Friday, there will be no afternoon assembly. The Assembly will be held on Monday morning in the hall, 9am.

Staffing News

We welcome Mr Matt Bermingham to the teaching team next year. Matt has been working as Learning Support this year and we look forward to him leading his own class in 2024. We also welcome Jessie Burfield to the teaching team in 2024. Jessie has been a regular at St Finbarr’s this year and we look forward to her leading the new Kinders next year. Another new staff member is Danni Tully. Danni joins us from the Brisbane Catholic Diocese and will bring great energy and enthusiasm to the school. In other staffing news, Mr Nick Houghton has resigned from his position at St Finbarr’s. Nick was seconded to the Catholic Schools Office this year and has accepted a new contract in his role as Education Officer. We wish Nick all the best with his continuing career in education.

Intentions for 2024

We have a large number of families on the waiting list for St Finbarr's and understand there are some families not returning next year. Please notify the office if your child/ren are not returning to St Finbarr's in 2024 as this will support our class size planning and organisation. 

Well Done Marley

Marley Holman (Yr 5) has been selected to travel to London in September next year to take part in the West Ham United Training Academy. He has worked so hard to achieve this goal through team training, private coaching sessions, early mornings every day for the trials and even travelling to Queensland regularly. Well done Marley and we’re all looking forward to hearing more about your exciting adventure.

School Fees 2024

For 2024 there will be a 5% increase to the tuition fees to match the CPI increase, all other school fee levies will remain unchanged.

2024 fees will be billed at the beginning of each term. Term 1 fees will be issued in week 2, Term 1 fees will comprise of all the levies for 2024, except the building levy which will be billed each term.  Below is a breakdown of the 2024 fees.

Yours in Partnership, 
Mr Tim Bleakley
Principal

Mission

Last Friday, students from Years 3-6 celebrated a beautiful Mass at St Finbarr's Church. The Mass celebrated the message of knowing the comforting truth that Jesus is a true friend who calls us to a deeper friendship, promising to always love and comfort us and to walk side by side with us forever.

Our next school Mass will be celebrated by our Kindergarten Year 1 & Year 2 students on Friday the 24th of November., St Finbarr's Church at 9:30am. All Finnie's families and friends are warmly invited to         celebrate this Mass with our school and parish community.

Lord,

There is no more faithful friend than you, Jesus.

There is no richer friendship; no deeper intimacy;

no greater joy, peace and comfort than that which

comes to us through union with you.

Amen

Yours in Partnership

Mrs Sonya Piccoli- AP Mission & Additional Needs

Learning & Teaching

World Teachers Day: Friday October 27 

Last Friday was World Teachers Day - a day to honour, thank and celebrate the work of teachers. I would like to acknowledge and thank our dedicated teaching staff; their commitment and expertise continue to build our school as a community full of love, learning and friendship.  When the opportunity presents itself, I encourage you to thank a teacher for their dedication, passion, and pastoral care for our students.

Semester Two Reports

Students will be issued with Semester 2 Reports in Week 9 of Term 4. We will notify parents via email once reports are available via Compass. If you have any queries about Compass access, please contact Buffy in the office. 

PAT Maths

This week all students in Yrs 2-6 will be doing their annual PAT Maths (progressive achievement test). This test is a system based assessment by ACER (Australian Council for Education Research) designed to measure learning growth. The test is done annually and is a multiple choice and online test done on ACER's website. These tests do not assess any aspect of the NSW curriculum, so the results are not reported on or communicated to students or to parents. They are diagnostic tests and are used to inform instruction and learning progress.

At St Finbarr’s we value the data we gather and use it to inform professional learning and learning interventions.

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Finnies Colour Fun Run

A HUGE THANK YOU to our amazing sponsors and to all who have been sharing our link, raising money and promoting and supporting our Colour Fun Run. With all our fundraising efforts combined we are currently sitting at 44K!!

Let's share that link and hit our epic goal of 50 THOUSAND DOLLARS!!

Yours in Partnership, 
Lauren Magnus 
Assistant Principal - Learning and Teaching

Student Awards

Wellbeing

Yours in Partnership,

Amy McGregor-School Counsellor

Parent Connect