A note from the Principal
Dear Parents & Caregivers
Welcome back to 2025! I trust you have all had an enjoyable break and are excited for the return to school tomorrow. This year promises to be an exciting year at St Mary’s and we are all looking forward to getting it started.
If you haven’t popped in to school yet, you are going to be surprised with the completion of the roof over our basketball court! This project has been a long time coming with negotiations between the school, Catholic Education, the Shire, the builder, and the grant provider (Talison Lithium Pty Ltd). The structure will support our students with shade over the hot months and protection from the elements over winter. Thank you to all those who have been involved in the project coming to fruition.
I would like to welcome and acknowledge Mrs Nicole O’Connor to the team. Nicole started with us last term in a relief capacity and this year assumes the role of Year 5/6 teacher. We are all very excited to have someone of Nicole’s experience on staff and are looking forward to learning from her and working alongside her.
We also welcome Fr Wayne Bendotti to the team and as leader of our Parish community. Fr Wayne has come to us from Dardanup where he was much loved by the school and parish community. We are also looking forward to working with and learning from him.
This year we also welcome Fr George Kolodziej SDS as Bishop-Elect of Bunbury. His episcopal ordination will take place in St Patrick’s Cathedral on 19th March. As a school, we will be taking a small representation of staff and students to join in and celebrate this occasion.
Term 1 promises to be a very busy term with parent meetings, swimming carnivals, Masses and sacramental preparations, NAPLAN, and Easter. Please take note of the Term 1 calendar found HERE for all upcoming events.
I wish you all the best for the year ahead.
Uniform for Term 1
Students in Years 1 to 6 are expected to be in Summer uniform this term.
For boys this consists of the navy blue school shorts with blue school shirt and black leather shoes with school socks.
Girls may wear the summer dress for this term or the navy school skort with blue school shirt and black leather shoes with school socks.
The sport uniform for both boys and girls are the red sport shirts with blue sport shorts, school socks and sneakers.
Sport uniform days are the following:
Year 1: Thursday and Friday
Years 2-6: Wednesday and Friday
A school hat is to be worn for all outside activities, including recess and lunchtime.
Items from the uniform shop are available to purchase through the front office.
Welcome Back and Blessing of Leaders Mass
Our Welcome Back and Blessing of Leaders Mass will be held at 9am on Friday 7th February in the Church. All families and friends are welcome to join us.
Parent Information Sessions
Our class parent information sessions are planned for Wednesday 12th February. At these sessions, information regarding the class structure, communication and expectations will be given. These are short sessions and are not the place to discuss individual needs. If you do need to discuss anything personal with your teacher, please make another time to see them. The sessions will be held in the classrooms at the following times:
Parent Information Sessions
Pre-Primary
2:50pm
Year 1
3:10pm
Year 2
3:30pm
Year 3
3:50pm
Year 4
4:10pm
Year 5/6
4:30pm
P&F Social Night
This year, our P&F will be hosting a social evening at Station Square. This event will be held on Friday 28th February from 5pm. Children are welcome too! More information will be sent home to parents shortly.
All Sacraments and Staff Commissioning Mass
All students who are making their sacraments of Reconciliation (Year 3), First Holy Communion (Year 4) and Confirmation (Year 6) are required to attend the All-Sacraments Commissioning Mass on Sunday 23rd February at 10am in the Church. At this Mass, St Mary’s staff will also be commissioned as they look towards fulfilling their role in 2025. Following this Mass, we will host a community morning tea in the Multipurpose Room. Please bring a plate to share.
Swimming Trials and Carnival
Please note that the Year 3-6 swimming trials are booked for Wednesday 26th February, with the carnival being held on Friday 21st March. Parent support will be required for this event. More information will be provided to families shortly.
Code of Conduct
All adults (teachers, parents and carers) within Catholic Education, are required to abide by Catholic Education’s Code of Conduct. The code describes the minimum standards of conduct in all behaviour and decision making to ensure the safety and well-being of students.
The code outlines 12 conduct statements which must be adhered to, and if breached, must be reported to the principal. These include:
1. You act safely and competently.
2. You give priority to students’ safety and well-being in all your behaviour and decision making.
3. You act in accordance with the values of the Gospel as defined in the Code of Ethical Conduct.
4. You conduct yourself in accordance with laws, agreements, policies and standards relevant to your relationship with the school community.
5. You respect the dignity, culture, values and beliefs of each member of the school community.
6. You treat personal information about members of the school community as private and confidential.
7. You give impartial, honest and accurate information about the education, safety and well-being of students.
8. You support all members of the school community in making informed decisions about students.
9. You promote and preserve the trust and privilege inherent in your relationship with all members of the school community.
10. You maintain and build on the community’s trust and confidence in Catholic schools and the Church.
11. You act reflectively and ethically.
12. You allow students to have a voice in their education, safety and well-being.
All staff members must self-declare if they believe they may have been in breach of the Code. If you believe a staff member may have breached the Code, you can anonymously declare this HERE, or alternatively visit our website.
Additionally, our students have their own Code of Conduct which was written by our student leaders for our students. A copy of this can be found HERE.
Communication
Naturally, from time to time, issues may arise in the school involving your children. This happens as children learn to socialise with each other and work alongside adults. If your children experience anything that impacts their desire to learn or want to be at school, please communicate this with the teachers early so that they become aware of the situation and are able to put processes in place to support them. Good communication between home and school is essential in supporting students through their schooling experience and the class teacher is always the first point of call.
Teachers will communicate with parents in many ways, with the two main ways being SEESAW and SEQTA Engage Direct Messaging. Most of our families are familiar with SEESAW which, moving forward, will be used for sharing each student’s learning journey and any relevant class information. At the end of last year parents were asked to download an APP called SEQTA Engage which they were then able to access their child’s academic report. This platform will now be used for more personal communication between teachers and parents. For example, communication regarding student's pastoral or academic needs, or even the resolving of or notifying of absences. SEQTA Engage allows for seamless archiving of information related to students that may be required for future reference. Teachers will share more information regarding this process with families in the coming weeks.
NAPLAN
Please find HERE important information regarding NAPLAN in 2025. NAPLAN is a national assessment that all students across Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 complete each year. NAPLAN assesses students’ ability and growth across Literacy and Numeracy and provides schools with important information that can be used for strategic whole school decision making and to support the learning of individual students. NAPLAN will occur during weeks 7 and 8 of this term.
Parent Information
An updated parent information booklet, including teacher email addresses and school operations, can be found on our school website under the school information tab or by clicking HERE.
3-Year-Old kindergarten
St Mary’s will once again be offering a 3-Year-Old Kindergarten program commencing Term 2 on Thursdays from 9-12:30pm. To enrol in this program or to seek more information, please contact the office on 97324700. Please share this information with prospective families.
Enrolments
St Mary’s is open for enrolments and has places available across all year levels. Please share this information with prospective families, and contact the office on 97324700 should you be interested in a tour with the principal. More information, including an introductory video, can be found on our school website at http://www.stmarysdbrk.wa.edu.au/.
Thank you
Andrew Gammon
Principal
St Mary's School Donnybrook
Email: admin@stmarysdbrk.wa.edu.au
Website: www.stmarysdbrk.wa.edu.au
Location: 30 Bentley St, Donnybrook, WA, 6239
Phone: 08 97324700
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/St-Marys-Catholic-Primary-School-Donnybrook-1835840293345149/