Dear Parents and Carers,

I just wanted to express my sincere gratitude for your support and well wishes during my appraisal. Your recognition of my efforts and contributions means a lot to me.

Thank you to Mr Thorne, staff and the Leadership team for their hard work and dedication in providing the support to our students that makes St Therese a fantastic school.

I'd also like to thank Fr Duane for his valuable time and appreciation of his kind, caring and motivating words.

I am committed to continuing to give my best and contributing to our shared goals and striving for even better achievements in the future.

I am very blessed and fortunate to be working at St Therese

Mrs Vezinias 

Assistant Princpal 

National Child Protection Week

Next week, 3 - 9 September 2023, is National Child Protection Week.

The purpose of Child Protection Week is to engage, educate and empower Australians to understand the complexities of child abuse and neglect and work together to prevent it. At Catholic Education Diocese of Wollongong (CEDoW) our unwavering commitment to child safety is evidence of our Living Catholicity and sits at the heart of everything we do.

The frequency and complexity of concerns related to child abuse and neglect are increasing.

During Child Protection Week, we want you to know that what you are doing is making a difference to students in your school. We know you are having difficult conversations with parents, and that you ‘go above and beyond’ to provide extra support to students in need. We see the efforts you are making to keep students safe and we thank you for your commitment, kindness and courage.

If you can spare 5 minutes, please watch Josh Shipp’s powerful message, “The Power of One Caring Adult.” Please be aware that the subject matter may be confronting.

The CEDoW Child Safety and Professional Services team, known as CEDoW Child Protection, is available for all school staff, to walk with you in the recognition, response and reporting of child safety concerns. We can:

• help talk through concerns,
• provide advice on responding,
• ensure external reporting commitments are met; and
• share some of the administrative burden.

We call this ‘sharing the risk’ with schools, and we hope that it will both lighten your load and lead to better outcomes for students and families.

The theme for 2023 Child Protection Week is 'where we start matters'. CEDoW Child Protection wanted to start by thanking you and your staff.

Action: As a small token of our acknowledgement and appreciation, all staff will receive a 2023 CEDoW Child Protection Week bookmark. These bookmarks will be distributed directly to principals at the Colloquium Day on Wednesday 30 August 2023. If your school is not attending the Colloquium, a member of the CEDoW Child Protection team will deliver the bookmarks to your school. Additionally, a brief thank you video from the CEDoW Child Protection team will be featured in the all staff Gateway News edition during Child Protection Week.

MATHS

For extended leave for holidays, parents are asked to complete an ‘Application for Exemption from Attendance at School’ form. This is available from the office.