Annual Report 2018 - St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary...SIMMONDS, WARREN, SETON The Tenison Woods Community: Year Three & Four STANLEY, FRANKEL, MACNAMARA, NOSSAL, MAWSON The

ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY

1

St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary

2

School Point Cook

2 0 1 8 REGISTERED SCHOOL NUMBER: 2 0 8 9

St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary School, Point Cook

2 0 1 8 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY 1

Contents Contact Details………………………………………………………………………………2

Minimum Standards Attestation…………………………………………………………….2

Our School Vision…………………………………………………………………………….3

School Overview……………………………………………………………………...………4

Principal’s Report………………………………………………………………………….….5

School Education Board Report…………………………………………………………….9

Education in Faith…………………………………………………………………….10

Learning & Teaching………………………………………………………………….12

Student Wellbeing…………………………………………………………………….15

Child Safe Standards………………………………………………………………….18

Leadership & Management…………………………………………………………20

School Community…………………………………………………………………..22

Future Directions…………………………………………………………………….23



Contact Details

ADDRESS 70 Carrick Street Point Cook VIC 3030

PRINCIPAL Leon Colla

PARISH PRIEST Fr John Healy

SCHOOL BOARD CHAIR Patricia Ducara

TELEPHONE (03) 8376 5400

EMAIL [email protected]

WEBSITE www.smocptcook.catholic.edu.au

E NUMBER E1399

Minimum Standards Attestation

I, Leon Paul Colla, attest that St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary School is compliant with: • All of the requirements for the minimum standards and other requirements for the

registration of schools as specified in the Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (Vic) and the Education and Training Reform Regulations 2017 (Vic), except where the school has been granted an exemption from any of these requirements by the VRQA

• Australian Government accountability requirements related to the 2018 school year under the Australian Education Act 2013 (Cth) and the Australian Education Regulations 2013 (Cth)

30/04/2019



Our School Vision

We, at St Mary of the Cross, are an inclusive and welcoming Catholic Community

of actively engaged learners.

We model Mary MacKillop’s servant leadership, to nurture compassionate and

respectful individuals who translate their beliefs into action.





School Overview

St Mary of the Cross is the newest of the five schools in the Parish of Laverton. The school is a Catholic primary school located in the Saltwater Coast Estate at the southern end of Point Cook, in Melbourne’s outer western suburbs. The school opened in 2014 in response to growing demand for places at the Parish’s two existing Catholic primary schools in Point Cook. The children in the foundation year commenced their education at either Stella Maris Primary School or Lumen Christi Primary School in 2013. The cohort moved to the new site at the start of 2014. The Foundation Principal was appointed and commenced duties in June 2013. St Mary of the Cross opened its doors on the current site at Saltwater Coast in January 2014 with an enrolment of 152 students across all year levels, and 16 staff members. In 2014, the population grew to 250 students and 22 staff. Stage two of the building was completed in December 2015 with the middle and senior learning communities taking up residency in preparation for the 2016 school year. The new stage builds on the contemporary design of the building allowing maximum flexibility in the learning spaces. The new stage also added a permanent administration area, teaching kitchen, boardroom and small group room. The school has a community café, located at the front entrance which is open to all parents and carers to utilize as they wish. This area is also used by staff as a staff room at break times. The design of the building allows for natural light and ventilation to maximize energy efficiency. During 2018 the third building stage was constructed by Raysett Constructions. This new space added five additional learning areas, staff study, reading nook, wet area, covered outdoor space and extensive landscaping including an all weather multi purpose court. The school is a warm and welcoming environment and reflects a contemporary approach to education in the twenty first century. We acknowledge that our school is in the business of learning and therefore we provide opportunities for all community members to become successful learners. Our learning focus at St Mary of the Cross is Needs Based. Targeted teaching to the individual needs of children will ensure the best outcomes for our learners. Our flexible learning spaces maximize the possibilities for targeted needs based learning to occur. The tracking of each child with supporting data is of paramount importance to ensure that children’s needs are addressed.



Principal’s Report

It has been a practice, since inception, that our Homerooms at St Mary of the Cross have been named after a theme. In 2018, our theme was Australian Scientists. This practice gives the children the opportunity to explore prominent people that have shaped Australian history and culture. In 2018, our Homerooms were named:

The Fitzroy Community:

Year Prep & One

BENNETT, WATSON, FLOREY,

JOHNSTON, HILL, BLACKBURN

The MacKillop Community

Year Two

SIMMONDS, WARREN, SETON

The Tenison Woods Community:

Year Three & Four STANLEY, FRANKEL, MACNAMARA, NOSSAL, MAWSON

The Penola Community:

Year Five & Six SIMPSON, COREY VERON

New Staff We welcomed several new staff to our community in 2018, including Brodie Thulborn and Cassie Meilak who were graduate teachers, Rachael Bourke, Sian Evans, Karen Wyer (Admin), Deborah Clay (Admin) Gill White (Admin), Xay Mnamvihanh (Maintenance) In 2018, we had a total of 39 full and part time staff. The school population grew from 289 to 351 students in 2018. We also increased from 13 to 17 homeroom spaces.

The focus of our work in Saltwater Coast has always been the engagement of the community in our learning spaces. We are working to create a school that encourages parents and carers to be involved in our learning spaces both in a formal and informal way. The school invites and encourages families to be involved in our weekly prayer services which are conducted on Mondays and Fridays. It is always wonderful to see such great numbers at these celebrations.



Major Events in 2018 Anzac Day Celebration This is a tradition at St Mary of the Cross with a full ANZAC day service conducted by Australian army personnel. Our ANZAC Garden is the perfect venue for this service and many parents and friends of the school attend. This year a number of our year six students attended the Shrine of Remembrance in honour of our ANZAC soldiers. Mother’s Day & Father’s Day Both our special days that are designed to celebrate our mothers, fathers or significant others, are significant days at St Mary of the Cross. Our morning activities on both days were well attended and our students enjoyed having their parents, Carers or significant others in their learning spaces with them. Morning tea follows and is always a highlight. 2018 was no exception.

Grandparents Day Another day in our calendar that is very well attended. We use a similar model to our parent days, starting with mass followed by activities. In 2018 we had over 250 grandparents and significant others visit on Grandparents Day. Fr John celebrated a beautiful mass that highlighted the importance of our grandparents and their role in the upbringing of our children.

Enhancing Catholic Identity Project During 2018 the five parish schools joined together to undertake the Enhancing Catholic Identity surveys. These surveys, developed in Belgium, have allowed many schools to make the Catholic nature of their schools, and to determine what type of Catholic school they are. In mapping our five schools, we believed that we were able to develop a long-term plan for the development of all of our schools across the parish. The Parish of Laverton also undertook the Searching for Parish Engagement Survey (SPES) survey. This survey gave valuable data on what type of parish we were and will enable us to develop informed decisions in the future. In September, the five Principals, five Religious Education Leaders, the Parish Priest and the Parish RE Leader travelled to Leuven in Belgium to undertake a three-week course in the interpretation of the data collected from the surveys, at the Catholic University of Leuven. During the visit, the delegates visited a number of local catholic schools in Belgium and Holland and were able to reflect on the cultural changes of a society heading toward a secularised world view. Professor Simmons visit As part of the Homegroup naming program, classes are encouraged to contact their Homeroom patron. In doing so, Simmonds class contacted Professor Michelle Simmonds, Professor of Quantum Physics at the University of New South Wales. Professor Simmonds was also the newly named Australian of the Year (2018).



Michelle was so delighted that the class was named after her, that she decided to come and visit the class during one of her visits to school. In a surprise move, during her visit she invited every child in Simmonds to come along to the University Open Day and join her in Sydney. So, in August, Year Two Simmonds, their parent chaperones, their teacher and two additional teachers boarded a plane at Avalon airport and headed to Sydney for three days. They visited the Taronga Park Zoo and were the first class to visit their new immersion centre, they sailed on Sydney Harbour and of course, went to the University of New South Wales where they met Michelle and had a tour of their facility. They joined in science experiments and met Eddie Woo, mathematician extraordinaire who took them for some maths workshops. Overall it was a very hectic and rushed trip, but one that will stay with the children forever. Amazing what one email can do! Board of Management The Board of Management was established in our first year in 2014, and it has been working hard throughout 2018. The Board Members (5 parent Reps and 3 teacher Reps) have been working very hard on a number of pressing policy issues. These included the new regulations around Privacy, Child safety standards and late in the year, the new Attendance and Reporting of Absences Policies. Parents and Friends Association The Parents and Friends also had a great year in 2018. The small group of dedicated parents provided a number of family friendly fundraising events including the Mid-Year Disco, Bake Sale and Trivia Night. Their initiatives were not just restricted to fundraising with a number of ‘Stay and Play’ activities conducted throughout the year. They also conducted regular coffee mornings and other information forums. We thank the small but dedicated group of parents who have made their efforts obvious to the whole community. Learning The students have also had a great year of learning. Students were involved in many learning activities including Maths Investigations, Inquiry Action projects and many more. Our Theme for the year ‘We must teach more by example than by Word’ also provided great impetus for discussions with students about their learning and how they best learnt. Our Kitchen Garden program also developed during the year with children in years 3-6 learning new skills in the kitchen as well as developing a new understanding of the importance of fresh food and how to prepare it. Students embraced the cooking and gardening program with gusto and were showing some amazing talent by the end of the year. Junior classes participated and used the kitchen in some way throughout the year, developing a ‘taste’ for the kitchen and the possibilities that were ahead.



This year also saw the construction of the new Saltwater P-9 College across the road from our school. Whilst additional school options are needed in Saltwater Coast, it was also sad to see many of our wonderful students move across the road to the new school. The addition of this new schooling option will mean that our growth will now slow somewhat, and we may remain a smaller school for a longer period of time, which will also provide some advantages for us as a community and for our students. St Mary of the Cross completed its sixth year at the end of 2018, one off site, and five on the current site. This year was a little cramped, which created a number of issues and problems that had to be dealt with. With the arrival of the new portable building and the work commencing on the new stage three wing, it was good to see that our cramped conditions were only a minor short-term issue. We look forward to 2019 when we will have access to our new wing and to many new learning opportunities.

Year Two visit to ACMI


2 0 1 8 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY 1 0

School Education Board Report

The Board of Management met on five occasions during 2018, and its primary focus was on reviewing and embedding the Child Safety Standards and reviewing several other policy documents including the School Attendance Policy which was ratified at its November meeting. The Board Annual General Meeting was held in May, and while the attendance was quite poor, the material covered was exceptionally forward thinking, and the vacant positions were filled with the people who nominated for them during the election process. Mr. John Cronin to the Board of Management. Mrs. Pauline Alabakis was also elected for a second term of office. Teacher representative Jen Ryan was farewelled at the end of the year and thanked for service. Jen moved on to a new school for 2019. Board Members for 2018: Leon Colla Principal (ex-Officio) John Healy Parish Priest (ex-Officio) Brendan Shanahan Principal Nominee Merle Cupido Teacher Representative Jen Ryan Teacher Representative Michelle Goodwin Parent Representative Pauline Alabakis Parent Representative Shane Curson Parent Representative Patricia Ducara Parent Representative The Community Member position remained unfilled throughout 2018. During 2017, the Parish of Laverton Education Board was formed. Patricia Ducara volunteered to be the Board’s Representative on the Parish Education Board. Due to the Catholic Identity project being conducted in September, the Parish Board only met twice during 2018.



Education in Faith

Goals & Intended Outcomes Goal: To continue to develop a welcoming, inclusive and contemporary Catholic

community. Intended Outcomes: That the Catholic Culture Aggregate indices are improved for staff, students and parents.

That student engagement in the Religious Education program is continually enhanced.

That the school moves towards the dialogue school model.

Students participating in the St Patrick’s Day mass at St Patrick’s Cathedral Melbourne

Achievements There were many achievements in this space in 2018 including a successful sacrament program, parent education programs, staff development in prayer and scripture, social justice programs and class and community eucharistic celebrations, just to name a few.



VALUE ADDED

The biggest project undertaken during 2018 was the Parish of Laverton Catholic Identity project where the five Principals, 5 RELs the Parish Priest and Parish REL completed the three-week Catholic identity course at Catholic University Leuven (Belgium). This course was three weeks in duration and participants unpacked the research questions, the findings and then had an opportunity to examine the data collected from our own schools and parish community. The flow on from this project has been that our schools are now committed to developing our school’s understanding of and commitment to its unique Catholic identity. The RELs meet regularly (post Leuven) as do principals and the Parish team. The objective of this project was to develop a common understanding and language around what it means to be Catholic in today’s world. At a more local level, the school conducted many activities throughout the year including the celebration of our Patron Saint’s Feast Day, community masses, community prayer time and social justice work in each of our communities. There was a pop-up prayer space which appeared around the time of Mary MacKillop’s Feast day. Children and parents were encouraged to write a prayer and place it on the wall. The students also participated in Community presentations of the Stations of the Cross (parents were invited to attend) at Easter time. A Community carols night also helped us to celebrate the Christmas season with our families.

Holy Week plays



Learning & Teaching

Goals & Intended Outcomes Goal: To develop actively engaged visible learners Intended Outcomes:

i. That student outcomes in Mathematics and English continue to progress.

ii. That the Teaching Climate Aggregate Index continues to improve. iii. That students are able to identify and demonstrate the characteristics of a visible

learner in their learning.

Achievements There have been many individual and school-based achievements in learning during 2018 including participation in regional and state maths competitions, participations in the Premier’s Reading Challenge and many other programs that are organised by teachers. A huge focus in 2018 has been the monitoring and testing of students and working with their data to ensure positive outcomes for all. STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

PROPORTION OF STUDENTS MEETING THE MINIMUM STANDARDS

NAPLAN TESTS 2016

%

2017

%

2016 - 2017 Changes

%

2018

%

2017 - 2018 Changes

%

YR 03 Grammar & Punctuation 100.0 90.7 -9.3 94.8 4.1 YR 03 Numeracy 92.3 96.3 4.0 100.0 3.7 YR 03 Reading 98.5 96.2 -2.3 98.3 2.1 YR 03 Spelling 98.5 98.1 -0.4 96.6 -1.5 YR 03 Writing 100.0 96.2 -3.8 100.0 3.8

YR 05 Grammar & Punctuation 100.0 92.3 -7.7 92.5 0.2 YR 05 Numeracy 100.0 92.3 -7.7 96.3 4.0 YR 05 Reading 100.0 92.3 -7.7 92.7 0.4 YR 05 Spelling 100.0 92.3 -7.7 96.2 3.9 YR 05 Writing 100.0 100.0 0.0 98.1 -1.9

The data presented above reflects the NAPLAN results from 2016-2018. In order to



appreciate the data presented, it is important to know that 2018 is the first year that a full cohort of students have completed the year 5 NAPLAN test program. In the past years, very small numbers completed the test program, for example, in 2017, only 13 students sat the year five test program whereas in 2018, 60 students sat the program. Moving forward, the data from 2018 will provide a baseline for future comparisons. It is difficult to evaluate the benefits or merits of programs implemented over the past few years with the NAPLAN data alone. Data from 2019 will provide us with some comparative data that will be more useful and accurate. The year three data in all test areas provides some information for us as these cohorts have larger numbers that have sat the test program (2018 – 60, 2017 – 52, 2016 – 65, 2015 – 12). The school has worked on Junior school literacy intervention and general literacy programs (Reading Recovery, THRASS, focused reading programs and professional learning programs for teachers) to assist them in recognising needs and developing research-based strategies that they can implement. The monitoring of our additional needs students and providing them with additional assistance has also contributed to our numbers in year three being mainly in the mid 90% range. These results have all improved in the 2017-2018 range except for spelling which has fallen slightly over the 2016-2019 range. Further work investigation by the Literacy team will hopefully uncover reasons for this dip in spelling results. The staff’s work with Michael Ymer and our STEM focus appear to be adding positively to the results in the Numeracy program in year 3, with developing results across the three-year span (2016-2018). It is anticipated that a school STEM focus and appointed Mathematics leader will continue to maintain high results in the Numeracy area. Other data in year three suggests that the skill of teachers and the programs currently in place are working in the areas of Reading, Writing, Spelling with a modest gain in Grammar and Punctuation. Interrogation of data from the 2019 program will provide further opportunities for discussion and program planning into the future.





Visit to the Shrine of Remembrance – Armistice day

Team ‘Trust’ games- Mill Valley Ranch (Year 5/6 camp)



Student Wellbeing

Goals & Intended Outcomes Goal: To develop a community awareness and understanding of the

interrelated areas of personal wellbeing (physical, social, spiritual, mental and emotional), learning success and personal growth.

Intended Outcomes: That the Student Wellbeing Aggregate Index is improved

Achievements During 2018 the school was involved in a number of projects in the wellbeing space including a pilot program facilitated by the Catholic Education Office called Positive Behaviours for Learning (PB4L), and a SIP team project that was designed to develop our school values. Our Values program was completed in 2018 and our PB4L project will continue into 2019. Both projects have raised awareness of the wellbeing space amongst staff, parents and students. Trial behaviour strategies were introduced and evaluated by staff and staff were supported in this by a team of staff members who were trained in the PB4L methodology.

Children participating in our ‘Active Day’



VALUE ADDED

The school engaged in many different activities throughout the year including, but not limited to: The St Patrick’s day dress up day, school picnic or shared lunch, Beginning of Year school mass and social events, school disco, parent movie night and trivia night. The school also conducted a Fun Day on the Feast of Mary MacKillop (8th August) and engaged Kaboom sports to run a program of tabloid games for the children. Our end of year routine was slightly different in 2018, on the Parish Priest’s request, we did not have an outside school hours mass, but had a Carols Night with a BYO picnic dinner. This was very successful, and many families took advantage of the opportunity to socialise in the school setting. Our End of Year Mass was then conducted with the children during school hours. Parents were invited to attend. Graduation was run differently in 2018 with year six students having a special ceremony and supper with their families. This included preparing a perpetual art work which is currently displayed in the school grounds. The ANZAC Day memorial was ceremony also a highlight of term two. The students and parents assembled in the school’s amphitheatre whilst our fire of remembrance was lit and a solemn ceremony was conducted by ADF personnel. Children were beautifully behaved and sat silently during the entire ceremony. The school also ran its second athletics sports day and competed in many inter-school events. We expanded our camp program in 2018 to include a three-day camp to Mill Valley Ranch for our year 5 & 6 students and a three-day camp to Camp Wilkin in Anglesea for our year 3 & 4 students. Parent supervision was used in both these camps and feedback suggests that both were very successful. STUDENT SATISFACTION

The Insight SRC surveys reflected valuable feedback from parents, students and staff on how satisfied they were with the standard of education at St Mary of the Cross. Generally, people were satisfied with most aspects of school including: Student Motivation 84%, Connectedness to Peers 78% and Student Safety 70%. Some other areas show room for improvement and we look forward to addressing those in the coming years.



STUDENT ATTENDANCE

AVERAGE STUDENT ATTENDANCE RATE BY YEAR LEVEL %

Y01 94.2 Y02 95.9 Y03 94.6 Y04 95.1 Y05 94.3 Y06 95.7 Overall average attendance 95.0 Following a Government directive in 2017, the Board of Management developed a policy and procedures for managing unexplained student absence. This involved consultation with parents, staff and software providers to ensure that work generated through this policy would have minimal effect on administration staff. Staff are asked to mark the role before 9.10am each morning and after 2.30 each afternoon. In the morning session, rolls are checked by office staff and a list of unexplained absences is generated. Text messages are sent to parents who have not advised of their child’s absence. After a short time if no response is received, a phone call is made to parents. Failing contact by phone, the procedures indicate that a call to the local police station is the next step to ensuring the child’s safety. This step has not yet been activated. This policy and procedures, after ratification by the Board was sent home to all families in October 2018. The data in the table above reflects an overall attendance rate of 95% and based on 351 students is an average of 9 days absent per student over the course of the year. The Wellbeing Leader will contact the parents of students with unsatisfactory attendance rates. Usually a meeting is arranged with parents and the school’s concerns are outlined and an attendance plan is developed in co-operation with the child’s parents.





Child Safe Standards

Goals and Intended Outcomes

St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary School holds the care, safety, and well-being of children and young people as a central and fundamental responsibility of our school. Our commitment is drawn from an inherent belief in the teaching and mission of the gospel.

Over the past 12 months, St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary School has furthered its commitment to providing a safe environment for all students by actively implementing processes that establish expectations and accountabilities for people working with our students. The continued application of student well-being programs such as Bounce Back, Kids Matter and the like, have encouraged the students to engage in conversations about their welfare and safety.

Achievements

The development of policies and commitments

St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary School has continued to broaden its comprehensive suite of Child Safety policies & procedural documents to incorporate aspects relating to the following:

Working With Children Check Requirements To reflect changes to the WWCC that came into effect in August 2017

Organisational Duty of Care Defining the school’s statutory ‘duty of care’ to take all ‘reasonable precautions’ to protect students and young people under their care;

Reportable Conduct Scheme

Outlining how the school responds to allegations of child abuse and child-related misconduct by employees & volunteers;

School Attendance Guidelines

Defining the school process for monitoring student attendance and strategies to be implemented where their safety or welfare is of concern.

Training and awareness raising strategies

All St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary School staff members participate in regular briefings and training to ensure the school’s legislative obligations and the school’s Child Safety Strategy remains front of mind. Staff members have engaged in a variety of training initiatives including:

• Online Mandatory Reporting Modules (Annually);

• Protect – Responding to Suspected Student Sexual Offending;

• The School’s Child Safety Policy & Code of Conduct (Annually);

• Reportable Conduct Scheme Requirements;



• Organisational Duty of Care;

• Risk Management – Excursions & Camps;

• School Attendance Requirements.

Consultation with the community

St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary School has continued to actively engage the school community in all aspects of Child Safety. Briefing sessions have been held with members of the school community to disseminate requirements of Child Safety Standards further, the school's Code of Conduct and its expectations of those who intend to participate in ‘Child Connected Work.'

The school’s Child Safety Strategy is communicated to new members of the school community at enrolment, with ongoing briefings facilitated via the school newsletter and website.

The School Board of Management, which is made up of parents (50%) and staff members (50%), frequently review and discuss issues related to Child safety.

Human Resources Practices

St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary School continues to implement Human Administrative & Human Resource practices to ensure its recruitment & performance management processes not only identify the most suitable candidates to undertake ‘Child Connected Work,' but fosters continual improvement in Child Safety practices.

To achieve this, the school ensures that the following Human Resource processes have a child safety focus:

· Position advertisements

· Position descriptions

· Referee Checks

· Key Performance Indicators have a Child Safety focus

· Victorian Institute of Teaching Registration (VIT)

· Working With Children Checks & National Criminal Record Checks

· Screening of Casual Relief Teachers, Contractors, and Volunteers.

St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary School maintains detailed records to support the screening and ongoing supervision of any individual required to undertake ‘Child Connected Work.'



Leadership & Management

Goals & Intended Outcomes Goal: To build strong organisational health. Intended Outcomes: That the Organisational Climate Aggregate Index is improved.

That staff perception of Ownership is enhanced

Achievements St Mary of the Cross has put in place those elements which are pre-requisite for

developing school effectiveness and facilitating ongoing school improvement—a shared

vision, sound leadership and an orderly learning environment.

The vision statement promotes inclusivity and welcome and the servant leadership in

the style of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop. We, as a staff group, work hard to ensure

that St Mary of the Cross is a focused and robust teaching group who have each child

at the forefront of their decision making.

EXPENDITURE AND TEACHER PARTICIPATION IN PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

DESCRIPTION OF PL UNDERTAKEN IN 2018

There was a range of professional Learning that took place in 2018 including: • Staff workshops with Michael Ymer (Mathematics) • THRASS training and Advanced THRASS training for three additional

teachers • Attendance at the RE Conference • Attendance at Scripture workshop (REL & Principal) • ECSI course (3 weeks) in Belgium (REL & Principal) • VCOP Writing PD program (years 3-6 teachers) • Algebraic Thinking PL program (F-2 teachers) • Diabetes training program • First Aid training programs • NAPLAN Online training • Online courses in Anti Discrimination Act

And many others

NUMBER OF TEACHERS WHO PARTICIPATED IN PL in 2018 29

AVERAGE EXPENDITURE PER TEACHER FOR PL $ 940.00



TEACHER SATISFACTION

Staff who completed the Insight SRC surveys reflected a similar result to the survey results in 2016. There are some slight increases in some areas and some decreases in other areas. Of note, there was a slight rise in Ownership and Parent Partnerships

TEACHING STAFF ATTENDANCE RATE

Teaching Staff Attendance Rate 87.7%

STAFF RETENTION RATE

Staff Retention Rate 83.3%

TEACHER QUALIFICATIONS

Doctorate 0.0% Masters 12.5% Graduate 20.8% Graduate Certificate 4.2% Bachelor Degree 75.0% Advanced Diploma 12.5% No Qualifications Listed 12.5%

STAFF COMPOSITION

Principal Class (Headcount) 3 Teaching Staff (Headcount)

32

Teaching Staff (FTE)

29.0

Non-Teaching Staff (Headcount)

17

Non-Teaching Staff (FTE)

17.2

Indigenous Teaching Staff (Headcount)

0



School Community

Goals & Intended Outcomes Goal: To further develop as an inclusive and connected Catholic

community. Intended Outcome: That the Community Engagement Aggregate Index is

improved

Achievements During 2018 numerous initiatives were undertaken to engage community members within the school program, these included, but are not limited to:

• English language classes for women of the Sudanese Community • Distribution of bread to Sudanese families in need • Continuing employment of a Sudanese Resource Worker • Parent information evenings (Behavioural Optometrist, Cyber safety) • Family Prayer Nights • Sacrament program nights • Engagement of St Vincent de Paul Society in our Breakfast Club program

PARENT SATISFACTION Across the board it appears that all fields in the Parent opinion survey are slightly down on the previous year. Of particular note, Extra Curricula rates in the mid to high range of the lower 25th percentile and Homework has dropped well below last year’s indicator.

Book Week Dress Up Day



Future Directions

St Mary of the Cross enters its seventh year of operation in 2019. Six of those years have been on its current site and the first year at sister schools of Lumen Christi and Stella Maris. The Future Direction of the school will be dependent to some degree on Government initiatives that continue to emanate from Canberra. National Consistent Collection of Data (NCCD) as a major initiative will continue to engage us in our work over the coming years. Much work has already been undertaken in this space with procedures being established, an Intervention and Support Committee meeting weekly to ensure not only compliance with the NCCD requirements but also to ensure that all eligible students are included in the NCCD count. The school completed a new building program in 2018 and moved into the new learning space in January 2019. New plans have been lodged for a multi-purpose hall to be constructed on the school site. The school will also be involved in a number of projects during 2019, including: Positive Behaviours for Learning (PB4L) The PB4L project helps staff develop skills to improve general behaviour and in turn increase access to learning. The PB4L Team will continue to undertake training in 2019 and embed the strategies developed in 2018. The Pilot program will continue in 2019. Intervention Framework Collective The Intervention Team will continue to develop processes and practices in line with the new Intervention Framework from Catholic Education Melbourne. The Catholic Identity Project Continuing the work started in 2018, the Parish of Laverton Team (Principals, RELs & PP) will continue to analyse ECSI data and develop new strategies for moving our schools to the preferred model of Catholic Identity.

Annual Report 2018 - St Mary of the Cross Catholic Primary...SIMMONDS, WARREN, SETON The Tenison Woods Community: Year Three & Four STANLEY, FRANKEL, MACNAMARA, NOSSAL, MAWSON The

Documents