In Faith We Learn

Welcome

St James’ Primary School is an integral part of All Saints Parish Blackbutt South with St Philip’s Kotara South our place of worship and as such, we welcome you to the community of St James’ and St Philip’s. May you find your association with our combined community both happy and rewarding. 

Our Mission 

St James’ School Community is committed to the development of all in faith and learning. 

‘I have come that you might have life – life in all its fullness’ 

John 10:10 

Our Vision

At St James’, we will be inspired, through our faith, to be successful, confident, resilient and creative learners who are active, informed (global) citizens.  

Our Values

An education in the Mercy tradition invites us to take up a challenge – one that encourages us to develop fully our own God given talents. At St James’ we are committed to the core values of: 

• Compassion 
• Justice 
• Respect 
• Hospitality 
• Service 
• Courage 

Contact Details

Phone: 4952 2414  

Email: admin@kotarasouth.catholic.edu.au 

Website: http://kotarasouth.catholic.edu.au 

Office / Administration Times

Our school office hours are Monday to Friday from 8:00am to 4:00pm.  

St James' Primary School, Kotara South had its origins in Garden Suburb where it began on 31st January, 1961. 

Two Sisters of Mercy ran the school, in a building, which was originally the operating theatre from the Greta Migrant camp. During that year, the rest of the hospital was transported to Garden Suburb to form more classrooms and a temporary church. 

In December 1962, New Lambton Parish was divided and Kotara South Parish was formed. 

In 1963 the parish received its present name of St Philip’s and the school, St James’, with a miner's bath house in Kotara South being converted into St Philip's Church. 

In 1974, twenty-four acres of land was purchased in Vista Parade by the parish and the new church was built opposite the proposed school site. In 1978, the Infants moved from Garden Suburb to the first completed school building on Vista Pde. It wasn't until 1981 that the whole school, Kinder to Year 6, opened in its present setting.  

This was a landmark moment for those people of the parish who had never lost faith in the concept of Catholic Education. It was the school’s 50th Anniversary in 2011.  

St James’ Primary School continues to be an integral part of the Parish of All Saints Blackbutt South and as such continues to foster the faith development of each child whilst complementing the community in which we live. 

Religious Education

While Religious Education lessons form part of each day, Christianity is a way of living and therefore influences every aspect of our school life. We strive to deepen the child's understanding and knowledge of the Catholic Faith, as well as developing a climate that will help children grow in their own faith relationship with God. 

Our Religious Education lessons are based on the Diocesan K-12 Religion Syllabus. 

Sacramental and Liturgical Life

Throughout the year, children participate in whole school masses, class masses and liturgies. These form an important part of our school life and you are invited to join with us for these celebrations.  

Your role as the primary educator is recognised at St James’ in all areas, but particularly in the areas of faith development. Children are prepared for these sacraments by participating in the Parish Based Program, which is supported by the school. We look forward to meeting with you on these occasions. 

Children in Year 3 receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation, whilst children in Year 4 receive the Sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist. 

Acknowledgement 

We wish to acknowledge that we are in the country of the Awabakal people. 

We pay respect to their tribal elders. 

We celebrate their continuing culture. 

We acknowledge the memory of their ancestors. 

May we walk gently on their land. 

Morning Prayer 

At the beginning of a new day, I give you glory and praise my God. 

I thank you for this day, I offer You all that it may bring. 

Jesus open me to your presence Help me to respond to your Spirit 

Leading and guiding me. 

St. James’, Pray for us. 

Our School Prayer

God bless St James’ School. 

Bless the children and the teachers. 

Let love and peace dwell among us. 

Let our school be full of contentment. 

Incline our hearts to be obedient and eager to learn. 

Oh, mother of God, watch over us. 

Grant us a steady hand and a watchful eye. 

Teach us the beauty of the world, 

That we may, with joy and courtesy, 

Go life’s happy way. Amen 

Website

The St James’ website provides details about the school, our mission and vision and other important information.  

https://kotarasouth.catholic.edu.au/

Compass

The Compass Parent Portal is an integrated, online portal for you to access up-to-date and meaningful information about our school and your child's progress. Compass includes many different features, including the ability to: 

• Monitor your child's attendance, and enter an explanation for absence or lateness 
• Communicate with your child's teachers 
• Update your family contact information 
• View our school calendar 
• Download and view your child's Semester Reports  
• Book Parent / Teacher Conferences 

Accessing Compass by the website or/and app:

Website

• Go to https://kotarasouth-nsw.compass.education 
• Log in using supplied username and password (given to you from Administration Staff) 

• Upon login, you will be requested for a password change according to the criteria given 

APP

• Look for the following APP by searching the app store (android and apple)  

Compass School Manager    

• Wait for app to load 
• Search for the school: St James Kotara South 
• Type in username and password 
• Upon login, you will be requested for a password change according to the criteria given 

Seesaw

Seesaw is the online learning platform for Kindergarten to Year 3. Your unique username and password is allocated from school.

https://app.seesaw.me/#/login

Facebook

The St James' Facebook page can be accessed by the below link.

https://www.facebook.com/stjamesprimaryschoolkotarasouth

School Hours 

8.20am First Bell – Teacher on duty  

8.45am  Second Bell - make way to class  

8.50am  Classes commence  

10.50am to 11.20am  Recess 

1.20pm to 2.00pm  Lunch 

2.50pm  School concludes 

Parents are reminded that the playground is unsupervised before 8.20am and as such, children should not arrive at school until at least 8.20am. OOSH facilities are available for parents for care before and after school hours. School concludes at 2.50pm. Teachers supervise children to various exit locations as part of afternoon duty. Staff are not able to supervise children after this time nor are children able to wait unsupervised for collection by parents / carers.

Attendance

Education in NSW is compulsory. All students from six years of age and under the minimum school leaving age of 17 are legally required to attend school. Students of school age (6 to minimum school leaving age) resident in New South Wales are required to be in fulltime attendance at a government or registered non-government school unless they are receiving approved home schooling, attending shared school settings or are granted an exemption from attendance.

Regular attendance at schools is essential if students are to maximise their potential. Schools, in partnership with parents, are responsible for promoting the regular attendance of students. While parents are legally responsible for the regular attendance of their children, school staff monitor part and whole day absences as part of their duty of care for students’ welfare.

Parents are responsible for:

• enrolling their children of compulsory school age in a government or registered non-government school or registering them with the Board of Studies NSW for home schooling;
• ensuring that their children attend school regularly;
• explaining to the school the absences of their children promptly and within seven days
• taking measures to resolve attendance issues involving their children.

Absence from School

The school must be advised of a child’s absence. Parents are encouraged to enter their child’s absence on COMPASS through the Parent Portal, stating a reason. Parents may also notify staff of absences by note, email, phone call or verbal message. Staff will then log details on COMPASS. An SMS will be sent to parents whose child is unaccounted for without explanation at 9:15am. Parents requiring extended leave for travel of 10 or more days must seek permission from the Principal for their child to travel during the school terms.

Procedures for managing unexplained/unjustified absences

If your child is absent unexplained or unjustified from school on a regular basis or a pattern of partial absences (including late arrivals & early departures) is noted, the school is obligated as a duty of care to follow school procedures for managing non-attendance:

• between 1-3 days a phone call to parent
• between 4-10 days contact parents, letter outlining issues of poor attendance
• between 11-20 days contact parents, letter outlining issues of poor attendance and meeting request to arrange an Attendance Improvement Plan
• greater than 20 days acceleration to Assistant Director and notification to Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ)

Late arrivals/ early departures

Any time after 8:50am is classified as a late arrival or before 2:50pm is an early departure.

Parents must sign their child in / out at the Kiosk in the Administration building before dropping / collecting their child.

Illness

If your child becomes ill a member of the Staff Team will make a judgment about whether to contact you, the parent. We are reluctant to call parents, especially from work, for what appears to be minor indispositions. However, if the sickness persists or seems serious, we will request that arrangements are made for your child to be collected from school. If you are unavailable at any stage, an emergency contact number is required.

Medications

Parents must complete a Consent Form to Dispense Medicine for any medications that must be taken at school. These forms are available from the school office. Office Administration staff only are responsible for dispensing medication. All prescribed medication must be in the original packaging from the pharmacy.

Pathway Gate

• The pathway gate will open automatically at 8:00am (to coincide with Kiss & Drop times) and will stay open until 9:00am. The gate will close automatically at 9:00am. However, supervision of students commences at 8:20am, there are no teachers on duty before this time.
• Will reopen automatically at 2:45pm and will stay open until 3:05pm
• Should you need to enter/leave the school, please use the intercom system on the gate.

Driveway Gate

• This entry is restricted to staff, deliveries and special circumstances (ie sickbay pickups)
• The staff carpark is for staff only

Kiss and Drop Gate

• The pathway gate will open automatically at 8:00am (to coincide with Kiss & Drop times) and will stay open until 9:00am. The gate will close automatically at 9:00am. However, supervision of students commences at 8:20am, there are no teachers on duty before this time.
• All children arriving at school after 8:50am (official school start time) must be accompanied by an adult and walked down the PATHWAY GATE to be signed in at Admin as a late arrival. There is no intercom on this gate and therefore no means to enter once the gate is closed.

Car Park

The school uses a “kiss and drop zone” from 8:00am till 8.50am each morning. The following procedures need to be adhered to:

• Drivers at St James Primary School may stop to drop off children, however No Parking rules apply:
• Maximum stop time is 2 minutes.
• Move your vehicle as soon as your child has safely exited the vehicle and has commenced walking across the grassed area towards the path.
• Driver must remain in or within 3m of the vehicle
• Vehicle must not be left unattended.
• Stop within the designated signposted area

Additional safety tips for school zones:

• Children must exit the vehicle from the passenger side ONLY of the car.
• Safety door, if students are required to leave through the right-hand side door, parents must escort the child behind the car to safety.
• Make sure the hand brake is applied when the vehicle is stationary.
• No overtaking or double parking.
• Kiss and drop is single file.
• Three vehicle limit in drop off area.

Safety Tips

• Stay buckled up until the vehicle has stopped in the ‘Drop-off’ area.
• Make sure your school bag and other items are in a safe position, eg. on the floor.
• Be ready to get out of the car with your belongings when the car has stopped and you have unbuckled your seatbelt.
• Always get in and out of the backseat of the vehicle through the safety door - the rear footpath-side door, if possible.

Afternoon pick-up utilises the same area as a car park. The school has some simple rules regarding the car park, which we ask everyone to follow.

• Always collect your child from the supervising teachers and escort them safely to your car.
• Enter the school car park before 2.50pm. The car park gate will be closed after this time, until all “Church Crossing” children have been safely escorted across the road. Teachers will then open the carpark chain to allow safe exit.
• Always reverse park so as to drive forward when exiting the car park – this applies also to the Church car park.
• Cars are not permitted to vacate the school car park in the afternoon until ALL ‘walkers’ lines’ have crossed the road.

Afternoon Pick Up Areas

Students line up in the COLA in the following order

For duty of care and child protection issues, students are asked to:

• Wait with the teacher on duty.
• Notify the school of any change to their afternoon arrangements.

Leaving the School Grounds 

Pupils are not permitted to leave the playground during school hours unless they are supervised or have the written permission of their parents and/or the approval of the Principal. At times, staff will undertake local walking activities with the students. Permission to leave the grounds for these activities are covered separately with a signed Local Excursion Note at the commencement of each school year.

House Teams

For the purpose of competition on carnival days and for other school activities, children are placed in one of four House Teams 

All the children from one family are placed in the same team and as far as practicable, will remain in this team for the whole of their schooling at St James’. 

Homework

At the beginning of each year, teachers will provide an outline of class procedures in regard to homework.

Environment

St James’ School is blessed with large outdoor areas. We have established an Environmental Team who take care of plants, tend and harvest a variety of fruits and vegetables. We have our aquaponics garden. An adventure playground that promotes safe play within nature and encourages students to take risks on the obstacles. We believe in giving our students many opportunities to play and learn in the outdoors. This play space is know as the ‘Father Doran area’.

As a Catholic school, we take seriously our duty as Stewards of Creation. Therefore, we strive to be a binless school by reducing the amount of throw away packaging that comes to school. All families are urged to pack their child / children’s recess and lunch in reusable containers clearly labelled with their name.

Crunch and Sip

St James’ is a ‘Crunch and Sip’ school, children are encouraged to bring a piece of fresh fruit or a vegetable to eat during crunch and sip. It is highly recommended that all students’ food is brought to school in reusable containers that are labelled with their name.

Nut Free

Due to the increase number of students with Anaphylaxis, St James’ is a nut aware school. Therefore, please be considerate when packing lunch boxes.

Sunsmart

St James’ is a Sun Smart school. As such, students are asked to wear sunscreen to school. A pump pack is available for all students to reapply sunscreen throughout break times from the first aid trolley. St James’ upholds the ‘no hat no play’ policy. Children without a hat must stay sit under the covered area near the administration office at recess and lunch.

Learning Hub (Library)

The Learning Hub is staffed by 1 teacher librarians who teach each class for a 60 minute lesson each week. These lessons integrate the use of technology to locate, organise and present information linked to units taught in the classroom. Programs running in the library to promote the love of reading are the PRC (Premier’s Reading Challenge) and Book Week in Term 3.

Each class borrows books once a week during which time they can borrow 2 or 3 books depending on their grade. They require a library bag to protect the books.

Internet Access

Please be vigilant supervising your child when on the internet or any other social media. Careful and continued monitoring at home of how online platforms are used will minimise issues such as bullying and scams. Please take the time to sit with your child and discuss the importance of Cyber Safety. An internet user agreement will be sent home, and needs be signed, by both you and your child.

At times, students may wish to email an assignment or a link to themselves at school. Students can only access their emails via Webmail. Their email addresses are:

firstname.lastname@mnstu.catholic.edu.au

Throughout their time at St James’ students will engage in a variety of programs and lessons regarding how to use the internet safely.

Money Sent to School

If on the odd occasion students need to bring cash to school, we ask that this money be placed in a sealed envelope and clearly marked.

NAME              CLASS             PURPOSE                    AMOUNT

Newsletters

Our school newsletter is available each fortnight on COMPASS. This contains information regarding the happenings around our school and community. Wherever possible, publications are published through COMPASS and our website. Parents are asked to ensure they have updated their email address through COMPASS to receive the newsletter.

Parental Involvement

There are many ways you could offer your help.

Parents & Friends Association (1^st Monday of each month at 7pm in the Learning Hub)

• Fundraising
• Canteen
• Class Helpers
• Excursions / incursions
• Sport Carnivals
• Playgroup
• Social Gatherings / Fundraising Activities
• Sacramental Preparation / Celebration

Whatever your talent, we welcome your contribution and extend an invitation to you to participate in your child’s education.

The Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle has an absolute and abiding commitment to promote the safety, welfare and wellbeing of children. As a volunteer working in a diocesan school, you should be aware of your obligations and responsibilities in protecting students from abuse or neglect.

To become a volunteer within a diocesan school you are required to complete the online Volunteer Registration Form. This may mean you will be required to obtain a Working with Children Check and/or National Police Check. The school must receive the volunteer clearance from the diocese prior to volunteering. Please see the below link to the Volunteer Registration Form:

https://www.mn.catholic.org.au/people/volunteer/

The Diocese values the significant contribution volunteers make to all our schools, programs and services. Our volunteers enrich the quality of life for the people we support and their families and are in turn, enriched by their experiences.

Parent Groups

Contact between the school and the parent is of the utmost importance. Functions, which enable parents to meet each other as well as teachers, occur throughout the year.

The school’s Parents and Friends Association (P&F) exists to coordinate interest in St James’, to collaborate with the Principal and staff of the school and to help provide resources beneficial to the school and its pupils.

The P&F meet on the first Monday of each month at 7:00pm in the Learning Hub. All parents are earnestly invited to attend the meetings and take part in the decision-making and in the helping with the projects initiated.

Nicola Geary Memorial Fund

In February 2011, Nicola Geary a Kinder mum was excited to see her little boy Benjamin become a member of our St James’ Family. Sadly, Nicola passed away on Benjamin’s third day of school in February 2011. Nicola had a rare kidney disease known as Gitelman Syndrome. Nicola missed out on fulfilling her dreams as a wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend.

Nicola left behind a young family and out of the concern for the family a Mothers’ Dinner in July 2011 was held to help in raising funds for David and their children Benjamin & Lucy. This fundraiser was a great success. The Mothers’ Dinners in the following years raised funds for the “Nicola Geary Memorial Fund”.

This fund was established to support families who through illness, death or misadventure find themselves in financial difficulties in addressing their everyday needs.

School Canteen

Thanks to the generosity of the P & F, the school has a canteen for lunch orders and counter sales at lunch Monday, Wednesday and Friday. New volunteers are most welcome. Lunch orders are available online through Flex Schools. Birthday buckets of Zooper Doopers are available from the canteen.

Supporting Your Children

Life is full of ‘ups’ and ‘downs’ that children have to learn to cope with and manage, whether it’s being first at the swimming carnival or not being invited to a birthday party, having difficulty with multiplication or knowing that someone you love has moved away. Parents try their best to prepare and support their children during these times so they can win gracefully, accept defeat, persevere with challenges and be optimistic. Occasionally, you may need advice or professional help to do this.

At St James’, you can access some support services directly or seek advice on where to go for further help. The first port of call is always the class teacher. With your consent, he or she can seek the advice of the Learning Support Team. This comprises of:

• a member of the school executive (i.e. Principal, Assistant Principal, Religious Co-ordinator or Primary Co-ordinator)
• the Learning Support Teacher (LST)
• the School Psychologist
• the Class Teacher

We have additional staff who may work with classes, groups or individuals from time to time:

• Learning Support Assistants (LSA)
• Learning Support Teacher (LST)
• English as an Additional Language / Dialect (EAL/D) teachers
• School Psychologist

Teachers can refer students to the Learning Support Team. The Learning Support Team meet regularly to discuss how to best support your child. This might include one or more of the following options:

• A list of strategies to support the child in class, on the playground or at home
• Further assessment of learning needs by the Learning Support Teacher
• An intervention program to support additional needs or build skills, e.g. literacy, numeracy, social skills
• Referral to the school Psychologist for specialist advice
• Referral to the Pastoral Care Worker for social and emotional well-being or family support
• Referral to a Learning Support Education Officer from the Catholic Schools Office for specialist advice in particular areas of difficulty, e.g. Speech and Language, mobility, behaviour
• Recommendation to contact an outside service provider such as Paediatrician

Should you have any concerns about your child’s well-being or academic progress, do not hesitate to contact the class teacher. Early intervention is essential and can often prevent problems from escalating. If you would like advice on supporting your child at home with reading or other homework, the school can organise parent workshops or leaflets to address your needs.  Just let us know!

Appointments

PRINCIPAL - If you have any concerns regarding your child's development, or if you need to discuss any matter with the Principal, please do not hesitate to phone/email for an appointment.

TEACHER - If at any time, you wish to speak to your child's class teacher, please email of phone the office and they will let the teacher know.

Parent/Teacher Communication

Communication between class and home may take the form of individual meetings, called by either teacher or parent, or be whole class oriented. Parent/Teacher Conferences are held in early Term 1 and Term 3.

Lost Property

Please assist your child to identify clothing, drink bottles and lunch boxes by marking them clearly. Lost property boxes are located in the Passive Play Area.

Excursions / Incursions

From time to time class excursions/camps and visiting speakers (incursions) are arranged to broaden the children’s experience, complement current work being studied, and to make lessons and units of work more interesting. Cost is kept to a minimum and parental consent is required before any excursion or camp beyond the immediate school locality.

Assemblies

Assemblies are held each Monday afternoon in the School Hall. Parents are warmly invited to attend our school assemblies which commence at 2:10pm. The school assembly is a chance for children to receive awards and information of what is happening in the school. We celebrate the successes of our students at this time.

Birthdays

Birthday buckets of Zooper Doopers are available for purchase through the canteen on Flexischools.

Managing a Complaint

The Diocese is committed to providing across its agencies a fair, effective and efficient complaint management process that is consistent with the Catholic Social Teachings.

A diocesan agency provides a service on behalf of the Diocese, for example systemic schools and St Nicholas centres.

You may provide feedback or make a complaint directly to the agency involved in person, by phone,
by email or letter or through the online complaint form.

Find out more about how to make a complaint, by reading our brochure. Hard copies are located in the school foyer.

Dispute resolution involves the people who are in dispute talking about the issues and coming to an agreement on how these issues may be resolved.

To find out more about Dispute Resolution at the Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, read our brochure.  Hard copies are also located in the school foyer.

The Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle has an absolute and abiding commitment to promote the safeguarding of children.  In 2019, as a part of that commitment, our Bishop, Bill Wright, articulated his expectations of all those who work for the Diocese, “I expect you to place the safety, welfare and wellbeing of every child and vulnerable adult at the centre of everything you do in the name of our church", he said. 

Bishop Wright established the Office of Safeguarding, whose director answers to the Bishop’s Office and is charged to oversee the whole of the Diocese’s safeguarding of children, including the students in our system of schools.

As a parent sending your child to a Diocesan school, you are expected to be an active participant in safeguarding your child’s wellbeing.  To do so, it’s important that you have the best information available to you.  The Office of Safeguarding website offers comprehensive details of the Diocese’s approach to safeguarding children.  You are also encouraged to be an active participant in the life of your school.

As a parent of a diocesan school student, if you are concerned for:

• the safety, welfare or wellbeing of one or more children in the school
• the conduct of a member of staff, a volunteer, contractor or other adult associated with the school

you are able to:

• discuss your concerns with a teacher, Assistant Principal or Principal
• talk to an investigator at the Office if Safeguarding (Ph. 4979 1390, during office hours)
• report your concerns to the Department of Communities and Justice’s (DCJ) Child Protection Helpline (Ph. 132 111, 24 hrs/7 days) if your concerns constitute a risk of significant harm
• report to NSW Police if you believe a crime has been committed.

In 2005 the Diocese established a centralised, expert child protection team, now known as the Office of Safeguarding (previously Zimmerman Services), which oversees child protection practices across the whole Diocese, including the Catholic Schools Office and all our Catholic schools. The Diocese’s child protection practices include a range of preventative services as well as responding to allegations of abuse.

You can find out more about the Office of Safeguarding and its roles and functions on line at: https://officeofsafeguarding.org.au/

Safe School Framework

At St James’, we are committed to providing a caring, friendly and safe environment for all of our pupils so they can learn in a relaxed and secure atmosphere. Bullying of any kind is unacceptable at our school. If bullying does occur, all pupils should be able to tell and know that incidents will be dealt with promptly and effectively. We are a telling school. This means that anyone who knows that bullying is happening is expected to tell the staff.

Bullying

Whilst there is no definitive and universally accepted definition of bullying, the most influential research in the area of what constitutes bullying has been proposed by Olweus (1993):

“…bullying may be defined as a student being exposed, repeatedly and over time, to intentional injury or discomfort inflicted by one or more other students. This may include physical contact, verbal assault, making obscene gestures or facial expressions, and intentionally excluding the student.”

The National Safe Schools Framework (2011) defines bullying as repeated verbal, physical, social or psychological behaviour that is harmful and involves the misuse of power by an individual or group towards one or more persons.

It is important to note that cyber bullying has become a significant area of concern and action in recent years. Cyberbullying may be defined as:

“………. any form of bullying that utilises technology such as instant messaging, online chat rooms, online bulletin boards and email. In many ways this is a more insidious form of bullying since it may reach into a victim’s home.” In other words, technology now allows the bully to inflict psychological harm on his or her victim anywhere and anytime without respite. (Schools and the Law - Des Butler and Ben Matthews p.46)

Bullying may comprise the following:

Physical:  Physical bullying involves harmful actions against another person’s body.  Examples include:  biting, kicking, pushing, pinching, hitting, tripping, pulling hair, any form of violence or intimidation.  Physical bullying also involves the interference with another person’s property.  Examples include: damaging or stealing.

Verbal:  Verbal bullying involves speaking to a person or about a person in an unkind or hurtful way.  Examples include:  sarcasm, teasing, put-downs, name calling, phone calls, spreading rumors or hurtful gossip.

Emotional:  Emotional bullying involves behaviors that upset, exclude, or embarrass a person.  Examples include:  nasty notes, saying mean things using technology (e.g. cyber bullying using emails, instant messaging), chat rooms, tormenting threatening, humiliation or social embarrassment.

Sexual:  Sexual bullying singles out a person because of gender and demonstrates unwarranted or unwelcome sexual behavior.  Examples include: sexual comments, abusive comments, unwanted physical contact.

Racial:  Racial bullying involves rejection or isolation of a person because of ethnicity.  Examples include: gestures, racial slurs or taunts, name calling, making fun of customs/skin color/accent/food choices.

Isolated conflict or fights between students or single incidents are not usually defined as bullying.

The Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle has an absolute and abiding commitment to promote the safety, welfare and wellbeing of children. As a volunteer working in a diocesan school, you should be aware of your obligations and responsibilities in protecting students from abuse or neglect.

Becoming a volunteer

To be able to volunteer within a diocesan school you are required to complete the 'Volunteer Registration Form' on the below link:

https://www.mn.catholic.org.au/people/volunteer/

This may mean you will be required to obtain a Working with Children Check and/or National Police Check. All paperwork and checks are to be completed and verified before you can commence in your role. 

Under new legislation set down by the Federal Government, schools are required to report in writing to parents twice per year. Reports will be sent home via COMPASS at the end of Terms 2 and 4.

Staff Professional Development Days

Each year the school has a minimum of three pupil free days for the professional development of teachers. Parents are given at least four weeks notice where possible. Such days are PUPIL FREE.

Staff Release Days

All staff have a release from face to face teaching (RFF) allocation in accordance with their teaching load. Therefore, teaching staff have a two hour block of release timetabled each week. During this time, the students will attend a lesson with the Teacher Librarian in the Learning Hub for 1 hour and curriculum input from an appointed RFF appointed teacher for 1 hour. The classroom teacher will use this time for classroom planning, collaboration, administration or professional development.

Teachers may also be released from class to attend professional development courses.

THE SCHOOL UNIFORM SHOP – Open Thursday mornings 8:30am – 9:30am.  Parents also have the option of online ordering / paying. A brochure outlining these procedures is available upon request.

A copy of uniform requirements, order forms and any other details are available from the school website. The Uniform Shop can be contacted directly on stjamesuniformshop@gmail.com

NB We are currently transitioning to Lowes for school uniform purchases in 2024

The School Tuition Fee is set by the Diocesan Board of Financial Administration and is your contribution towards the recurrent cost of educating your children in a Catholic School.

The Resource Fee covers many of the consumable items used by your children and is billed per grade. Often the Resource Fee does not cover all costs and some money from Tuition Fees is allocated to these items. The Resource Fee also includes all school actives such as excursion, incursions, sport, music activities, IT and Grounds. This has been introduced to save parents the inconvenience of finding cash for these events all throughout the year. This does not include selective sport costs, overnight excursions or end of Year 6 events.

The Diocesan Family School Building Levy is sent to the Catholic Schools Office to maintain the school buildings. It is compulsory and is not tax deductible. Each family with a child in the Maitland/Newcastle Diocesan system is charged annually regardless of the number of children from Kinder to Year 12 in the Catholic Systemic School System. At times the school may request information in regard to children in the Catholic Schools System. This is to ensure your family is only invoiced once.

Voluntary Diocesan Pastoral Contribution will be put on Compass Fees as an opt in payment per family. This fund enables the diocese to contribute generously to the social and spiritual capital of our community. Expenditure of the School Building Levy is organised through the Catholic Schools Office after consultation at Parish, Regional and Diocesan levels.

School fees are billed at the commencement of the year for the annual amount.

Accounts may be paid weekly, monthly or annually by:

• Cash, cheque or credit card
• Direct debit
• B-Pay

Fees should not be an excessive burden for any family. If you find yourself in financial difficulty please contact the school to organise a meeting with the Principal.