Welcome to our newsletter
Dear Parents and Carers,
It has been an absolute joy to welcome our Years 1-6 students back to school this week. Watching them reconnect with their peers and spend time with their new teacher has been truly heartwarming. I would also like to extend a warm welcome to all of the new students and their families joining our school community. We are incredibly grateful to have you with us and are excited for the year ahead.
We are thrilled to welcome our Kindergarten students to St. Mary’s as they begin their exciting learning journey on Monday, 10 February. This marks the start of a wonderful adventure, and we can’t wait to warmly greet both the students and their families. Our school community is eager to connect through upcoming events and social gatherings, providing opportunities to get to know each other better.
We are grateful for the trust you’ve placed in us to care for your child. Rest assured, we are committed to nurturing their growth in faith, supporting their achievements in learning, and ensuring they feel safe, valued, and embraced in our vibrant school environment. We look forward to sharing this special time with you and your family!
We would also like to thank you for your continued support and cooperation in bringing your child to school for the MAI and Best Start meetings. These assessments allow the teachers to gain insights into the learning requirements for each child and ensure that they can tailor their learning experiences to meet the needs of all students.
A reminder that all school communications and events are shared via the Compass App, School Newsletter and the School Calendar. Please use this opportunity to ensure you have access to each of these mediums, and that you have notifications switched on. Our school also has a Facebook page, where we share photos and other celebratory posts.
We are thrilled to introduce Helen Backwell as our new Canteen Manager. With a wealth of experience as the Head Chef at Roches Family Hotel and Heart and Soul, Helen is excited to bring fresh, healthy lunch options to our school’s canteen. She is eager to revamp the menu to provide nutritious choices for our students.
We’re in the process of finalizing Helen's employment, and we look forward to having everything in place in the coming weeks. In the meantime, the canteen will remain closed.
We would also like to extend our heartfelt thanks to Nancy Nolloth, who has volunteered her time and energy to run the canteen for the past few years. Nancy, we are deeply grateful for your dedication and the care you’ve put into providing lunches every Friday for our students. Thank you for everything!
Jacki is taking Long Service Leave and will return to school at the start of Week 4. During this time Rebecca Bentley will be taking on the Acting Assistant Principal Learning and Teaching role so that I can assist with Principal duties.
I am excited to confirm our 2025 St Mary’s Primary staff for 2025
Leadership Team
Principal - Jacki Moore
Assistant Principal Learning and Teaching - Jas Stuart
Assistant Principal Mission - Hannah Gorman
Middle Leaders
Equity and Enhancement - Katherine Davies
K-2 Curriculum - Rebecca Bentley
3-6 Curriculum - Samantha Ford
Classroom Teachers
Kinder Red - Leah Bancroft
Kinder Blue - Georgia Gibson
Year 1 Red - Logan Hanigan
Year 1 Blue - Jessica Fortescue (M, T, W), Sophie Tory (W, Th, F)
Year 2 - Rebecca Bentley (M-Th), Emma Webb (M-W), Lucy Greenwood (W-F)
Year 3 Red - Maartje Jansen (M-W), Samantha Ford (W-F)
Year 3 Blue - Larissa Davey
Year 4 - Melissa Brown
Year 5 Red - Peter Tonkin
Year 5 Blue - Katherine Davies
Year 6 - Rachel Kay
Release Face to Face Staff
Tricia Niethe
Janeen Myson
School Counsellor
Catherine Collopy
Student Wellbeing Officer
Jane Dougherty
Administration
Lisa Kelly
Administration Support
Susie Fletcher
Student Education Workers (SEW)
Jas Smith
Julie Staples
Kate Thompson
Mindy Cameron
Paula Carter
Indigenous Education Worker
Matt Jeffery
Canteen Manager
Helen Backwell
I’m excited to work alongside our dedicated staff, students, and parent community in 2025 to foster an environment of growth, collaboration, and achievement.
Warm regards
Jas Stuart
Acting Principal
2025 Student Technology Agreement
At St Mary's Primary, we prioritise responsible and safe digital citizenship. To foster this, we use a variety of digital technologies to support and enhance engagement and creativity within learning.
To ensure a shared understanding of our expectations, all students and their parents must sign a Digital Technology Student User Agreement each year. This agreement outlines the expectations for using digital technologies within our school and informs parents how digital technologies are managed and supported within our school and across the Diocese.
Please take the time to read through and sign the attached Digital Technologies User Agreement for 2025 with your child by Friday 7 March 2025.
Please note: A new form is to be submitted for each child at our school. We ask that you use your child’s name as per Compass - first and last name only.
To further support this, teachers will be exploring each of the dot points over the first term with students in class.
We appreciate your continued support in guiding your child towards responsible digital citizenship.
The agreement is available here: https://dlcsl.jotform.com/team/digital-techologies-for-learning/grafp-dtsua2025