Issue 3 02.03.2021 “ACHIEVING TOGETHER”
Woady Yaloak Primary School
Website: www.woadyyaloak.vic.edu.au Email: [email protected]
Principal: Corey Pohlner 2021 Term Dates Phone: 5342 8565 28th Jan - 1st Apr 19th Apr - 25th Jun 12th Jul - 17th Sep Smythesdale Campus 5342 8565 Snake Valley Campus 5344 9274 4th Oct - 17th Dec Scarsdale Campus 5342 8514 Ross Creek Campus 5342 0478
FOR YOUR DIARY Woady Yaloak Primary School was formed on the lands of the Wadawarrung people of the Kulin Nation. 2021 We pay our respects to their elders, past, present and emerging. We also acknowledge the First Nations people throughout Victoria. MARCH
Monday 8th PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE Public Holiday SCHOOL COUNCIL ELECTIONS
Friday 12th Our school council election period has now finished. We had just enough nominations to fill our vacant positions and no need for a ballot. Thank-you to everyone who showed an interest and submitted their forms. Middle PLC With so many vacant positions, it is fantastic to get such interest this year. Excursion to
Sovereign Hill Our constituting order consists of the following structure; A total of 15 councillors
Mon 15th - Fri 19th 8 parents
Harmony Week 5 school employees
2 community members Tuesday 30th LDSSA Athletics Day Congratulations to the following school councillors over our school; Parents: Wednesday 31st Carolyn Hellyar (Smythesdale rep)
Last day of Term 1, Geoff McLardie (Smythesdale rep) 3.30pm Finish Elizabeth Walsh (Snake Valley rep)
Leah Hocking (Snake Valley rep) APRIL Robert White (Snake Valley rep) Thursday 1st Emma Elshaug (Scarsdale rep) Curriculum Day Megan Trigg (Ross Creek rep) Fiona Gregor (Ross Creek rep) Monday 19th First day of Term 2 Our next meeting will be on Monday March 22nd (AGM, Annual Reporting, normal meeting) at Snake Valley from 6.30pm.
PARENT COMPLAINT POLICY From time to time in schools, concerns arise for various reasons. All schools have a variety of policies to help with the understanding between all parties, all with a purpose of keeping children safe.
Under the area of 'student wellbeing', this year we intend to include some regular information in our newsletters around the following topics; Bullying vs anti-social behaviour Partnerships and roles of students, teachers and parents
Behaviour management vs behaviour education
Policies and procedures Code of Conduct School Wide Positive Behaviour & Matrix
Resilience, Rights & Respectful Relationships Curriculum Continued over page….
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PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE Cont...
Play is the Way -social and emotional learning program Parent complaints and concerns procedures Sentral and Class Dojo
In this week's newsletter, I wanted to remind our school community around the processes when a concern arises in the school and what the roles are for parents/carers, teachers, leadership and the school.
Please note, we do understand that our website in it’s current form is not up to date with all of our current policies and information about the programs we offer as a school, but we are working hard to get this rectified as soon as possible.
You can find the information about this week's policy in the school improvement section of the newsletter.
Regards
Corey Pohlner Principal Woady Yaloak Primary School
BEHAVIOUR EDUCATION This term our staff has been inquiring about how we best support the teaching and learning linked to social and emotional educa- tion. We are referring to various resources and we will be sharing some of our focus and learnings in our fortnightly newsletter.
This week we focus on how we are aligning our school leaders and staff with how social and emotional learning is taught and as- sessed. We have discussed how personal and social capabilities influence student engagement and achievement in every area of school life. As linked to our Annual Implementation Plan, the focus on these capabilities is closely linked to our priority of having HAPPY, ACTIVE and HEALTHY kids.
Our future intention is to use PLAY as an avenue to teaching these explicit skills as well as modifying our language, expectations and empowerment of our students to self-regulate….more info will come in future newsletters about these topics. For more information please speak with Mr Cox (Assistant Principal – Student Wellbeing)
The Aboriginal Literacy Foundation is once again able to offer tutoring for Indigenous children at our school.
They offer tutoring every Thursday and Friday afternoons at 4 p.m. This takes place at 7 Eyre Street, Ballarat.
If you require any further information please contact the Office manager – Jacinta Humphries on 9650 1006.
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SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT COMPLAINTS POLICY Woady Yaloak Primary School so welcomes feedback, both positive and negative, and is committed to continuous improvement. We value open communication with our families and are committed to understanding complaints and addressing them appropriately. We recognise that the complaints process provides an important opportunity for reflection and learning. We value and encourage open and positive relationships with our school community. We understand that it is in the best interests of students for there to be a trusting relationship between families and our school. When addressing a complaint, it is expected that all parties will:
be considerate of each other’s views and respect each other’s role be focused on resolution of the complaint, with the interests of the student involved at the centre act in good faith and cooperation behave with respect and courtesy respect the privacy and confidentiality of those involved, as appropriate operate within and seek reasonable resolutions that comply with any applicable legislation and Department policy. recognise that schools and the Department may be subject to legal constraints on their ability to act or disclose information in some circumstances.
PREPARATION FOR RAISING A CONCERN OR COMPLAINT Woady Yaloak Primary School so encourages parents, carers or members of the community who may wish to submit a complaint to:
carefully consider the issues you would like to discuss remember you may not have all the facts relating to the issues that you want to raise think about how the matter could be resolved be informed by checking the policies and guidelines set by the Department and Woady Yaloak Primary School
COMPLAINTS PROCESS Woady Yaloak Primary School so is always happy to discuss with parents/carers and community members any concerns that they may have. Concerns in the first instance should be directed to your child’s classroom teacher. Where possible, school staff will work with you to ensure that your concerns are appropriately addressed.
Where concerns cannot be resolved in this way, parents or community members may wish to make a formal complaint to the school’s leadership team (Principal, Assistant Principal and Campus Head).
If you would like to make a formal complaint, in most cases, depending on the nature of the complaint raised, our school will first seek to understand the issues and will then convene a resolution meeting with the aim of resolving the complaint together. The following process will apply:
1. Complaint received: Please either email, telephone or arrange a meeting through the front office with the Campus Head, Assistant Principal or Principal, to outline your complaint so that we can fully understand what the issues are. We can discuss your complaint in a way that is convenient for you, whether in writing, in person or over the phone.
2. Information gathering: Depending on the issues raised in the complaint, Campus Head, Principal or Assistant Principal may need to gather further information to properly understand the situation. This process may also involve speaking to others to obtain details about the situation or the concerns raised.
3. Response: Where possible, a resolution meeting will be arranged with the Campus Head, Principal or Assistant Principal to discuss the complaint with the objective of reaching a resolution satisfactory to all parties. If after the resolution meeting we are unable to resolve the complaint together, we will work with you to produce a written summary of the complaint in the event you would like to take further action about it. In some circumstances, the Principal may determine that a resolution meeting would not appropriate. In this situation, a response to the complaint will be provided in writing.
Continued over page….
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SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT Cont….. 4. Timelines: Woady Yaloak Primary School will acknowledge receipt of your complaint as soon as possible (usually within two school days) and will seek to resolve complaints in a timely manner. Depending on the complexity of the complaint, Woady Yaloak Primary School may need some time to gather enough information to fully understand the circumstances of your complaint. We will endeavour to complete any necessary information gathering and hold a resolution meeting where appropriate within 10 working days of the complaint being raised. In situations where further time is required, Woady Yaloak Primary School will consult with you and discuss any interim solutions to the dispute that can be put in place.
RESOLUTION Where appropriate, Woady Yaloak Primary School may seek to resolve a complaint by:
an apology or expression of regret a change of decision a change of policy, procedure or practice offering the opportunity for student counselling or other support other actions consistent with school values that are intended to support the student, parent and school relationship, engagement, and participation in the school community.
In some circumstances, Woady Yaloak Primary School may also ask you to attend a meeting with an independent third party, or participate in a mediation with an accredited mediator to assist in the resolution of the dispute.
ESCALATION If you are not satisfied that your complaint has been resolved by the school, or if your complaint is about the Principal and you do not want to raise it directly with them, then the complaint should be referred to the South Western Victoria Regional Office by contacting 1300 333 232.
Woady Yaloak Primary School may also refer a complaint to South Western Victoria Regional Office if we believe that we have done all we can to address the complaint.
For more information about the Department’s Parent Complaints policy, including the role of the Regional Office, please see: Parent Complaints policy.
BUNNINGS BBQ A huge thank you to the families, friends and teachers who volunteered their time on Sunday to run the Smythesdale / Scarsdale Campus Bunnings BBQ. Although the day was quieter than others, given some large community events taking place in the region, we still managed to raise some funds that will be allocated to projects at Smythesdale and Scarsdale.
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WOADY COMMUNITY NEWS
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