1. education
2. school

ST LUKE’S CATHOLIC PARISH SCHOOL
45 Degen Road, Capalaba Phone (07) 3245 9595 Fax (07) 3823 2222
Email: [email protected] Website: www.stlukescapalaba.qld.edu.au
NEWSLETTER
28 January 2015 – No. 1
FROM OUR ADMIN TEAM
LIGHTING THE WAY
Each year St Luke’s School adopts a theme, which guides activities and
celebrations. This year is the International year of ‘Light’ and we here at St
Luke’s would like to make it a focus for 2015. ‘Light the Way’ is a commonly
named theme for ‘Presentation order’ schools and reflects the symbol of
the founder Nano Nagle carrying the lamp as she went out to help the poor
and disadvantaged in her community. St Luke’s first Principal was a
Presentation order sister and our community connects with that ‘Charism’
and tradition. Later in term 1 our class groups present charters which are
both a reflection of Respect, Responsibility and Right Relationships as well
as our school theme for 2015.
WELCOME BACK AND CONGRATULATIONS
As the school year begins we would like to welcome back all new and
continuing students and families. We trust that you have enjoyed the
holiday break. There are plenty of good news stories with the birth of
Samuel Nicholas Tyler taking place last week. Congratulations to Marnie
Tyler one of our class teachers and her husband Nick.
On behalf of the school community I welcome the following staff to St
Luke’s. Lagi Aukusitino takes up the leadership position of Acting Assistant
to the Principal Religious Education. Lagi is a highly experienced educator
and brings a wealth of experience to our community. I look forward to
working with Lagi as we further develop our school. Natalie Pollock joins
our teaching staff in year 4 and Sharelle Simpson steps into the year 3 job
share as Emma Cudicio joins the support team on a part time basis. We
welcome all those teaching staff.
DATE CLAIMERS
JANUARY
Fri 30 Opening Liturgy whole school
9.00am *** Note time change
FEBRUARY
Mon 2 Assembly 2pm
Thu 5 Prayer Assembly 2pm 6White
Fri 6
Class Mass 9am 6Blue
Sat 7 Welcome Back School Mass
Mon 9 District Swimming Carnival
Assembly 2pm
Thu 12 Prayer Assembly 2pm 5White
Sun 15 P&F Working Bee 2-5pm
Mon 16 P&F Meeting 7.30pm
Tue 17 Pancake Tuesday
Parent Information evening
Wed 18 Ash Wednesday liturgies
9am P-2 10am Yr3-6 6Blue
Thu 19 No Prayer Assembly
Fri 20 Class Mass 6White
P&F Disco
Fri 27 Kokoda Challenge Year 6
MARCH
Thu 5 School Photos
Fri 6
Class Mass 5Blue
In the specialist teaching area of HPE we look forward to welcoming Santo
Nucifora and in Japanese Kyle Giggins, both are experienced teachers in
their fields. Peter Bakes joins our grounds and maintenance staff. Peter is a past parent of St Luke’s and comes to
us from a grounds role in a nearby Catholic college.
In other news Cynthia Milligan, HPE teacher is nearing the due date of the birth of her 3rd Child, with Zoe Cromb
Support Teacher due soon after and followed by the exciting news that Emma Cudicio is expecting her 2 nd child in
August.
We also acknowledge that the Christmas holidays have been challenging for a number of our families who have
experienced bereavement and loss with the passing of loved ones. Please know that our community keeps your
families in our prayers and thoughts at this time.
2015 again looks to be an exciting year of learning opportunities in our wonderful little school. I look forward to
continuing that journey as we ‘Light the Way’ for the local and wider community.
OVAL REFURBISHMENT PROJECT
During the school holidays major renovation works were completed on our School oval. Ed Kelleher installed an
irrigation system connected to the water tanks under the hall and beside the outside school hours facility. A bore
has been drilled and capped and is ready for future installation to further support our school water resources.
Thanks to Ed Kelleher for supporting these improvements.
Kevin Stone and his family must be thanked for the excellent work they have done to completely replace the oval
surface, level the area, fix drainage issues and establish a new playing surface. Kevin has put much effort into reestablishing the oval for our students and we thank him for completing the task despite the various challenges of
weather conditions. The oval should be in full operation in the coming week. A very big thank you to our hard
working P&F for funding this project! What an excellent outcome and something the community can be proud of!
STUDENT PROTECTION!
Student protection and the welfare of our students and families is a core value of this school community. Parents
should expect the highest levels of personal safety for our students and the school to be well placed to recognize,
act upon and report instances of abuse to the relevant authorities (Police, Child protection and BCE community
services). To that end Brisbane Catholic Education annually updates and trains it’s staff on child protection
procedures and processes. Parents can access these policies and procedures on the Brisbane Catholic Education
website or the school website. Paper copies can be accessed at the school to read and review. Each classroom
prominently displays ‘Be a hero’ posters, which promote child protection and gives students information on
protective behaviours and reporting processes. The Principal, teachers and staff of St Luke’s are required by law
to mandatorily report child protection matters to police and other authorities. The Principal, Assistant Principal
and School Guidance Counsellor are contact persons for students, staff and parents relating to these matters.
Safety is the responsibility of everyone in our community.
TUCKSHOP NEWS
After two years of providing a quality tuckshop service to St Luke’s School Juanita Holman will bring to a close her
time running the tuckshop at the beginning of March. A new tuckshop convenor/provider needs to be in place by
March 2015 to continue the service for students and staff. Some years ago the School and P& F sought to hand
over the tuckshop service to an interested party after finding it increasingly difficult to maintain a consistent
convenor. Joy Groth our Uniform shop operator took up this challenge and was then followed by Juanita Holman.
An opportunity now presents for a potential service provider to apply to run the tuckshop. For further details
please contact the school Principal. Expressions of interest should be submitted to the Principal by Monday, 9
February.
IMPORTANT REMINDERS - ROAD SAFETY AROUND THE SCHOOL!
Parents please refer to the attached document outlining the drive through and safety
procedure for before school drop off and after school pick up. We would like to thank parents
for participating positively in this process, which was changed and improved early in 2014. We
are also working with the St Luke’s childcare centre in terms of general road safety around the
school. The school continues to take advice and direction in relation to road safety matters
from Redlands Council, QLD Police service and QLD Transport and Road safety. Regular
updates are given at School Board and P&F meetings. Please find reminders and procedures
attached!
The School is looking for a couple of parent volunteers to assist with the afternoon pick up
process and be a visible support, reminder and source of information especially on the Degen Rd entry to the
school at the beginning point of the pickup line and also at the give way sign coming out of the church car park.
Teachers on duty will still have full control, duty of care for the children and responsibility for the pickup area.
Interested parents can contact the school office for further details.
PROFESSIONAL LEARNING ACTIVITIES FOR STAFF
Over the past two weeks our school staff have been involved in important professional learning activities. We
have covered topics such as Student protection, spelling project, Introduction to Judaism in BCE RE curriculum,
Work place safety, ICLT, team building and community building activities. Staff have also received updates and
briefings on current and future processes, themes and activities in our school. It is our expressed wish to maintain
high quality learning and outcomes for our students and our staff are committed to taking the time to progress
these key activities.
UNIFORM DAYS FOR 2015
Monday
Formal uniform / Blouse and skort Years 1-6
Tuesday
Sports Uniform – Yrs 1-4
Formal uniform / blouse and skort Years 5-6
Wednesday
Sports Uniform – Yrs 5-6
Formal uniform / blouse and skort Years 1-4
Thursday
Formal uniform only (not blouse and skort) – Yrs 1-6
Friday
Sports Uniform – Yrs 1-6
This information is also on the front page of our website www.stlukescapalaba.qld.edu.au
OZ FIT TRAINING PROGRAM
It is a pleasure to be able to offer a sports fitness program to our year 4, 5 and 6 students in 2015! The program
intends to run on a Wednesday after school 3.15 to 4.00pm on our school oval and/or hall as weather dictates.
Alicia and Mason Wyborn, our local OZ FIT operators will provide at minimal cost an expertly run fitness program
for young athletes who want to build their fitness leading into the Cross Country, winter sports and Athletics
seasons.
Towards the end of last year the school began a partnership with OZ FIT that we feel along with school and club
based training, provides an opportunity for our students to raise their fitness and skills for sporting participation
and competition. Depending on interest this program may have the potential to include younger students. In the
first instance the program provides an opportunity for 1 extra-targeted physical training session in preparation for
school sporting seasons.
The School will continue to do all the usual preparations for various sports competitions through the HPE
program, school carnivals and provide opportunities for several weeks cross country training before school,
starting later in term 1. I encourage interested families to make contact with Alicia as soon as possible as numbers
in these programs may have to be limited due to high interest and appropriate numbers for supervision etc. I
strongly encourage parents to act quickly and refer to the attached information supplied by OZ FIT Kids! I know
that many of our families already participate in OZ Fit programs and they promoted and encouraged our
connection with OZ FIT. Thanks to Alicia and Mason for supporting this school and community partnership!
CANBERRA TOUR 2015
Students in year 5 and 6 have the opportunity to attend the 2015 St Luke’s Canberra Tour held during the first
week of September holidays. Information will be forwarded to parents in the coming week. Those families
wishing for their child to attend the tour will need to fill in an expression of interest form and pay a deposit to
secure a spot on the trip. Once we have established student numbers a limited number of parent supervisors will
be invited to join a group of staff supervisors. Parents please be aware that all school fees must be paid and up to
date to be eligible for the tour and all students must follow the appropriate school behaviour processes to attend
the tour. More information to follow.
PARENT INFORMATION EVENING
Over the next few weeks parents will have the opportunity to attend partnership meetings with their class
teachers. This is a great opportunity for parents to share the story of their child’s journey in learning. Teachers
will begin to make contact about this in the coming week. There will be a parent information night on Tuesday
17th February. Prep to year 3 at 6.00-6.30pm and year 4 to 6 at 6.30-7.00pm! The annual Principal’s ‘Big Picture
2015!’ report will be given at the School Board and P&F meeting and will also be available for parents to access
online.
NO SMOKING ON SCHOOL GROUNDS
Parents please be aware of the latest legislative and law changes prohibiting smoking on or near school grounds!
ELECTION 2015 UPDATES
With the state election coming up this weekend it is important that parents understand the implications of each
political party’s stance on education and in particular Catholic Education. Please find information attached from
QLD Catholic Education Commission that outlines the education policy of each party.
SCHOOL BOARD MEETING
A reminder to our school board members that the first meeting for 2015 takes place on Thursday 5 th February
and we look forward to continuing the good work of strategically preparing for the future of our school
community.
P&F MEETING AND MESSAGES
Parents are most welcome to attend the first meeting of the P&F on Monday 16th February at 7.30pm. Please look
out for P&F messages included in the newsletter and look out for Facebook and twitter posts promoting P&F
activities.
ONE TO ONE COMPUTERS
Year 4 students will be preparing to receive their laptops next week and we look forward to sharing the journey
they will take in the one to one program. We are now in our 3rd year of this highly successful learning innovation.
Congratulations to all involved in this important learning development. More information to follow.
DISTRICT SWIMMING NOMINATIONS
District swimming trials are coming up in the next few weeks. The school swimming carnival and catholic schools
carnivals also take place later this term. More information to follow.
SCHOOL FEE ACCOUNTS
School fee accounts will be issued early in Term 1. Detailed information for parents relating to fees, charges,
extras and contributions for 2015 will be given to the eldest child in each family next week and will also be
available on our website. Fee accounts will be emailed to families next week. (Please let us know if you have
changed your email since last year.) We encourage families to communicate early and openly about their fee
accounts.
The Parish contribution is a donation and we encourage families to support our community and in particular, the
Parish, which is the foundational institution of St Luke’s. We are but one part of the same body which is the
Catholic Church. Brisbane Catholic Education has set out clear guidelines for this process and school communities
can make voluntary contributions but must not be bound by compulsory Parish charges as parents pay school
fees for school and educational purposes. Anything else must be appropriately acknowledged and accounted for.
More information to follow.
PEANUT ALLERGIES
Parents please be aware that Prep - Yr 2 families have been advised that there will be a nut free policy for that
area of the school. To meet our legal and moral obligations to all our students there is a clear procedure around
the management of students with allergies. I would like parents to speak to their children about the need for
understanding and tolerance for this very real threat to the wellbeing of some students. I’m sure families will
support us in our efforts to maintain safety for the children.
RELIGIOUS LIFE OF THE SCHOOL
THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR B
As the school year begins, the Summer holidays are over but there is still a month of long, hot, summer days.
After soaking up the sun and the surf, it is now back to routine or, for the little ones, the adventure of going to
school for the first time. During Summer, the Church has celebrated the Advent-Christmas-Epiphany cycle, but
now has a period of Ordinary Time. While the liturgical seasons Christmas and Easter have their own distinctive
character and celebrate a specific aspect of the mystery of Christ, the weeks of Ordinary Time – especially Sunday
– are devoted to the mystery of Christ in all its aspects. The liturgical colour for Ordinary Time is green, the colour
of life and hope. (2014, Liturgy Brisbane).
Opening of School Year Liturgy: “Lighting the Way”
Tomorrow, Friday 30 January we will be celebrating the beginning of the school year with a
whole school liturgy at 9 am in the church. All parents and family members are most welcome
to attend.
Friday Morning Mass: Friday 6th February – Year 6 Blue
During the course of the year each class is able to celebrate Mass with Father Emmanuel just on their
own. This is a peaceful and intimate gathering and is a special opportunity for each class. The first Friday
morning Mass will be next Friday, 6 February at 9 am in the Church and Year 6 Blue will be
celebrating. All parents and families are most welcome to attend.
Welcome Mass and BBQ: Saturday 7th February “Lighting the Way”
Next weekend Saturday 7th February we will be celebrating our St Luke’s Parish and School Welcoming
Mass and BBQ for the start of the school year. Mass is at 6pm in the church. This will be followed by a
free BBQ. As we begin this year of St. Luke’s School community we strongly encourage you to come
along. It is an opportunity to meet new people and build or renew relationships with others. St. Luke’s is
an inclusive and accepting community and everyone is welcome. That means you don’t have to be a
Catholic – just come along and celebrate together! It would be lovely to see you all. Parents and family
members are most welcome to attend.
Shrove Tuesday: Tuesday 17th February
Shrove Tuesday, also known as Pancake Tuesday is up and coming in our calendar in week 4 Tuesday
17th February. A note will go home in the next couple of weeks for pancake orders. We
have a group of generous parents who have volunteered once again to cook the pancakes
for our students. If you would like to help, please contact our office.
Ash Wednesday: Wednesday 18th February
Our Year 6 Blue class will lead two liturgies to celebrate Ash Wednesday 18th February. Prep – Year 2:
9am Year 3 – 6: 10am. All parents and families are welcome to attend.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
‘Meditation is to wisdom as the lamp is to its light.’ (Dajian Huineng 638-713)
Have a wonderful week everyone.
Tim Lomas, Principal and Lagi Aukusitino, Acting Assistant Principal – Religious
Education.
FROM OUR PARISH PRIEST
Welcome Back and Greetings from the
Parish Office!
AS WE BEGIN ANOTHER
JOURNEY OF FAITH
As we begin another journey of faith into 2015,
we express our gratitude to our parishioners for
contributing to our collective success last year.
The journey of faith is one that is not measured
by any standard but it is still one that can be felt
and experienced. We can boldly claim that in
our parish, we constantly feel and experience
the growth in faith among our parishioners. This
is seen in the deeper sense of ownership of the
parish by most parishioners, the stronger sense
of social binding among us, and a deeper quest
for personal goodness and holiness exemplified
by many parishioners.
This year, we hope to continue our journey of
growth in faith both individually and collectively.
This journey is a never-ending one because
there is no limit to our spiritual growth. Since the
year is still fresh we can, as individuals, choose
any aspect of our faith living or spiritual
development as our area of interest this year.
One can commit to constant reading of the Bible
or other Christian books, daily prayers, acts of
charity, special devotion to a saint or holy
persons, a new ministry in the church, in your
family or in the wider community, among others.
In doing this, do not worry about successes and
failures. It is all about setting a personal faith
standard to help you to cultivate a deeper
relationship with God.
As a parish, our pastoral emphasis for this year
lies in Jesus’ invitation to two disciples of John
the Baptist “Come and see” (John 1:39). One of
the earliest disciples of Jesus, Philip, also used
the same words “come and see” (John 1:46),
when he invited Nathanael to meet Jesus. This
year is our “Year of Invitation”. As we grow in
our faith journey, we will be willing to invite our
loved ones and people around us to “Come and
see” Jesus Christ, our Lord.
God Bless,
Fr Emmanuel
2015 RECONCILIATION &
CONFIRMATION /EUCHARIST
SACRAMENTAL PROGRAM
The Information Session for the 2015
Sacramental Program will take place on
Wednesday 11th March 2015 at 9:30am at St
Anthony’s, and then be repeated at 7:30pm
at St Luke’s. This Information Session is for
parents of children who will be celebrating the
Sacraments of Reconciliation, Confirmation
/Eucharist. For information contact the Parish
Office on 3820 0100.
Baptism Preparation Session
The next Baptism Preparation evening is being
held at St Anthony’s on Tuesday 17th
February at 7.30pm. To book in, please phone
Lina at the Parish Office on 3820 0100. Lina
would also like to hear from those of you who
are interested in becoming a Baptism Buddy.
MASS TIMES ACROSS OUR PARISH
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Thursday:
Friday:
7:00 am St Anthony’s
7:00 am St Luke’s
9:00 am St Anthony’s
(during school term)
7:00 am St Luke’s
(depending on school masses)
Saturday:
Sunday:
5:00
6:00
7:00
9:00
pm St Anthony's
pm St Luke’s
am St Luke’s
am St Anthony’s
ADMIN MATTERS
P&F LEVY REBATE
There are a number of jobs around the school
that we ask parents to help with in lieu of paying
additional contractors. Parents who help are
able to claim a refund of up to $100 on the next
school year’s school fees. For those families
leaving the school (eg year 6 students) refunds
will be given in the form of a cheque at the end
of the school year. The system is administered
in the office and all times worked must be
recorded on Levy Rebate cards located in a box
on the counter in the office. (Sign in/out sheets
at working bees are for Workplace Health &
Safety purposes only.) Before any refunds can
be paid cards must be tallied and given to the
finance secretary and all school fees must be
paid in full.
The following activities equal 1 hour of claimable
time:
 1 hr of weeding
 10 x library books covered
 1hr of library shelving
 3 x student banking days
Please Note: Fundraising activities and
classroom help are not claimable.
If you worked at working bees in 2014 please
make sure your Rebate Cards (located in the
office) are up to date by this Friday afternoon so
refunds can be credited on Term 1 fees. Thank
you.
LATE ARRIVALS / EARLY DEPARTURES
Students arriving late must report to the office
(accompanied by an adult) to complete a Late
Slip and be signed in the Sign In/Out Book. The
Late Slip is taken to the class teacher and is
then retained for school records. Students
leaving before 3.00pm must be signed out by an
adult in the Sign In / Out book in the office.
Calling for Parent Volunteers to
help with School Banking!
We are SEEKING PARENT
HELPERS, to act as the School
Banking Coordinators. School
Banking deposits are currently
processed on a Wednesday morning at the library.
We will be holding a training session in the next
couple of week on a Wednesday at 9am. As a lot of
our volunteers left the school last year we are
desperate for some new helpers. Ideally you would
only work 1 morning a month. Parents willing to
help should complete their details below and return
to the Office ASAP.
Yes, I would like to help with School Banking!
Name:
________________________________________________
Phone:
________________________________________________
Email:
_________________________________________________
Attachments:
 Car Park Drive Through Procedures
 OZ Fit kids – after school program
 Election flyers
Children in years 3 - 6 who are
interested in being in the School
Choir received letters today. I will
continue to encourage any
newcomers until the end of February when I
need a firm commitment until the end of the
year. If you wish to encourage your child to
join and they did not receive a letter, extra
letters are available at the office.
Thanks,
Lorraine Osmond, Music Specialist Teacher.
TUCKSHOP NEWS
It is with sadness that I hang up my apron and
resign as tuckshop conveyor. I am moving onto
another project which I have been wanting to do
for a very long time.
I have enjoyed my time in tuckshop. I will miss
the smiling faces of all those students who come
to tuckshop sometimes just to say hello. I want
to thank all the volunteers that have passed
through the tuckshop doors - without you it
would not be possible to keep this service
going.
I will kick tuckshop off next week for the year
and then pass on my apron to someone with as
much drive and passion as I had.
Thank you to all the staff and parents who
supported the tuckshop, I hope your support will
continue.
Tuckshop for next week (Wk 2) will be:
Wednesday:
Subway orders must be
in by Tuesday.
Thursday:
Normal tuckshop menu
(on the website) or
Sushi - orders must be
in on Wednesday.
Friday morning:
Normal tuckshop
Friday afternoon: ice blocks
Thanks, Juanita Holman
Tuckshop convenor
ST LUKE’S SCHOOL, CAPALABA
DRIVE-THROUGH PROCEDURE
 Please note Degen Road and St Luke’s car park signage.
 Degen Road outside Respite Centre and St Luke’s Child Care
Centre is a no parking zone school days 2.30 - 3.30pm. This is
to assist vehicles joining the pick-up line so that they can pull out
of traffic flow on Degen Road and join the queue. Vehicles are
not to be parked there or left unattended during that time.
 After 3.05 pm, 2 minute waiting in drive-through – after that, please re-join
queue or park in car park.
 Please move to end of drive-through zone.
 Drivers please do not get out of your vehicle.
 Please follow directions from school staff who are ensuring safety for all.
 Vehicles in car park beside church are to give way to drivethrough traffic.
 Students are supervised until 3.20 pm so please consider picking up after
3.10.
 Please display your family name card on your visor when using the drivethrough. (If you have misplaced yours please ask at office for a new one).
Name cards will be issued to new and beginning families early in term 1.
 Please be patient, courteous and considerate of other drivers at all times.
 We ask parents to consider parking in the PCYC car park and walk down
to school as a safe alternative during busy and peak times.
Thank you for your support.
Tim Lomas
Principal
OZ FIT Kids - Fitness & Conditioning Development
for St Luke’s Athletes
OZ FIT Personal Training has joined forces with St Luke’s to bring a new after school program to
St Luke’s students who want to take their sport to the next level.
The trainers from OZFIT will be working on Fitness & Conditioning
Development for the St Luke’s athletes who are wishing to compete
in local programs.
We aim to make the sessions fun, enjoyable and achievable for all children by using a
combination of fun games, hand-eye coordination drills and cardio drills. Our trainers are fully
certified to work with children and are very passionate about helping future generations lead a
healthy lifestyle. What they do now will affect them in years to come.
The program is for children in years 4 to 6. The session goes for 45mins on a Wednesday from
3.15pm to 4pm and is held at St Luke’s Catholic Parish School on Degen Road Capalaba. It is
$50per child for a 9 week program. This must be paid (cash) upfront before the cut off date.
Please place money in an envelope with child’s name on front.
We have separated the program into 2 x 9 week blocks so we can focus on different sporting
areas.
Block 1 – Cross Country Fitness and Conditioning Training (9 weeks)
Wednesday 11th March 2015 – Wednesday 1st April 2015
Wednesday 22nd April 2015 - Wednesday 20th May 2015
*Upfront Payment for Block 1 is due Wednesday 4th March 2015
Block 2 – Athletics Fitness and Conditioning Training (9 Weeks)
Wednesday 27th May 2015 – Wednesday 24th June 2015
Wednesday 15th July 2015 – Wednesday 5th August 2015
*Upfront Payment for Block 2 is due Wednesday 20th May 2015
If you have children that may be interested in this program you can contact St Luke’s
administration or OZ FIT Personal Training today for more information on 0433 299 695 or
[email protected]
Limited spots available so bookings are essential.
Kind regards
Mason & Alicia @ OZ FIT Personal Training
Towards the State Election 2015
KEY ISSUE 1
Annual recurrent funding that keeps pace
with rising costs of education
81%
Catholic schools in Queensland, on average,
receive only about 81% of the government
funding per student received by state schools.
On average Catholic schools
receive only 81% of the
government funding per student
received by state schools
Additional funding for Catholic schools helps
relieve pressure on school fees and assists more
families to choose a Catholic school, therefore
saving government money.
The Catholic sector is seeking to work with
the next Queensland Government to achieve
consistent budget outcomes that:
Catholic schools
$9,238
per
student
received in government funding
• will assist it to keep pace with the rising costs
of operating schools, including teacher salary
increases
State schools
• will ensure that the gap in resourcing between
the Catholic and state education sectors does
not widen.
$11,440
per
student
received in government funding
QUEENSL AND SCHOOLS
ANNUAL RECURRENT INCOME
PER STUDENT 2012
$9,238
$11,440
$11,675
Catholic
schools
State
schools
Catholic
schools
Total government funding
per student (MySchool website 2012)
$12,021
State
schools
$14,426
Independent
schools
Total net recurrent income
per student (government funding
+ parent and community contributions)
(MySchool website 2012)
Towards the State Election 2015
KEY ISSUE 2
Increased capital funding to help meet the schooling
needs of Queensland’s growing population
Supporting the Catholic sector to deliver its share
of new school places ensures educational choice for
families and saves significant amounts of money
for the Queensland Government.
Enrolments in all Queensland schools are
projected to increase by 303,000 students
between 2011 - 2031. (Queensland Schools
Planning Commission - School infrastructure
demand maps, 2013 edition).
Demand for places in Queensland Catholic schools
is projected to increase by around 60,000 students
between 2011 and 2031, requiring the development
of 2-3 new schools every year and expansion
of many others.
The Catholic sector cannot keep pace with this level
of growth under current capital funding arrangements.
The Catholic community purchases land for school
sites and contributes an average of 23% to the
cost of construction of new schools, therefore
saving Queensland Government significant
amounts of money.
The Catholic sector also has a strong track record
of delivering new school facilities successfully
and efficiently.
The Catholic sector is seeking a commitment
from the next Queensland Government to:
• develop short (3 year) and long term (10 year)
partnership plans to help deliver the school
infrastructure required
• provide a new schools capital grants program
that reflects the real cost of delivering the
additional school places, including an
appropriate share of the planned $1 billion
Future Schools Fund under the Strong Choices
Investment Program.
HIGH GROW TH AREAS OF QUEENSL AND (> 4000 )
AND PROJECTED INCREASE IN TOTAL NUMBER
OF SCHOOL STUDENTS (2011–2031)
SUNSHINE COAST
HINTERLAND
6,145
(Queensland Schools Planning Commission 2013)
CALOUNDRA
8,814
CABOOLTURE
6,596
NARANGBA
/ BURPENGARY
9,029
9,275
CAIRNS SOUTH
NORTH LAKES
9,257
16,307
11,473
IPSWICH
IPSWICH
6,064
20,338
HINTERLAND
TOWNSVILLE
INNER
FOREST LAKE
MT GRAVATT
/ OXLEY
5,265
4,709
TOOWOOMBA
5,843
MACKAY
SPRINGFIELD
/ REDBANK
24,243
7,355
7,670
ROCKHAMPTON
BROWNS
PLAINS
6,091
JIMBOOMBA
16,568
CLEVELAND
/ STRADBROKE
4,068
BEENLEIGH
4,296
ORMEAU / OXENFORD
26,118
GLADSTONE / BILOELA
BEAUDESERT
4,230
SEQ
NERANG
4,467
4 September 2014
Dear Colleagues and Friends,
We are writing to seek your support to highlight issues important to Catholic education in the lead-up to the
next state election.
The election will be held sometime between now and March 2015, and it is vital that we use this time to
ensure political representatives are made aware of the needs of Catholic education as their parties
formulate policies.
To this end, we encourage principals and parent leaders from Catholic school communities to meet with
local MPs and candidate(s), preferably between now and the end of the school year.
The materials enclosed have been jointly developed by the Queensland Catholic Education Commission
(QCEC) and the Federation of Parents and Friends Associations (P&F) to provide information about the key
issues and guidance on how to gain the best outcomes from these meetings:
o
o
o
A Guide to Political Action
Framing paper: Catholic Schools - Delivering Quality Education
Outlines of key issues, including key messages (x5)
These resources, along with a list of other Catholic schools in your electorate, and links to lists of MPs and
candidates, are available online at: www.qcec.catholic.edu.au (follow the State Election 2015 link on the
home page). For further information or additional hard copies of materials please contact Gerard Delaney at
QCEC on [email protected] or Ph 3316 5819.
Any insights or feedback from meetings would also be appreciated and this can be provided for the joint
reference of QCEC/P&F by emailing [email protected].
As part of this advocacy process, the QCEC and the P&F will seek formal responses to the issues raised from
party leaders, and these will be provided for publication in school newsletters in the weeks leading up to the
election.
We take this opportunity to thank you for your ongoing support for Catholic education in Queensland. Any
assistance you can provide to ensure our voice is heard by politicians at this important time will be greatly
appreciated.
Yours sincerely
Mike Byrne
Carmel Nash
Executive Director
Queensland Catholic Education Commission
Executive Director
Federation of Parents and Friends
Associations